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
Emma was homeless and couch surfing until a young mothers program helped 'save' her life
Felicity James ABC (No paywall)A few years ago, Emma Sailor's confidence and self-esteem were at a low point. So, her caseworker suggested she join a small group of young mothers in a study program that offered childcare in the same building. "I was homeless before I came upon this program with my child, so I was couch-surfing with her," she said. Emma said the contact with other young, single mothers who have shared similar experiences was life-changing for her.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-10-03/northern-territory-young-…
# Australia, Homelessness, Women, Young people.As house prices soar, Berliners are angry. And so is much of Europe
The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Berlin: During Europe’s deep COVID recession, millions of jobs were lost, incomes and livelihoods were destroyed and many feared for their financial future. Housing took a different path. A boom in property prices widened the gulf between the haves and have-nots, fed anger about housing inequality and accusations that property markets are broken, dysfunctional, unfair. While some have benefited from rising values, many are facing high rents, substandard buildings, or soaring prices that keep home ownership out of reach.
https://www.smh.com.au/world/europe/as-house-prices-soar-berline…
# Australia, Rent, Coronavirus COVID-19, Home ownership, Housing market, International.Better building standards are good for the climate, your health, and your wallet. Here’s what the National Construction Code could do better
Trivess Moore, Alan Pears, Erika Bartak and Nicola Willand The Conversation (No paywall)The recent IPCC report highlighted we must urgently transition to a low carbon future. One low hanging fruit is to improve the sustainability of new and existing housing. Minimum performance and quality requirements for new housing in Australia are set via the National Construction Code. The last significant change was in 2010 with the introduction of the six-star requirements. These requirements are at least 40% less stringent than international best practice. A suite of proposed changes to energy efficiency section of the National Construction Code are a good step forward. However, a lot more can be done.
https://theconversation.com/better-building-standards-are-good-f…
# Australia, Housing market, Minimum habitability standards.Karrina Kemp pays $585 rent for her home, but she’s living in a tent at the QLD border
Caitlin Fitzsimmons The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Karrina Kemp never expected to be living in a tent with three children, but that’s all she can afford while waiting to be allowed to cross the Queensland border. Ms Kemp is one of more than 11,000 Queenslanders stranded in NSW or Victoria while waiting for border passes or exemptions to be allowed across the border. She is also one of several people who told The Sun-Herald they were sleeping in a tent or car as a result, mostly in NSW border towns and some in Victoria.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/karrina-kemp-pays-585-rent-for-h…
# NSW, Land lease communities, Coronavirus COVID-19, Homelessness.‘I live in a flammable box’: cladding scandal threatens to overshadow Johnson’s levelling up agenda
Toby Helm and Michael Savage The Guardian (No paywall)From the United Kingdom ... Anastasia Frost often wonders why she listened to the Tories when they talked about aspiration, the benefits of home ownership and levelling up. She lives in a two-bedroom flat in the Ancoats area of Manchester with her husband and their 11-week-old son. “We put trust in this system. We were told you must buy a flat, you must get on the property ladder, but what good is it really?” she says. The Frosts spent 10 years saving up and finally were able to buy their home in 2015. But then, in 2017, came the Grenfell Tower disaster and, more than four years on, as they wait for their block to be declared safe – if it ever is – their home is worth nothing. You might also check out the story at: [https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/sep/26/owners-face-new-trap-in-their-bid-to-sell-flats-hit-by-grenfell-cladding-crisis]
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/oct/03/i-live-in-a-flam…
# International, Strata, Home ownership, Housing market, Minimum habitability standards.‘Bad idea’: Experts warn property market intervention will push out young buyers
Jennifer Duke The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)First home buyers and low-income earners will find it harder to buy into the Sydney and Melbourne property markets if regulators intervene, with experts warning mooted rules limiting lending could worsen the housing affordability crisis. ... Grattan Institute economic policy program director Brendan Coates said this type of regulatory intervention could add to the problems facing buyers. ... AMP Capital chief economist Shane Oliver has called on the regulators to provide carve outs for first-time buyers to ensure they aren’t affected by the crackdown.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/bad-idea-experts-warn-pr…
# NSW, Home ownership, Housing affordability, Housing market, Young people.Borrowing power could be curtailed by loan curbs; Home loan growth strongest since early 2018
Clancy Yeates The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)At 11.36am ... Financial regulators yesterday gave their strongest signal yet that they will introduce clamps on the mortgage market, which made front page news in today’s Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. At 1.14pm ... New figures from the Reserve Bank show growth in the $1.9 trillion mortgage market continues to accelerate, as ultra-cheap debt and tight supply put a rocket under house prices.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/markets/asx-set-for-brighter-sta…
# Australia, Home ownership, Housing market, Landlords and agents.Record housing prices see buyers turning to fixer-uppers to secure their dream homes
Zilla Gordon ABC (No paywall)Covered in graffiti, broken windows and knee-high grass, Katie Keam bought this home for less than $200k — and she wouldn't live anywhere else.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-09-30/house-prices-townsville-q…
# Australia, Home ownership, Housing market, Young people.