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
Opinion: Why a new bill to fix basic home efficiency should not be rejected by SA govt
Bernie Barrett InDaily (No paywall)For many South Australians, 2025 has been another year of juggling bills, cutting back, and worrying about what comes next. The rising cost of rent, food, and energy is putting immense strain on households across the state — and renters are bearing the brunt of it. This week, the government has the opportunity to address these cost-of-living pressures through reforms that improve the quality and efficiency of rental homes.
https://www.indailysa.com.au/news/opinion/2025/11/11/opinion-why…
# Must read Australia, Rent, Utilities water energy internet.WA government accused of offering 'disgusting' house littered with needles
Dunja Karagic and Ruby Littler ABC (No paywall)Having experienced homelessness for years, single mother of two Amelia Johnson says she was relieved when she secured a house in Western Australia's far north. But the relief quickly vanished when she visited the Forrest Street home assigned to her in October by the state's Department of Housing and Works in Broome, 2,000 kilometres north of Perth. "It was just shocking," Ms Johnson said. "The further I walked, the more disgusted I became."
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11-11/community-housing-concern…
# Australia, Public and community housing, Rent, Repairs, Security and safety.While Australians feel the pressure to buy a home this Austrian city embraces lifelong renters
Isabella Higgins and Rhiannon Hobbins ABC (No paywall)Sally and Theo Messenger feel they might be part of a generation of lifelong renters. "I imagine that it's just going to become the reality, that so many less people can actually buy," Mr Messenger said. The couple has well-paid jobs, but with all their life expenses and two kids, they cannot get a deposit together. "We feel we can't be competitive in the [home ownership] market," he said. Both love their current rented property in suburban Perth and would be happy if they could have more security in their rental arrangement.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11-08/forever-renters-want-solu…
# Australia, Rent.Australia’s rental homes are among our worst “glorified tents” – and renters are paying the price
Carol Valente The Fifth Estate (No paywall)When the cicadas start singing and the mercury climbs, most Australians brace for another summer of scorching days and restless nights. But for millions of Australians, the season also means stifling, inefficient homes that trap heat, drive up bills and endanger health. Yes, this is another article about Australian “glorified tents”. But we’re focusing here on the rental homes that bleed energy, money and wellbeing.
https://thefifthestate.com.au/columns/spinifex/australias-rental…
# Must read, Hot topic Australia, Rent, Utilities water energy internet.International student awarded $10,000 in compensation after being evicted from UniLodge accommodation
Elizabeth Byrne ABC (No paywall)An international student, who was evicted from her accommodation after making ongoing complaints about other noisy students, has been awarded $10,000 in compensation by the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (ACAT). The University of Canberra student lived in UniLodge accommodation after signing an occupancy agreement earlier this year. She was evicted after claims she had breached the agreement, when she was alleged to have threatened other students with a knife.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11-11/acat-compensation-for-stu…
# Australia, Eviction.Broken public housing policy not unfixable, former top judge says
ABC (No paywall)The great Australian dream of owning a house has become so intertwined with generating wealth that it's leading the system to failure, and, as a result, the demands on public housing are now chronic. That's according to my next guest, Kevin Bell, a former justice of the Victorian Supreme Court who is now adjunct professor of law at Monash University. Mr Bell has some concerns about the major public housing plans currently underway in Melbourne.
https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/radionational-breakfast/p…
# Audio Australia, Public and community housing, Rent.Reality check: Promised 67,000 homes a year would send building into freefall
Nicole Gurran The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Another day, another “radical” proposal to fix housing supply and deliver more affordable homes. The promises – to deliver 67,000 additional homes a year, cut rents by 12 per cent and prices by $100,000 – sound wonderful. Even better, the new homes would be well located near transport and jobs. The Grattan Institute’s latest “plan” to lift Australia’s laggard housing construction is essentially an anti-plan.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/reality-check-promised-67-000-ho…
# Australia, .Radical plan to revamp nation’s capital cities – and shave $100,000 off house prices
Shane Wright The Sydney Morning Herald (No paywall)A radical plan to allow three-storey apartments and townhouses to be built anywhere in Australia’s capital cities would deliver 67,000 extra homes a year, slash rents and give young people a chance at living close to their local CBD. The independent Grattan Institute think tank estimates Melbourne could build an extra 431,000 homes within 15 kilometres of the city centre if property owners were freely able to build three-storey townhouses and apartments without a specialist planning permit.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/radical-plan-to-revamp-n…
# Australia, .