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
Lauren tried to get her bathroom fixed. Then she got told to leave
Jim Malo The Sydney Morning Herald (No paywall)A Melbourne renter says her magistrate landlord left her without a safe bathroom for a month, and when asked where she and her family would bathe was told by her property manager to use bathrooms in public facilities like pools and the library. The tenant eventually left after attempting to have the bathroom urgently repaired; experts say the stoush reflects a trend of tenants choosing to leave their homes rather than engage in a legal fight.
https://www.smh.com.au/property/news/lauren-tried-to-get-her-bat…
# Must read Australia, Eviction, Rent, Repairs.Eradicating mould would save millions in health-care costs: how our homes affect our health
Rebecca Bentley and Kate Mason The Conversation (No paywall)Housing is a key determinant of physical health. Housing conditions can increase or reduce the risk of problems including respiratory illness, heart disease and injury. Improving housing conditions would see an improvement in health at the population level and reduce health-care costs. In a study yet to be peer-reviewed, our research team has estimated eradicating mould and damp in Australian housing could cut health expenditure by A$117 million per million people, and increase income by $174 million. These figures represent 0.5%–2.1% of annual health spending and 0.08%–0.36% of gross domestic product.
https://theconversation.com/eradicating-mould-would-save-million…
# Must read Australia, Rent.ACT government and ACT Greens negotiate revived rental relief scheme
Emmy Groves ABC (No paywall)The ACT government has agreed in-principle to a replacement scheme for the axed Rent Relief Fund after talks with the ACT Greens. The fund had supported renters in financial stress with a payment up to $2,500. Kylie Johnson has experienced sleepless nights and fears of homelessness after struggling to pay rent due to financial hardship and health setbacks. The Canberra mother and former business owner said her family was kept afloat by the ACT government's Rent Relief Fund (RRF).
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09-17/act-government-rent-relie…
# Hot topic Australia, .Inside Perth's 'most shocking' property listing
Brooko Moves news.com.au (No paywall)A young woman on the hunt for her first home has exposed what she believes is one of Perth's most shocking properties.
https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/inside-perths-most-shocking-pr…
# Video Australia, Rent, Repairs.Homes Tasmania is subsidising private rentals and is looking for more
Zane Pinner & Ryk Goddard ABC (No paywall)Homes Tasmania has more than 250 houses as part of its subsidised rental scheme, which keeps the rent lower for the tenants and gives the landlord a guaranteed income on a two-year lease. - CEO of Homes Tasmania, Eleri Morgan-Thomas, explains to Ryk Goddard on Hobart Breakfast how it works.
https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/hobart-breakfast/subsurdi…
# Audio Australia, Rent.The Bristol renters 'pushed out' by housing costs
Sarah Turnnidge, James Diamond & Ana Da Silva BBC (No paywall)Former Bristol residents who have left the city due to "extortionate" rents have spoken out as new figures reveal the extent of the problem. Typical private tenants in Bristol spent 44.6% of their income on rent in 2024 - the highest figure outside London and well above the 30% "affordable" benchmark, according to research. Former residents described being "forced out" of the city they love. "I was just waking up with anxiety in the middle of the night," says Tamsyn Fallows, 40, who left Bristol due to mounting costs in 2023.
# Hot topic International, Rent.Does the solution to the housing crisis lie in this upmarket Swiss neighbourhood?
Thomas Fuller The Sydney Morning Herald (No paywall)few blocks from the shores of Lake Geneva, Claude Waelti shows a visitor his apartment in one of the most desirable neighbourhoods of Lausanne, the Swiss city with sweeping views of the French Alps across the lake. It has two bedrooms, a small office, a south-facing balcony – and it costs 1760 francs (about $3350) a month, about half the typical rent in the area. Switzerland is notoriously expensive, but affordable apartments like Waelti’s can be found in cities across the country. Known as cooperatives – though distinct from American co-ops – they are built and run by non-profit organisations and represent a kind of “third way” beyond the classic rent-or-buy choice.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/does-the-solution-to-the-housing…
# International, Rent.More than 40% of private renters ration energy use to afford bills, study finds
Jillian Ambrose The Guardian (No paywall)More than 40% of private renters in England and Wales were forced to ration their gas and electricity use last winter to afford their energy bills, according to Citizens Advice. A survey by the consumer charity found that 41% of renters, or the equivalent of 4.5 million people, had to eke out energy, while one-third, or 3.5 million, struggled to maintain a comfortable temperature during the winter months. Most of those cutting back were living in homes with low energy-efficiency ratings.
https://www.theguardian.com/money/2025/sep/15/more-than-40-of-pr…
# Hot topic International, Rent, Utilities water energy internet.