Wednesday, 30 August 2023

Rental accommodation

Gabrielle DE VIETRI (Richmond) (09:53): Why are renters having to take their landlords to court just to have their basic rights met? Last week we heard from renters Teresa and her housemate at the rental crisis inquiry. They said that they had been trying repeatedly to get a leak in their roof fixed. After three months of asking their landlord, they were hit with a notice to vacate. Most renters are too scared to even ask for the repairs in the first place out of fear that they will get an eviction. But repairs and maintenance could be automatic in rental properties with the onus on the landlord, if they want to dispute it, to actually prove that the repair is not necessary.

We also heard from landlords who are treating bond claims like that extra cash that you pick up when you pass go. They know that most renters do not actually have the time or the money to fight it in VCAT, and so they will just roll the dice and see what they can get. But a bond should not be withheld by a landlord without proving that they actually have a valid reason to hold onto that bond. Now is the time to redress this power imbalance, to reverse the burden of proof onto the landlord and not the renter and to make renting fair in Victoria.