City Futures Blog

News and research in housing and urban policy, from Australia’s leading urban policy research centre.

City Futures Blog random header image

Do tenancy reforms to protect renters cause landlords to exit the market? No, but maybe they should

November 29th, 2022 · No Comments · Housing, Law

By Chris Martin, UNSW Sydney; Milad Ghasri, UNSW Sydney; Sharon Parkinson, Swinburne University of Technology, and Zoe Goodall, Swinburne University of Technology. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. More Australians are renting their housing longer than in the past. But they have relatively little legal […]

[Read more →]

Tags:

What makes a great footpath? The answer is key to our happiness and wellbeing as we age

October 26th, 2022 · No Comments · Wellbeing

By Fatemeh Aminpour, UNSW Sydney. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. As people age, they often become less confident about walking. Fear of falling can limit the activity of older people, leading them to become isolated. So what, exactly, makes for a great footpath to […]

[Read more →]

Tags:

The elephant in the room: to broaden home ownership access, governments must tackle housing affordability head-on

September 20th, 2022 · No Comments · Affordability, Housing

By Prof Hal Pawson. Originally published at Red Brick, the UK housing policy blog. Boosting home ownership: an overriding housing policy objective for many decades, not only in Britain but the world over. And yet, as also seen in many countries, the past 10-20 years have witnessed owner occupancy rates static or falling – see […]

[Read more →]

Tags:

Is it time to talk about rent control in Australia?

August 29th, 2022 · No Comments · Housing

By Ben Knight, UNSW Sydney. Originally published at UNSW Sydney Newsroom. The rising cost of everyday essentials has most people feeling the pinch. But if you’re a renter and haven’t already been hit with a rent increase, there’s a good chance you’re especially worried. Property data sources like CoreLogic show rents in Australia are climbing across […]

[Read more →]

Tags:

Recess is a time of conflict for children. Here are 6 school design tips to keep the peace

July 25th, 2022 · No Comments · Uncategorized

By Dr Fatemeh Aminpour, City Futures Research Centre. Originally published at The Conversation. Conflict is one of the main barriers to children’s play during school recess. Research has found students experience an average of one conflict at recess every three minutes. My own research shows how well-designed school grounds can reduce conflict and help vulnerable students take part in recess […]

[Read more →]

Tags:

Without meaningful national housing strategies, first-home buyer schemes will only increase owners’ wealth

July 7th, 2022 · No Comments · Housing

By Hal Pawson and Chris Martin. Originally published in The Guardian. The Albanese government plans new help for entering the market but systemic change is needed to tackle housing affordability. More than $20bn was given by Australian governments in tax breaks and cash grants to first-home buyers in the decade to 2021. While assisting access to home ownership is an […]

[Read more →]

Tags:

Freezing indoors? That’s because Australian homes are closer to tents than insulated eco-buildings

June 14th, 2022 · No Comments · Climate change, Housing

By Associate Professor Philip Oldfield, Head of School, Built Environment, UNSW. Originally published at The Guardian. As winter sets in, and temperatures plummet, it can sometimes feel as cold inside as it does outside. The reason for this is the poor thermal performance of houses in Australia. Our homes need to be rapidly improved to […]

[Read more →]

Tags:

Giving ex-prisoners public housing cuts crime and re-incarceration – and saves money

May 4th, 2022 · No Comments · Housing

By Chris Martin, UNSW Sydney; Eileen Baldry, UNSW Sydney; Patrick Burton, University of Tasmania; Rebecca Reeve, UNSW Sydney; Rob White, University of Tasmania; Ruth McCausland, UNSW Sydney, and Stuart Thomas, RMIT University. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. “Going home” is a classic metaphor for […]

[Read more →]

Tags:

Shade: bringing planners and health professionals together to provide critical infrastructure

October 5th, 2021 · No Comments · Cities, Wellbeing

By Prof Susan Thompson, Liz King, Jan Fallding and Nicola Groskops. Originally published in New Planner, the journal of the Planning Institute of Australia (NSW Division). Increasingly communities are rightly demanding a built environment that makes it easy for everyone to be healthy and well as they go about their daily activities.  This is related […]

[Read more →]

Tags:

Exiting prison with complex support needs: the role of housing assistance

August 23rd, 2021 · No Comments · Housing

By Dr Chris Martin, Dr Rebecca Reeve, Assoc Prof Ruth McCausland and Prof Eileen Baldry (UNSW), Pat Burton and Prof Rob White (UTas), and Prof Stuart Thomas (RMIT). One of the classic metaphors for exiting prison is ‘going home’. However, more than half of people exiting Australian prisons either expect to be homeless or don’t […]

[Read more →]

Tags: