For some Australians, renting an apartment or house is a stepping stone to home ownership, while for others, it is a long-term lifestyle. Either way, understanding your legal rights as a tenant is an important step in ensuring you have safe and secure housing for the future.
To help you feel empowered as a renter, we’ve explained some of the legal nuances for concerns that many renters have. Whether it’s having your rent increased excessively or being “blacklisted”, we have you covered.
It all starts with finding a reliable property to rent in the city or town of your choice. Searching online you’ll find houses to rent in Adelaide, apartments in the heart of Brisbane and rural properties in country New South Wales. On websites like Rentola you can search based on the number of bedrooms you need and the budget you can afford. Also, you can chat directly with landlords to come to a legally binding rental agreement that suits you both.
Rent increases
If you’ve signed a tenancy agreement for a year, your rent cannot be increased within that period (unless this has been written into the agreement). But once the lease term is up, you’ll transition into what is known as a “rolling lease” and the rent can be bumped up, with certain restrictions.
Laws differ from state to state, with New South Wales being the only jurisdiction with no limit as to how often rent can be increased. That being said, you have to be given at least 60 days’ notice so you can make other arrangements if you don’t want to pay what is being asked.
In other states (Qld, Vic, WA and NT), rent can be increased once every six months while in the ACT, Tas and SA, it can only be done once every 12 months. In all cases, you must be given at least 60 days’ notice.
It’s important to be aware that there are no official limits as to how much the rent can be increased. But if you feel that it is “excessive”, taking into consideration the current market or the condition of the property, you can dispute it through your local tribunal.
Repairs
There will probably come a point in time when renting that you will require repairs to be done to the property. This might be something like an electrical fault, a non-functioning oven or a broken toilet. In tenancy legislation, there is a distinction between emergency repairs and non-urgent repairs.
It should just be a case of calling your landlord and explaining the issue, with the repairs sorted out within a timely manner. But in some instances, this isn’t how things play out, with many renters reporting that repairs weren’t completed within a reasonable time period or to an acceptable standard.
Unfortunately, you aren’t legally allowed to just stop paying your rent if you find yourself in this situation. You can, however, apply to your local tribunal to have your rent paid into a separate account and only released to the landlord once the repairs are completed.
Evictions
In Australia, you can be legally evicted from a rental property if you don’t pay your rent, if you fail to maintain the property or if you breach your tenancy agreement. This might include things like subletting the apartment or house without your landlord’s consent or having pets on the property without permission to do so. Engaging in illegal activity on the premises is also a valid reason for issuing an eviction notice.
Different states have different notice periods for evictions but, generally speaking, you need to be given 7 to 14 days if you have breached your tenancy agreement or failed to pay rent. If you are being evicted without grounds, you will need to be given at least 30 days.
If you think you have been given a no-grounds eviction notice because of retaliatory reasons (eg. you have challenged a rent increase and your landlord isn’t happy about it), then take your matter to your local tenants’ union or advisory service. In most cases, an agreement will be sought before it ends up in court.
Blacklists
Ending up on a tenancy database of “problem tenants” is known as “blacklisting” and is a common concern for renters who want to challenge rental increases or ask for repairs. Why? Because future landlords may refuse to rent to you if they see your name appear.
However, there are only two scenarios in which this can legally happen and your name can only be added to a tenancy database once your tenancy has ended. You can’t be blacklisted simply for exercising your rights as a tenant but you can for breaching your tenancy agreement or failing to pay your rent in an amount that is in excess of your bond.
Additionally, your landlord is required to tell you if they plan on adding your name to the list, so you will have time to rectify the situation and/or dispute their claim.
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