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.
Our main email newsletter, Tenant News is sent once every two months. You can subscribe or update your subscription preferences for any of our email newsletters here.
See notes about the Digest and a list of other contributors here. Many thanks to those contributors for sharing links with us.
We love sharing the news and hope you find it informative! We're very happy to deliver it for free, but if you find it valuable, can you help cover the extra costs incurred by making a donation?
Archive
Rental affordability hits record lows
Stephanie Smail ABC (No paywall)Rental affordability has hit record lows, with the cost of rent rising two and a half times faster than wages over the past five years. The figures, revealed in analysis by property research firm Cotality, show many tenants are now paying more than a third of their wages on rent. And there are signs things could keep getting worse.
https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/am/rental-affordability-h…
# TUNSW in the media, Audio Australia, .Bleak outlook for regional renters
Samantha Elley and JeffG Northern Rivers Times (No paywall)Every day we see posts from families on social media looking desperately for accommodation, hoping to find something that hasn’t been listed with the real estate agents as the queues there for open houses and applications are way too long. It may not come as a surprise that Byron Bay is one of the least affordable locations in the country and this has been confirmed in the 11th Rental Affordability Index released on Monday. This report started in 2015 in partnership between non-profit organisation National Shelter and research company, SGS Economics & Planning.
https://thenorthernriverstimes.com.au/bleak-outlook-for-regional…
# Hot topic NSW, Rent.Homeless by text: Aussie renter evicted in 14 days
David Bonaddio realestate.com.au (No paywall)A two-week text message notice to vacate left Clinton Mostert homeless, a case he says shows how fragile renting has become across Australia. The message told him the owners wanted the property back. He had about two weeks to leave. “We were told by text message,” Mr Mostert said. With little time to find another rental in a tight market, the notice pushed him into homelessness, an experience he says exposed how quickly stability can disappear for renters. Now on a 12-month lease in Melbourne’s southeast, Mr Mostert said the sense of security rarely lasts the full year.
https://www.realestate.com.au/news/homeless-by-text-aussie-rente…
# Australia, Eviction, Rent.Melbourne public housing tower residents win injunction against eviction notices ahead of High Court bid
Kate Ashton ABC (No paywall)Homes Victoria will be temporarily halted from issuing eviction notices to residents at three Melbourne public housing towers after a ruling by Victoria's Court of Appeal. About 32 households are thought to remain at a group of towers facing imminent demolition in Flemington and in North Melbourne. The towers — at 12 Holland Court, 120 Racecourse Road and 33 Alfred Street — are proposed to be redeveloped next as part of the state government plan to modernise 44 inner-city public housing sites to provide homes for more people.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02-05/melbourne-housing-tower-i…
# Australia, Eviction.Jim Chalmers targets tax break that supercharged Boomer wealth
Samantha Maiden news.com.au (No paywall)Property investors are on high alert amid speculation Treasurer Jim Chalmers is set to slash and burn the capital gains tax (CGT) discount ahead of an inflation-busting budget. The crackdown would not apply to the family home because owner occupiers are already exempt from capital gains tax. However, it could mean instead of getting a 50 per cent discount when property investors sell a home they would get a reduced discount. And the big sell will be generational inequity, amid complaints it’s too hard for younger Australians to buy a first home because there’s too many investors.
https://www.news.com.au/national/politics/jim-chalmers-targets-t…
# Australia, .A Victorian schoolteacher was applying for ‘heaps of rentals’ online – then someone accessed his bank account
Josh Taylor The Guardian (No paywall)Michael* has spent the past two months trying to get his digital identity back. The 47-year-old Victorian schoolteacher was in the process of moving to a new town and applying for rental properties online. Around this time – and unbeknown to him – his mobile phone number was transferred to someone else. Michael says this was achieved by having access to something often required for identity verification: his passport number. After that, someone was able to gain access to his bank and superannuation accounts, and began making transfers. He suspects this all stems from information he submitted to rent application platforms, which included his passport information.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/feb/06/property-…
# Australia, Rent, Starting a tenancy.Rental affordability hits record low as rents rise 2.5 times faster than wages, analysis shows
Samuel Yang ABC (No paywall)Australian rents have risen 2.5 times faster than wages over the past five years, pushing rental affordability to record lows, according to new analysis by property research firm Cotality. National rents climbed 43.9 per cent in the five years to September 2025, compared with wage growth of 17.5 per cent over the same period. As a result, tenants now pay an average 33.4 per cent of their pre-tax income on rent — the highest level on record, according to Cotality — placing growing strain on household budgets.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02-11/rental-affordability-rent…
# Hot topic Australia, .Calls for action as rental crisis deepens
Andy Park ABC (No paywall)Experts are warning there's no end in sight for the rental crisis, prompting fresh calls for action to help struggling Australians. New analysis shows rental affordability is at record lows, with costs increasing at more than double the rate of wages over the past five years.
https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/worldtoday/calls-for-acti…
# Audio Australia, Rent.