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
Which banks are passing on the latest RBA interest rate rise to mortgage holders? NAB kicked it off, then ANZ and Commonwealth followed suit
Dannielle Maguire ABC (No paywall)On Tuesday, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) raised interest rates by 0.5 of a percentage point, taking the cash rate target to 2.35 per cent. It wasn't until Friday afternoon that the National Australia Bank (NAB) and ANZ announced they were passing on the rise in full to mortgage holders. By Friday evening, Commonwealth Bank followed suit but many other banks were yet to say if they'd raise their rates or not.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-09-09/rba-interest-rate-rise-an…
# Australia, Housing market.CGT on sale of rental property may not be as bad as you think
George Cochranw The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Once you rented your house for more than six years, you are taken to have purchased it at the time you first rented it – not at the end of the sixth year. This is called the “home first used to produce income rule”. [Read on]
https://www.smh.com.au/money/super-and-retirement/cgt-on-sale-of…
# Australia, Landlords and agents, Tax.Who is new housing secretary Simon Clarke?
Grainne Cuffe Inside Housing (Paywall)Mr Clarke pledged public support for Liz Truss ahead of her appointment, claiming she will “take decisive and immediate action” to support families and businesses affected by soaring energy bills. The new housing secretary could be positive in terms of building new homes and achieving net zero. He has publicly supported regeneration projects, particularly in the North. In May, he tweeted that it would be a “disaster for the Conservatives” if “we do not build the homes we need, where we need them. But much, much more importantly, it will be a disaster for generations of people who will not be able to own a good home,” he said. Mr Clarke is an outspoken advocate of tackling climate change. ... In terms of voting history, in September 2018, Mr Clarke voted against higher fines for landlords or letting agencies breaching the law, limiting what tenants can be charged for. In the same month, he also voted not to further restrict the circumstances in which landlords and letting agents can charge tenants for losses arising from a breach of a tenancy agreement. It will be interesting to see where he stands on private rented sector reforms, which the government is currently in the process of legislating.
https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/insight/who-is-new-housi…
# International, Public and community housing, Rent, Federal Government, Housing market.More Australians are renting long-term, but tenants' rights are far behind
Isabel Moussalli ABC (No paywall)As home ownership becomes increasingly out of reach for many Australians, more and more people are resigning themselves to the reality of being renters for life. Housing experts say as the number of long-term renters continues to rise, the nation should start looking overseas where rents rises are controlled and leases of up to five years are not uncommon. (ABC PM)
https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/pm/renting-long-term-but-t…
# TUNSW in the media, Audio Australia, Rent, Families, Housing market, No-grounds evictions.‘We screamed our hearts out for help’: homeless escape Pakistan floods
Shah Meer Baloch The Guardian (Paywall)Hundreds of thousands of homes are under water in Sindh province, and locals have no food and say the state has abandoned them. ... Ali Baksh, a farmer, came and pointed his fingers towards the flood water, where crops of rice and wheat had been cultivated but been buried and washed away. “There was no rain a few months back and there was a severe shortage of water for crops,” he said. “We prayed for rain. But when it rained, we became homeless and our crops were destroyed. We have nothing left.”
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/sep/06/we-screamed-our-he…
# International, Homelessness.Supporting vulnerable tenants during a crisis
Pamela Hunter Tenants' Union of NSW (No paywall)When the pandemic first hit Australia, COVID-19 did not discriminate, and we saw people of all walks of life impacted. The same now goes for the rising cost of living. It too does not discriminate, and we are all feeling the pinch. The difference this time around is that landlords hold the upper hand in how much of the impact they pass on to their tenants. With rising interest rates, vacancy rates at an all-time low and increasing pressure on household expenses, rent increases are disproportionately impacting the more vulnerable in our communities. ... At VERTO’s Tenancy Advice and Advocacy Service (TAAS), we continue to see an increase in no-grounds terminations in many markets. These terminations allow a landlord to evict a tenant without reason, giving them just 90 days to find alternate housing. This year alone, the number of tenants seeking our service due to one of these eviction notices has risen by a staggering 190%.
https://www.tenants.org.au/blog/supporting-vulnerable-tenants-du…
# NSW, Rent, Housing market, No-grounds evictions, Regional NSW, Tenants Advice and Advocacy Services.Australians are being asked to make tough decisions to keep a roof over their heads. What would you do?
Bridget Judd ABC (No paywall)What would you do to keep a roof over your head? The ABC has spoken to dozens of people trying to survive in Australia's property market. Use the following interactive and see how you would tackle some of the scenarios faced by many Australians. You'll make the decisions, and see what life's like for those who don't always have one. ... [And then] read Bridget Judd's article entitled: 'This is what you told us about navigating the housing market'.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-09-05/cost-of-living-tough-deci…
# TUNSW in the media NSW, Rent, Families, Home ownership, Housing affordability, Housing market, Regional NSW, Work, employment.Albanese government turns to super funds to help address social housing shortfall
Niciole Hegarty ABC (No paywall)The federal government is seeking to entice the superannuation sector to invest in social and affordable housing as part of its plan to tackle a ballooning supply shortage. Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services Stephen Jones held a round table with peak industry group Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) this week in a bid to secure their investment. The meeting followed the Prime Minister and Treasurer last week announcing the government would make up to $575 million from the National Housing Infrastructure Facility available to encourage private investment, particularly from superannuation. Also, check out the paper from Swinburne University associate professor Christian Nygaard, released in March 2022, that found the shortage in affordable housing to be endemic across Australia. That study found the social and economic cost of that shortfall to be in the order of $676 million per annum, a figure projected to rise to $1,286,000,000 by 2036. Read his paper at: [https://www.communityhousing.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/CHIA-Everyones-Home-Wider-Benefits-Analysis-31.3.2022.pdf] Check the earlier report by Lauren Troy, Ryan van den Nouwelant and Bill Randolph of City Futures Research Centre entitled: 'Estimating need and costs of social and affordable housing delivery' at: [https://apo.org.au/node/225051]
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-09-07/government-turns-to-super…
# Australia, Public and community housing, Federal Government, Housing market.