Columns » We Live Here

Cash without the cure
Victoria’s proposed tax on short-stays will generate cash for the state government while ignoring internationally recognised solutions to tackle problems with the industry.
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Short stays “out of control”
The woeful inadequacy of the state’s short-stay legislation remains in the spotlight, with heightened tension in municipalities throughout the state.
Read MoreOpen forum on affordable housing and short-term rentals
You are invited to a We Live Here forum, the first after a long, pandemic-induced hiatus.
Read MoreSuburban councils take the lead
The City of Melbourne is falling behind suburban councils in the race to prevent the city being overrun by short stays.
Read MoreAurora-gate exposes inadequate laws
The battle for the owners’ corporation at Aurora Melbourne Central has underlined the woeful inadequacies of Victoria’s strata laws and VCAT tribunal system.
Read MoreThe monster eating Melbourne
Local councils are fighting back against the short-stay behemoth that’s causing chaos across the city.
Read MoreOther councils take the lead
Hello Melbourne City Council – what action will you be taking to improve the lives of Melbourne apartment residents?
Read MoreA legal labyrinth
Navigating the legislative changes affecting owners’ corporations (OCs) over the past four years is quite a challenge. We offer this thread to help you through the maze:
Read MoreState election – the short answers
Last month in this column we asked the question of the major parties competing at the forthcoming state election – what are your party’s policies on short-stays?
Read MoreCash to ditch short stays!
A city in Arizona, USA is implementing an innovative plan to enhance housing availability for locals.
Read MoreTourism sector calls for short-stay day limit
Tourism industry groups want Victoria to follow other states, including NSW, and impose a limit on the number of days per year that properties can be let as short stays.
Read MoreNew report: it’s curtains for some owners
Another major fire risk has been uncovered in Melbourne – curtain walls containing flammable aluminium composite cladding (ACP).
Read MoreConsumer watchdog sues Airbnb after thousands complain
The federal government’s consumer watchdog, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), has instituted proceedings in the Federal Court against Airbnb for allegedly misleading consumers.
Read MoreCongratulations to 300 cladding winners!
The latest figures from Cladding Safety Victoria (CSV) website show that about 35 per cent of cladding-affected apartment buildings have been selected for financial assistance for remediation works. Only “extreme risk” or “high risk” buildings qualify for state government funding.
Read MoreSex parties on short-stay platforms
The Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) is about to be exposed to sordid details of drug- and alcohol-fuelled sex parties and strippers enriching a short-stay operator in a Melbourne apartment complex.
Read MoreParty policy time
With the fragrance of a federal election in the air, we have a sniff of party policies at a national level on short stays.
Read MoreFighting an unfair committee
Nerida Pohl has provided an update on the committee scandal at her inner-city building …
Read MoreLearning from others
Around the world, cities are all regulating short stays, sometimes with eye-watering penalties greater than the property value of the apartment involved.
Read MoreOwners’ corporation laws tweaked
The Victorian Government’s long-awaited amendments to owners’ corporation (OC) laws are now coming into force.
Read MoreWill short-stay infections force us into lockdown again?
With retail industry still shuttered, it beggars belief that short-stay operators are allowed to endanger residential buildings with potential COVID carriers.
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One woman’s stand gets results
