Housing News Digest
Housing News Digest
The Tenants' Union Housing News Digest compiles our pick of items from all the latest tenancy and housing media, sent once per week, on Thursdays.
Below is the Digest archive from November 2020 onwards. From time to time you will find additional items in the archive that did not make it into the weekly Digest email. Earlier archives are here, where you can also find additional digests by other organisations.
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Archive
‘Regrettable’ Fremantle tent city brought no benefit to rough sleepers, council reports
Marta Pascual Juanola The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)A controversial camp in Fremantle provided no long-term benefit to homeless people and was a “regrettable event” that tarnished the city’s image, according to a report by the local council. The ‘tent city’ at Pioneer Park, which slept up to 100 people at its peak in January, also took a toll on local businesses and incurred a raft of additional costs for the City of Fremantle.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/western-australia/regrettable-fr…
# Australia, Homelessness.'Like moving a herd of elephants': San Francisco's history of houses on wheels
Gabrielle Cannon The Guardian (No paywall)Hundreds of San Franciscans lined the streets on Sunday – phones drawn and ready – to glimpse a unique procession slowly making its way through the city. “Ladies and gentlemen, please stand on the sidewalk,” a police speaker blared. “There’s a house coming down the street.” The two-story, 5,170-sq-ft green Victorian, known as the Englander House, had spent more than a century in the heart of San Francisco. But for years it stood vacant and fell into disrepair ... The city, which suffers from a housing shortage, was ready to build a 48-unit building in its place. But instead of demolishing the beautiful building, teams lifted it off its foundation, put it on wheels, and heaved it to a new home six blocks away. ... “It was like moving a herd of giant elephants – and about the same speed."
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/feb/23/san-francisco-vi…
# History International, Housing market.Perth's homelessness crisis: the WA election issue Mark McGowan can't shake off
Narelle Towie The Guardian (No paywall)Just a few blocks from Western Australia’s parliament, dozens of vulnerable people have been turfed out of a city hotel and on to the streets after the state government refused to pay for their accommodation. Like the last time they were moved on, they have nowhere to go. These are some of the people at the centre of Perth’s homelessness crisis, one of the few election issues on which WA’s “most popular premier in history”, Mark McGowan, does not control the narrative.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/feb/24/perths-ho…
# Hot topic Australia, Public and community housing, Coronavirus COVID-19, Homelessness.Social housing owned by for-profit providers increases by 75%
Dominic Brady Inside Housing (Paywall)From the United Kingdom ... Data collected by the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) showed that 49 for-profit providers reported having 9,313 social homes compared with 5,342 in the year to March 2019. The data reflects the growth of the for-profit sector in recent years, with a number of high-profile private companies registering for-profit arms in recent times.
https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/news/social-housing-owned-b…
# International, Public and community housing, Landlords and agents.Fires bring home climate-driven urgency of rethinking where we live – and how
Barbara Norman and others The Conversation (No paywall)As we were still recovering from last summer’s fires in southeast Australia, the southwest fires brought in 2021. Both were far more intense fires than seen before, driven by deep drying, extreme heat and powerful winds. It’s a harsh reminder that climate change is going to bounce us up and down with increased frequency.
https://theconversation.com/fires-bring-home-climate-driven-urge…
# Hot topic Australia, Planning and development.Demand for guarantor home loans on the rise, as parents race to help children onto property ladder
Kate Burke Domain (Paywall)Rapidly rising house prices and a fear of missing out is driving up demand for guarantor home loans and help from the bank of mum and dad, with growing concern among first-home buyers and their parents that the “great Australian dream” is slipping out of reach.
https://www.domain.com.au/news/demand-for-guarantor-home-loans-o…
# Australia, Home ownership.COVID-19 hit many Australians hard, but there were winners in the pandemic economy
Norman Hermant ABC (No paywall)In June of last year, Mickayla Downey and Matthew Hardiman had a plan: move in with the parents, save on rent and build a deposit for their first home. Then two COVID-19 lockdowns hit Melbourne and something unexpected happened: their savings grew much faster than anticipated. ... Ms Downey, 26, and Mr Hardiman, 29, estimate they saved $35,000 due to lifestyle changes through COVID. By December, they were in the market for their first home. And they had lots of company.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-23/covid-australian-economy-…
# Australia, Coronavirus COVID-19, Home ownership.Inequality and the housing bubble
(Paywall)Despite the damaging effects of Covid-19, higher unemployment and flat wages, the Australian housing market has snapped back. But home ownership is becoming increasingly unaffordable for young people, with dire consequences for their future. (The Saturday Paper)
https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/politics/2021/02/20/ine…
# Australia, Affordable housing, Coronavirus COVID-19, Home ownership, Housing market.