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
New rules for Airbnb-style letting in NSW delayed by three months
Matt O'Sullivan The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)The NSW government has decided to delay the introduction of new rules for Airbnb-style letting across the state by three months after an outcry from councils and online rental company Stayz. The short-term letting rules were due to come into force on July 30, but the government has decided within the past 24 hours to delay their introduction to November 1. Planning and Public Spaces Minister Rob Stokes said the government had received substantial feedback from key stakeholders about concerns regarding the timeline to implement changes.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/new-rules-for-airbnb-style-l…
# NSW, Local Government, Planning and development, Short-term holiday letting, State Government.New provisions for Short-term Rental Accommodation (STRA)
Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (No paywall)The NSW Government is pleased to announce that the new statewide Short-Term Rental Accommodation (STRA) planning policy has been made today, 9 April 2021 and will come into effect on 30 July 2021, to provide industry participants time to familiarise themselves with the new policy before it takes effect. The new statewide policy for STRA will benefit homeowners who want to take advantage of holiday rentals while providing more certainty and safety for locals and visitors.
http://planning-nsw-gov-au-2148779.hs-sites.com/new-provisions-f…
# New policy announcement NSW, Local Government, Planning and development, Short-term holiday letting, State Government.Developer contributions to affordable housing slow to be mandated across Sydney councils
Kate Burke Domain (No paywall)Affordable housing supply is lagging badly amid Sydney’s skyrocketing property market, and experts fear time is slipping away to fix the problem before the next building boom. Developer levies that could provide much-needed new affordable homes were announced more than three years ago but have yet to be rolled out across most council areas. ... “We’re not getting the momentum we’d certainly be hoping for,” said Mark Degotardi, chief executive of the Community Housing Industry Association NSW (CHIA NSW), a peak body for providers of community housing.
https://www.domain.com.au/news/developer-contributions-to-afford…
# NSW, Affordable housing, Housing market, Local Government, Planning and development, State Government.180-day cap on Airbnb properties expanded to areas outside Sydney
Matt O'Sullivan The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)A 180-day cap on using empty properties for Airbnb-style letting will be expanded beyond greater Sydney to a number of coastal areas and regional centres in NSW, as part of state-wide planning rules which have drawn criticism from councils and holiday rental company Stayz.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/180-day-cap-on-airbnb-proper…
# NSW, Local Government, Planning and development, Short-term holiday letting, State Government.Waiting to borrow: buying a first home amid soaring real estate prices feels grimly Beckettian
Josephine Tovey The Guardian (No paywall)For Australians in their 30s, auction horror stories dominate the conversation, while others are left out entirely ... homeowners have seen their household wealth rise along with property prices. Renters, whose security and rights in Australia pale in comparison to many places overseas with comparably expensive housing markets, miss out on this benefit entirely. This inequality will only get worse ... we really need some political courage and action on housing affordability, on containing soaring prices, and on rental security for those locked out of the market. That would be “good news” indeed.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/apr/12/waiting-t…
# Australia, Rent, Home ownership, Housing affordability, Housing market.Scammers target desperate renters on Sunshine Coast as housing crisis continues
Edwina Storie ABC (No paywall)Scammers are taking advantage of the desperate rental situation on the Sunshine Coast, where the vacancy rate has dipped as low as 0.5 per cent in some areas. Late last year Morgan Smith, a single mother of two, found "a gorgeous house" in Peregian Springs at a reasonable price, listed on Facebook. ... "[The scammers] were insistent that she pay the bond, but she couldn't have access to the property or even view the property before she paid the bond. "That's really unheard of in rental — but I know how desperate the rental situation is on the Sunshine Coast.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-04-12/scammers-taking-advantage…
# Australia, Bond, Rent, Housing market.Aged care sector calls for uncapped home care packages, more staff funding
Rachel Clun The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Uncapped home care packages, a registration scheme for care workers and a focus on transparency are some of the solutions the aged care sector wants to see in the federal government’s response to the royal commission. Two coalitions of aged care peak groups on Monday released formal responses to the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety report, urging the government to commit to a total overhaul of the system.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/aged-care-sector-calls-f…
# Australia, Federal Government, Housing market, Older people.Regional aged care homes are closing at an alarming rate, leaving elderly Australians facing uncertain futures
Jessica Davis and Mollie Gorman ABC (No paywall)Aged care in regional Australia is in crisis, with more than three-quarters of all homes losing money. ... Some are already closed — which has left hundreds of elderly, rural Australians, like 101-year-old Nancy Bulmer, in a precarious position.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-04-13/australia-regional-aged-c…
# Australia, Federal Government, Housing market, Older people.