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
Hundreds of homeless people pushed back on to streets of London during first lockdown 'due to lack of support'
May Bulman (Paywall)From the United Kingdom ... One in five rough sleepers plkaced in Greater London Authority hotels under Everyone In left accommodation due to 'unmet support needs', finds London Assembly Housing Committee. (Independent)
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/homeless-rough-s…
# Hot topic International, Coronavirus COVID-19, Homelessness.Regional house prices soaring due to coronavirus exodus from cities but some locals now living in cars
Rachel Clayton ABC (No paywall)House prices in regional and coastal Australia have skyrocketed in the past year as families and retirees have swapped European holidays for new homes, but it is creating a crisis in one Queensland region. ... Noosa Hinterland local Donovan Biss has been watching the market for months and says the new buyers, the majority coming from Melbourne and Sydney, have pushed renters out of town. "Renters are being kicked out," he said. "A lot of people are close to homelessness."
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-01-13/house-prices-2020-rise-in…
# Australia, Affordable housing, Coronavirus COVID-19, Housing market.Danish banks are offering 20-year, fixed-rate mortgages with zero interest. Here’s why
Matt Johnson The New Daily (No paywall)Borrowing money from the bank without paying interest sounds like a pipe dream. But it’s not in Denmark, where home owners can fix their mortgage at 0 per cent interest for the next two decades. ... Will Australian banks ever offer zero-interest home loans?
https://thenewdaily.com.au/finance/your-budget/2021/01/12/austra…
# Australia, Housing market.The Sydney suburbs where you should be renegotiating rent
Aidan Devine (Paywall)Tenants are being urged to renegotiate their rent as international border closures during the COVID-19 pandemic continue to put downward pressure on the rental market. Advertised apartment rents in Sydney have dropped by nearly 10 per cent over the past year, while house rents dropped by an average of 6.4 per cent, data from SQM Research revealed. (realestate.com.au)
https://www.realestate.com.au/news/the-sydney-suburbs-where-you-…
# Hot topic NSW, Rent, Coronavirus COVID-19, Housing market.A Tiny Public Housing Authority Offered Residents the Vaccine. Could Others Follow Suit?
Jared Brey (No paywall)From the United States ... Central Falls became the first city in Rhode Island to offer the [Covid-19] vaccine publicly, and the Central Falls Housing Authority was the first organization to administer it. On the last Wednesday of the year, the housing authority offered the vaccine exclusively to its own residents and staff, and to people with housing choice vouchers. Read on ... (Next City)
https://nextcity.org/daily/entry/a-tiny-public-housing-authority…
# Hot topic International, Public and community housing, Coronavirus COVID-19.LGBTQ+ Canadian baby boomers in need of safer housing in senior years
Jacqueline Gahagan and Ren Thomas The Conversation (No paywall)From Canada ... Globally, the COVID-19 pandemic has shown us the importance of having safe and adequate housing. ... Yet when it comes to vulnerable older Canadians, there are a number of alarming policy gaps in existing efforts to address their unique housing needs and concerns. Canada’s first National Housing Strategy, released in 2017, promises to address disparities in housing, particularly in relation to housing affordability and homelessness. ... However, the strategy lacks a direct focus where we have yet to see improvements for many vulnerable Canadians, specifically older LGBTQ+ populations.
https://theconversation.com/lgbtq-canadian-baby-boomers-in-need-…
# International, Discrimination, Housing market, Human rights, LGBTIQ+, Older people.Sydney unit rents fall to lowest since 2013: Domain Rent Report
Kate Burke Domain (Paywall)Sydney unit rents have recorded their steepest drop in more than 15 years, new data shows, giving tenants in some pockets the chance to negotiate hundreds of dollars off asking prices. ... [Nevertheless] with further cuts made to JobSeeker and JobKeeper in January, and further support payment cuts to come in March, [Better Renting executive director] Mr Dignam said there would be many renters who would struggle to make ends meet.
https://www.domain.com.au/news/sydney-unit-rents-fall-to-lowest-…
# Hot topic NSW, Rent, Affordable housing, Coronavirus COVID-19, Federal Government.Plans for towers above station on Sydney's north shore approved
Matt O'Sullivan The Sydney Morning Herald (Paywall)Plans for high-rise buildings above a new train station at Crows Nest on Sydney's lower north shore have been given the green light, despite community opposition to the scale of development. ... The rationale for developments such as Crows Nest is that offices, shops and apartments help to cross subsidise the cost of the train station below, which can cost hundreds of millions of dollars.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/plans-for-towers-above-stati…
# NSW, Planning and development.