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
COVID-19 hit many Australians hard, but there were winners in the pandemic economy
Norman Hermant ABC (No paywall)In June of last year, Mickayla Downey and Matthew Hardiman had a plan: move in with the parents, save on rent and build a deposit for their first home. Then two COVID-19 lockdowns hit Melbourne and something unexpected happened: their savings grew much faster than anticipated. ... Ms Downey, 26, and Mr Hardiman, 29, estimate they saved $35,000 due to lifestyle changes through COVID. By December, they were in the market for their first home. And they had lots of company.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-23/covid-australian-economy-…
# Australia, Coronavirus COVID-19, Home ownership.Inequality and the housing bubble
(Paywall)Despite the damaging effects of Covid-19, higher unemployment and flat wages, the Australian housing market has snapped back. But home ownership is becoming increasingly unaffordable for young people, with dire consequences for their future. (The Saturday Paper)
https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/politics/2021/02/20/ine…
# Australia, Affordable housing, Coronavirus COVID-19, Home ownership, Housing market.What’s different about this property boom?
Clancy Yeates The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)If not for the backdrop of a global pandemic, you could be forgiven for feeling a sense of déjà vu as the property market shows all the signs of launching into yet another boom.
https://www.smh.com.au/money/banking/what-s-different-about-this…
# Australia, Rent, Coronavirus COVID-19, Home ownership, Housing market.Sydney building commissioner raises standards, builds confidence in apartment industry
Sue Williams Domain (Paywall)The new building commissioner appointed to raise standards in NSW’s construction industry – and his willingness to use his unprecedented legal powers to do so – is having a major impact on the standard of projects around the state. Six months on from being given the right to enter and inspect construction sites, issue rectification and stop-work orders, and prevent settlement on sub-standard properties, industry watchers say David Chandler is proving the state’s saviour.
https://www.domain.com.au/news/sydney-building-commissioner-rais…
# NSW, Housing market.How to make a home in Adelaide get to 10 stars – maybe more
Poppy Johnston The Fifth Estate (No paywall)There’s only a handful of Australian houses that can boast a 10-star NatHERS rating, and now Adelaide has its first.
https://www.thefifthestate.com.au/innovation/residential-2/how-t…
# Australia, Utilities water energy internet.Why the Australian dollar is rising — and what that's got to do with your mortgage repayments
David Taylor ABC (No paywall)The Australian dollar is on the move, now hovering around 80 US cents. ... The Australian dollar is increasing in value for several reasons, and one of those reasons is also tied to how much you'll be paying on your monthly mortgage repayments — potentially as soon as later this year.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-25/rising-australian-dollar-…
# Australia, Home ownership.'Cliff edge looms' for renters when eviction moratorium, JobKeeper end in March
Matilda Marozzi ABC (No paywall)A group of performers who made headlines by dancing to 1980s hits in their front yard during lockdown are set to be ousted from their Melbourne share house. Their removal could mark the beginning of a wave of evictions when JobKeeper and the Victorian eviction moratorium wind-up on March 28.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-19/brunswick-performers-set-…
# Hot topic, Video Australia, Eviction, Rent, Coronavirus COVID-19.Mould in rental homes under the spotlight as family claims health problems from mouldy house
Claire Moodie ABC (No paywall)For most people, household mould is a minor inconvenience — stubbornly appearing in the grout of the bathroom tiles from time to time. But, Sudha Narthakumar and her family say that exposure to mould has brought chronic health problems and mounting bills, including one quote to remediate their furniture and other belongings at a cost of almost $29,000. ... Ms Narthakumar says the saga started when the family rented a 3 x 2 in an affluent Perth riverside suburb in 2018 ...
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-20/call-for-landlords-to-tel…
# Australia, Rent, Health, Mould.