Global Scans · Homes · Weekly Summary

WHAT'S NEXT?: The number of smart homes is expected to grow further and by 2020 it is expected 46.2 million homes in the US and 44.9 million in Europe will be classed as smart homes. By 2022 there could be nearly 500 smart devices that can be connected to a smart home.

• [New] UK social homes are at growing risk from rising temperatures and that housing policy has not yet kept pace with the need for climate-resilient homes. Niyaa People
• [New] Many existing UK homes are exposed to summertime overheating risk, and that significant retrofit work would be required to reduce risk under future warming scenarios. Niyaa People
• [New] From today the most significant reform to Australia's veteran support system in generations will come into play, following unprecedented levels of investment in veterans and families of veterans from the Albanese Government. Mirage News
• [New] With this as a backdrop, sales of new homes in 2026 will probably post a gain of 2% to 3% over 2025, managing perhaps a 693,000 to 700,000 level for the year as a whole. HSH.com
• [New] By 2026, lower rates and moderating home prices should support activity, though affordability challenges will persist - especially for first-time buyers. iEmergent
• [New] 90% of UK homes will overheat by 2050. BBC News
• [New] While some households can invest in cooling, older people, lower-income families, lone parent families and renters often face the greatest barriers to accessing protection from extreme heat, so the people most at risk from extreme heat are often the least able to afford protection from it. Al Jazeera
• [New] Buyers now expect air conditioners to integrate fully with mobile apps, voice assistants, smart home ecosystems, and Building Management Systems (BMS). Kanion Co
• [New] Apple's all-new smart home hub could still arrive in 2026. MacRumors
• [New] Over the last decade, 1 in 13 new homes were still built in Environment Agency Flood Zone 3 (comparable to the US Special Flood Hazard Area), which has at least 1% annual probability of river flooding. Nature
• [New] In changes that come into effect from July, households on standing electricity plans in New South Wales and south-east Queensland can expect to see prices fall between 3.4% and 10.7% compared with last year. The Guardian
• [New] The Department of Energy expects Level 1 and Level 2 charging to handle most EV charging needs, with the majority of future charging expected to happen at single-family homes. Greentec Auto
• [New] Policies to try to incentivise women staying at home could lead to skills shortages and a need for higher immigration. The Guardian
• [New] A re-elected National Government will strengthen New Zealand's energy resilience and help lower power bills by supporting households to move to solar power. National Party
• [New] Scotland's rapid uptake of residential solar and heat pumps demonstrates how households are reducing the embodied carbon of existing homes faster than policy frameworks anticipate, supporting national ambitions for net zero whole life carbon. Whole Life Carbon
• [New] A reasonable trajectory to delivering the heat pump target in the Warm Homes Plan would imply only around 1.9 million cumulative installations by 2030. Climate Change Committee
• [New] With the closure of the more widely available Energy Company Obligation scheme, there is a risk that installations of heat pumps fall, especially in low-income households. Climate Change Committee
• [New] A rural household with an oil boiler could save around £1,880 a year by switching to a heat pump and an electric car, even without solar panels or a time-of-use tariff, compared to £350 before the Iran war. Climate Change Committee
• [New] Electrification of home heating and transport could save up to 80 million barrels of oil and 1.5 billion therms of gas in 2030, which would cost £8 billion per year at current oil and gas prices. Climate Change Committee
• [New] Measures in the Warm Homes Plan to treble the number of homes with rooftop solar by 2030. Climate Change Committee
• [New] Low-carbon heating: the Warm Homes Plan aims for 450,000 heat pumps to be installed per year in the UK by 2030, of which around 250,000 would be retrofit. Climate Change Committee

Last updated: 04 July 2026