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
LANDMARK PROJECT TO ALLEVIATE HOUSING STRESS
(No paywall)The first of more than 400 people have received the keys to their new home in Redfern following the completion of one of the state’s largest social and affordable housing projects. Minister for Families, Communities and Disability Services Alister Henskens said the 162-unit development will alleviate housing stress and provide critical support for those who need it most. ... The project was supported with finance from the National Housing and Finance Investment Corporation and land from the City of Sydney, and has an 8.3-star rating under the Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme. ... [St George Community Housing CEO. Scott Langford, said] "Given the location in Redfern, we have committed a target of 25 per cent of allocations to Aboriginal household'.
https://www.dcj.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0018/812232/la…
# NSW, Aboriginal renters, Public and community housing, Affordable housing, Federal Government, Local Government, State Government.Property boom tipped to continue into 2022
John Collett The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Property prices are likely to keep roaring higher into further record territory next year, as the Australian economy’s stronger-than-expected recovery continues. And there is a good chance that they could continue to climb after that, market experts say, albeit prices could start to moderate and even return to their long-term percentage annual growth rates of low, single digits. ... Figures from SQM Research show that although inner-city apartment rental vacancy rates have dipped from their record highs of last year, they remain elevated by historic levels.
https://www.smh.com.au/money/investing/property-boom-tipped-to-c…
# Australia, Rent, Housing market.House prices have skyrocketed in Queanbeyan, pricing many locals out of the market
Isaac Nowroozi ABC (No paywall)Many Canberrans who find themselves priced out of the housing market have long looked across the border into New South Wales to get ahead, but as the COVID-19 property boom continues around Australia, the surrounding region is not offering much relief. ... [And] with vacancy rates in the Queanbeyan region hovering at less than one per cent for more than a year, real estate agents and property managers say there is nothing they can do for a lot of people.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-06-10/queanbeyan-house-prices-s…
# NSW, Rent, Housing market, Regional NSW.Sydney slides down global liveability rankings
Daniella White The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Sydney has fallen outside the top 10 cities in the world liveability index in the first global rankings since the COVID-19 pandemic hit. ... [But] Six of the top 10 highest-ranked cities are in New Zealand or Australia where “tight border controls have allowed residents to live relatively normal lives”, according to the survey.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/sydney-slides-down-global-li…
# NSW, Coronavirus COVID-19, Health, Housing market, International.House prices rise fast in some of the world’s most liveable cities
Elizabeth Redman Domain (No paywall)House prices are rising fast in some of the world’s most liveable cities, which could threaten their status as an attractive destination over time, experts warn.
https://www.domain.com.au/news/house-prices-rise-fast-in-some-of…
# Australia, Coronavirus COVID-19, Health, Housing market, International.How profit-hungry developers broke the housing system
Iasabel Ringrose (No paywall)House hunters can buy a two-bedroom flat for as much as £1,990,000 at Embassy Gardens, Nine Elms. And many are bought as investments, rather than to live in.... Housing exposes obscene wealth and hard poverty in Britain today. Behind it all is a system where houses are built for profit, not homes. (Socialist Worker)
https://socialistworker.co.uk/art/51909/How+profit+hungry+develo…
# International, Eviction, Rent, Housing market, Landlords and agents.Housing debt ‘explosion’ looms over the horizon: Judo Bank
Clancy Yeates The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Judo Bank chief executive Joseph Healy has sounded a warning over the ongoing build-up in housing debt, saying it would be foolhardy to assume interest rates will stay at record lows for an extended period of time. Mr Healy, who previously ran National Australia Bank’s flagship business bank, on Monday said one of his key concerns over the medium to long-term was the “almost uncontrollable rise in household debt”.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/banking-and-finance/housing-debt…
# Australia, Housing affordability, Housing market.Banks beware: Fast, cheap loans set to disrupt $1.9 trillion mortgage market
Clancy Yeates The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Is digital disruption a threat to the banks’ mortgage engine rooms, which are a pillar of bank profitability? Some think so, such as Evans and Partners analyst Matthew Wilson. He says Macquarie’s rapid growth in home loans is clear evidence that disruption is already occurring in the market. But over the longer term, he says a bigger change is likely, as a new breed of fintechs that offer low-cost digital loans compete for a slice of the profit pool.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/banking-and-finance/banks-beware…
# Australia, Housing market.