Category Archives: Renting

PM ‘taken aback’ by speech – as it happened

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Albanese says discussions on Palestinian statehood, two-state solution ‘are taking place’ globally

Moving back to the Australian government’s discussions regarding a Palestinian state (see earlier posts): Albanese was asked about comments from Peter Dutton last night, accusing Penny Wong of being “reckless” in advocating for Palestinian statehood as essential to sustainable Middle East peace.

A two-state solution is required in the Middle East to break the cycle that has been there for my entire lifetime. I think Australians want to see that and I want Israel to exist within secure borders in safety, security and prosperity, but I also want justice for Palestinians…

Well, they are taking place and you’re aware they’re taking place because you would have broadcast comments from people like David Cameron… who made similar comments, the comments of President Biden speaking [of] a two-state solution. Every one of our like-minded partners. I’ve issued joint statements with the prime ministers of Canada and New Zealand, three of the Five Eyes partners, calling for a two-state solution.

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Climate groups welcome fuel efficiency standards – as it happened

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Labor tried to amend stage-three tax cuts, Albanese says

Anthony Albanese says Labor attempted to amend the stage-three tax cuts but its proposal failed by a single vote:

What we did in the parliament in 2019 is two things. One, we tried to amend our the stage-three tax cuts. We weren’t successful. We failed by just one vote. When that occurred, we thought that we weren’t prepared to stand in the way of all of the government to say they knew what the economy would look like in five years’ time.

One of the things, David, I have done is go to the National Press Club – and say we have changed our position. Why? We listened to people and particularly low- and middle-income Australians are under financial pressure.

What I can’t do as prime minister of Australia is to wring my hands and say, “If only there was something I co-do about it” What we needed to do was to look at what is the best way we can take pressure off cost of living without putting pressure on inflation.

We want it to be passed as soon as possible. Certainly, it needs to be passed during this existing session, so as to provide that easy transition for employers, the tax office, for others as well.

Circumstances have changed. We’ve responded.

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New Zealand to be briefed on Aukus – as it happened

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The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, is speaking to ABC RN, and says news that the inflation rate has plunged to a two-year low of 4.1% is “welcoming, encouraging progress”.

… We know that people are still under pressure and we need to not be complacent about it. We need to continue to work as we have with our three point plan, having the surplus, making sure we deal with cost of living pressures without putting pressure on inflation, and dealing with … supply-chain issues as well.

With parliament resuming next week, this is a wake-up call that 2024 is the last chance for meaningful democratic reform ahead of the 2025 election …

Australians should go to the next election with strict political donation disclosure laws, truth in political advertising laws in force and information about who’s meeting ministers made public as a matter of course.

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Australia’s property market upswing continues as house prices and rents rise again

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Home values rose 0.4% in January and rents increased 0.8%, but the housing market remained varied around the country

The Australian housing market upswing continued in the first month of 2024 with property values rising another 0.4%.

As house prices rose, renters continued to feel pain, with the national rental index recording its biggest monthly rise since April. Rents were up 0.8% in January, after a 0.65% rise in December.

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Mayor issues flood warning – as it happened

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We’ve just spoken to St Vincent’s hospital and confirmed that the woman bitten by a shark in Sydney Harbour last night remains in hospital in a stable condition.

The woman, in her late 20s, was bitten on the right leg by a suspected bull shark in Elizabeth Bay last night.

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Australian properties for lease fall to record low as rents soar

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PropTrack report finds number of December listings 30.2% below past decade’s monthly average as housing advocates say government policies are failing

Tenants are continuing to feel the pain of rising rents with the number of listings falling to another record low, according to the PropTrack Rental Report.

The report, released on Tuesday, found that total rental listings on realestate.com.au in December were at a record low, sitting 30.2% below the average over the past decade for the month.

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Australia news live: SA swelters as heatwave warnings issued in other states; fire ants nest south of Byron Bay destroyed

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Homelessness increasing across Australia, report finds

In January every year, the Productivity Commission releases its Report on Government Services, which “monitor[s] the performance of Australian governments in the delivery of important services to the community”.

The first thing is to stay connected with the emergency messaging and understand the alerts that may and will come out as the cyclone approaches the coast.

But more importantly, use the next 48 hours to 72 hours to prepare yourself and your family for a potential cyclone crossing and flooding event after. You can do simple things like keep the fuel in your car topped up now, make sure you have enough food in your house for 72 hours, [and] make sure you have battery charging packs for your phone. Very simple things you can do.

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‘I was livid’: Sydney single mother pressured by landlord to leave rental just nine months into lease

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Fiona was told that the landlord needed to move into the flat, which was then relisted for $300 more a week when Fiona moved out

A Sydney landlord put pressure on a single mother to leave her rental home after just nine months, eventually relisting the property at $300 more a week when the tenant’s lease expired.

Fiona*, who has two children, last year rented a two-bedroom apartment in Arncliffe for $690 a week through agency Century 21.

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News live: NSW issues Covid warning with cases at 12-month high; PM has ‘imperfect’ advice that no Australians caught in PNG violence

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Anthony Albanese says no requests for aid or reports of any Australians there caught up in Port Moreseby unrest. Follow the day’s news live

Government fences off Rozelle Parklands after asbestos discovery

As Catie McLeod reported yesterday, the finding of some asbestos in playground mulch in new parklands in Sydney’s Rozelle triggered a closure of those areas just a couple of weeks after they had been opened:

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Australian capital city rents up 13% over year as further hikes predicted for 2024 amid housing shortage

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Housing advocates call for urgent reform to address growing crisis as capital rents hit average of $600 a week

Australia’s record shortage of rental properties will continue to drive prices up for tenants, analysts say, with a new report revealing combined capital city rents rose 13.2% year-on-year.

Data from PropTrack, the property analytics division of REA Group, has revealed national rental prices rose 11.5% over the past year, with combined capital city rents up 13.2% to an average of $600 a week, driven by large increases in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth.

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Perth overtakes east coast to become Australia’s hottest capital city property market

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Buyers and renters compete for limited stock as the Western Australian capital favours sellers and landlords, CoreLogic analysts say

The Australian property boom has shifted from east to west, with buyers and renters tussling for a limited number of Perth homes and creating a housing crisis for those left behind.

Perth has become the hottest selling market among state capitals, with homes listed for a median 11 days before being sold, according to CoreLogic data calculated for Guardian Australia.

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Foreign investors who snap up Australian homes to face higher taxes

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Fees for foreign investors who leave properties vacant will double and taxes will triple for those who buy existing houses

Foreign investors in Australia will face higher fees and steeper penalties for buying existing homes and leaving them empty as the government aims to address housing affordability.

The federal government on Sunday announced new rules tripling taxes for foreigners who buy existing houses in Australia and a doubling in fees for those who leave dwellings vacant.

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Australia news live: Daniel Andrews fires up over ‘Dictator Dan’ moniker; festival-goers warned about heatwave conditions

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Former Victorian premier gives first interview after resignation, saying ‘the haters hate and the rest vote Labor’. Follow the day’s news live

James Ashby to stand for One Nation in Queensland seat

James Ashby, the chief of staff to One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, will stand for the party in the seat of Keppel at next year’s Queensland state election, AAP reports.

The Nationals are dead in Queensland’s parliament while the Liberals are lurching further left in their attempts to secure inner-Brisbane seats.

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Vacant property taxes, levies and caps on the table as NSW Labor reviews Airbnbs and short-term rentals

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Exclusive: Minns government to place every aspect of housing ‘under the microscope’ as it confronts rental crisis

Vacant property taxes, levies and annual caps will be considered when the New South Wales government reviews regulation of short-term rentals including Airbnbs over the next six months.

The housing minister, Rose Jackson, who will lead the review, hoped to find ways to move some holiday rentals and unoccupied properties on to the longer-term rental market as the Minns government confronts the state’s chronic housing crisis.

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Renters on jobseeker need at least 78% of income for one-bedroom apartment in capital cities, report finds

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Index reveals rental affordability has plunged over year with situation particularly difficult in Sydney

Rental affordability has plunged in the past year with low-income Australians now completely priced out of living alone, a new report has revealed.

The ninth annual National Shelter-SGS Economics and Planning Rental Affordability Index has found affordability has worsened in the past year in every capital city except Hobart and Canberra.

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Greens threaten Brisbane landlords with huge rates rises if they increase rents

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Greens unveil policy designed to freeze rents at January 2023 levels in battle for Brisbane city council

The Greens say they would introduce an effective rent freeze across Brisbane by enacting massive land rates increases for any property investors who increase the rent.

The announcement on Monday will be a centrepiece of the Greens’ campaign for the Brisbane city council, a city where nearly four in 10 homes are occupied by renters.

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Australia news live: Lidia Thorpe claims Anthony Albanese trying to ‘shut me down’ over voice referendum

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Rain expected to ease over flooded regions in Victoria

The good news is no more rain is expected over flooded regions in Victoria, VicSES deputy chief officer David Baker told ABC News:

The big tap in the sky has been turned off. That’s great news for us. So what we’re dealing with now is what’s currently in the river systems that will need to flush itself through the systems. And we can assess that and we can manage that and put efforts in place to make sure that communities are out of harm’s way. So the good news is no more serious rain expected, and a pretty stable system, I understand, until at least … next week.

We estimate up to 130 properties may be impacted by the event, hence we issued an Emergency warning late yesterday afternoon which was renewed during the early hours of the morning.

It’s mainly homes in that area. Rural homes that may see what we call above floor inundation.

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Byron’s proposed 60-day Airbnb cap unlikely to come into effect until next year despite housing crisis

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If approved by NSW government, it will apply only to Byron and not other councils struggling amid the state-wide housing shortage

Byron council’s planned 60-day cap on short-term rentals like Airbnbs to ease pressure on the housing market would not come into effect until the middle of next year if the government decides to allow it, the holiday hotspot’s mayor says.

And if the tightened rules are approved by the New South Wales government, they will just apply to Byron and not other councils also struggling with housing amid a state-wide shortage.

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‘Disastrous’: low-income tenants priced out of newly renovated boarding houses

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Professionals seeking affordable housing are displacing those at risk of homelessness as rents soar

When a boarding house in Sydney’s inner-west was razed by arson last year, taking with it the lives of three residents and leaving eight without homes, the hope was that it would be replaced with a newer, safer version of the same low-cost community housing.

But 12 months is a long time in Sydney’s rampant rental market.

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Australian households on six-figure incomes can now only afford 13% of homes

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New report shows housing affordability has reached its lowest levels in decades as market continues to rebound

Rising interest rates and surging home prices have seen Australian housing affordability crash to its lowest levels in decades, according to a new report.

A household earning the median income of $105,000 can now only comfortably afford 13% of homes on the market, the lowest share since the relevant data was first collected in 1995, according to property data company PropTrack.

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