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
Plans to build affordable housing rejected
Nadia Lincoln BBC (No paywall)Developers say they have been left "appalled" after a proposal of 20 affordable homes on the edge of a village was rejected. West Northamptonshire Council went against its officers' advice when it rejected the application for 20 houses on a paddock beyond the boundary of Potterspury, near Milton Keynes. Developers Abbeymill Homes and Grand Union Housing said the houses would be marketed under shared ownership and social rent. An Abbeymill Homes spokesperson said: "[We] were appalled by the behaviour of the committee and decision last week to reject its affordable homes-led proposal, despite the support of council officers."
# International, Rent.Scotland's housing emergency 'getting worse', expert warns
BBC (No paywall)Scotland's housing emergency is getting worse and the system is "broken", a senior local authority official has warned. John Mills, head of housing at Fife Council, said demand had soared since the Covid pandemic due to the number of relationship breakdowns. And he told BBC Scotland's The Sunday Show the government needs to build at scale, buy more homes and reduce the number of empty properties in the public and private sector.
# International, Public and community housing, Rent.Better Deal for Renters - Two Years On
Tenants' Union of NSW (No paywall)A new report card released today by the National Association of Renters’ Organisations and National Shelter shows that, two years after National Cabinet promised a “Better Deal for Renters,” most governments have failed to deliver meaningful reforms. Millions of renters are still exposed to unfair rent hikes, arbitrary evictions and unsafe homes. For the one-third of Australians who rent, basic rights and housing stability are still dictated by postcode. The National Association of Renters’ Organisations and National Shelter are calling for urgent, decisive action to give renters a fair go across all states and territories.
https://www.tenants.org.au/news/better-deal-renters-two-years
# Must read, TUNSW in the media, Research alert NSW, Rent.‘Tricky situation’: Sydney commuter car park to be deep cleaned after homeless evicted
Anthony Segaert The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)The state government has ordered a deep clean of a busy commuter car park in Sydney’s south-west after months of increasing community concern about an encampment of homeless people living in the building. The top three floors of the Warwick Farm commuter car park, which allows drivers to park for free before catching a train at the station next door, have become a no-go zone over the past three months as an increasing number of people have lived in the stairwells and upper storeys.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/tricky-situation-sydney-comm…
# NSW, Eviction.Sydney's inner west residents pack into forum on high-rise apartment plan
Ursula Malone ABC (No paywall)Several hundred residents have staged a protest against a plan to build tens of thousands of high-rise apartments in Sydney's inner west. A large crowd carrying placards and banners gathered in the rain outside the Ashfield Civic Centre ahead of a Community Forum that was billed as the last chance for residents to have their say on the Inner West Council's Fairer Future Plan. Protester Elaine James, from the Housing for All Local Democracy Group, said she wanted to see more new homes built.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09-23/sydney-inner-west-fairer-…
# Hot topic NSW, .Landlords fire up over Aussie renter's controversial request: 'Not their privilege'
Stewart Perrie Yahoo News (No paywall)Landlords have hit back against a controversial request to provide tenants across the country with information about their finances and rental history. The call came from beleaguered renter Renata, who is facing the possibility of a second eviction this year after two of her landlords fell on hard times and had to sell the homes she was living in. A poll of more than 7,000 Yahoo Finance readers found 54 per cent said renters deserve "absolutely nothing" from landlords. Many homeowners got in touch with Yahoo Finance about the proposal and echoed the sentiment that they don't owe anything to renters.
https://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/landlords-fire-up-over-aussie-…
# TUNSW in the media NSW, Rent.Byron Bay's 60-day holiday rental cap yields mixed results in first year
Emma Rennie ABC (No paywall)A year after controversial holiday rental caps were introduced in Byron Bay to boost rental availability for locals, the data is unclear about whether the endeavour has been a success. After the changes were introduced last September, non-hosted short-stay properties, where holiday-makers typically rent an entire property, in most areas of the Byron Shire could only be rented for 60 days out of the year.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09-23/60-day-caps-in-byron-bay-…
# Hot topic NSW, .‘Scare tactics’: Legal win landlords don’t want you to know
Harrison Christian news.com.au (No paywall)A tenant has won a legal battle with his landlord after an “excessive” bid to increase the rent for his Sydney apartment by $200 per week. Aaron Kwok launched proceedings in the Civil and Administrative Tribunal of New South Wales (NCAT) after his landlord gave him notice of a rent increase from $700 to $900 per week. “My landlord’s agent is trying to force me out by increasing the rent to unjustifiable amounts,” Mr Kwok told the tribunal, according to the July decision.
https://www.news.com.au/finance/real-estate/renting/scare-tactic…
# NSW, Rent, Tribunal NCAT.