“I turned up at my apartment at the start of the year,” Laura told Mamamia, “and it hadn’t been cleaned from the last tenant.
“The last tenant smelt. The cleaners didn’t turn up for another three days, and the smell didn’t leave for weeks.”
Sioban said, “The place I rent now, the stove top is not earthed properly, so we get electric shocks every time we ignite the gas burners. I told the landlord and she said, ‘I don’t understand the problem’. That was the end of the conversation.”
For Angela, “The shower drain overflowed every time you showered because the builders just put all their rubbish down the drain.
“There were cracks in the wall, like structural cracks. This was a brand new apartment.”
Jum lived in a house with no hot water, and when she broached the issue with her landlord, he refused to believe it wasn’t working. Fiona was changing in her bedroom one day, when the door slammed and locked her inside. She had to call an emergency locksmith which cost her $400. Months on, she’s still not been reimbursed.
These were just some of the stories we uncovered. A number of women reported having landlords turn up unexpectedly and walk through their homes. There were doors that fell off, bathrooms with no ventilation, lights and appliances that never worked and countless mould issues.
Australia’s current market seems to be skewed against renters.
POST CONTINUES BELOW: Our housing prices are making us crazy.
We spend, especially in heavily populated cities like Melbourne and Sydney, an enormous portion of our wage on ensuring we have a roof over our head. Bond equates to one months worth of rent – and every tenant is legally obliged to pay that upfront upon signing a leasing agreement.
We have an awful lot of responsibilities. But what are our rights?
Last month, Domain published an opinion by Jennifer Duke titled, “The part of the rent equation we are missing: a landlord bond.”
One third of Australians are currently renting according to Duke.
While making rent affordable is a worthy topic, she says, the part of the debate that’s missing is the need for a ‘landlord bond’.
Tenants deserve to receive what they pay for: “a safe and well-maintained place to live.”
As it stands, we do have The Residential Tenancies Act to legally protect renters, but they are a third party and can take time to address issues that require immediate attention.
Duke's proposition is that property managers would be able to, "tap into this fund as needed to fix reasonable maintenance and repair requests, without being delayed by landlords..."
The bond would also be symbolic, an indication that both parties are committed to keeping up their end of the deal.
Currently, we're facing a significant power imbalance. If the place you rent is not well-maintained, there are serious plumbing issues or broken windows, then there's an endless list of people who are willing to move in next week.
Landlords are capitalising on the fact we're desperate - and with the state of the current rental market; what's their incentive?
Rental affordability is one thing.
But we need to start talking about the serious issues we face once we actually move in.
READ MORE:
The 10 thoughts everyone has while moving house.
This is the reality of raising your family in a rental property in Australia.
It's official. Rent has become ridiculous.
Top Comments
My last landlord at the start of my tenancy kept turning up and barging in without notice or even waiting for me to say anything. I rang the real-estate who said he didn't need to give 24hrs notice. I replied that according to the RTA he did need to give notice. The next time he showed up I asked him if he could in future give me 24 hrs notice. He said that that wasn't possible. I advised him that according to the RTA it was a requirement to give 24 hrs notice. He leaned towards me and yelled 'are you threatening me,' in a very intimidating way. The next door neighbour's child was over at my place playing with my 2.5 yr old daughter. She looked terrified, jumped up and ran back home while my daughter froze and clutched at me. I felt scared but very calmly tried to placate him by reassuring him that I was not threatening him. He walked back to his car yelling at me abusively the whole way. After he left and I'd cuddled my daughter, I contacted the RTA then I sent an email to the real-estate explaining what happened and that I had contacted the RTA and basically I wrote what the RTA had advised me. I had no further issues after that. Towards end of lease I was given 2 months notice to vacate. Happy to vacate but had a hard time finding a new property and getting an application accepted. I ended up being accepted for a property that is not in good repair, dirty, cracked walls, no air-conditioning, windows won't latch properly, no water from the hot water tap in the bathroom, on a busy main road, laundry is completely outside as in washing machine exposed to the elements against the side of the building next to the other tenants washing machines lined up against the wall sharing two sets of taps and one laundry sink. In addition to that my carpark space has an abandoned vehicle in it that according to the neighbors has been there for months. I have received my bond back in full from last rental. I left that property undamaged and cleaner then it was when I moved in and took photos to prove it. I have no breaches and paid my rent on time. Even so, asserting my tenancy rights has left me in a bad situation where my daughter and I have to move after only 12 months and unable to secure decent housing. In some other countries landlords have to have a valid reason for giving notice to vacate. In Australia a landlord can give 2 months notice to vacate with no reason and refuse to renew lease. Most of us don't want to move every 12 months or be unable to secure a property, so we end up putting up with a lot.
Whilst not condoning your old landlord's behaviour, as someone who is currently renting my home out (after being a renter for years prior to home ownership), I don't believe it's anyone's business WHY I give notice to my tenants, nor anyone's right to deem my reasons for doing so as "valid" or not. If the notice is given with good time, then that should be enough for both parties. I don't expect tenants to give "valid reasons" for moving on from my property, either. I shouldn't be able to force you to stay, nor should you be able to force me to allow ongoing access to my property.
After reading these stories, Inhave decided my husband should receive 'landlord of the year' medal. One tenant rang him because she had a spider in the bathroom and wanted a gap siliconed (so off he went with the silicone gun), we installed purataps (in South Australia, tap water is revolting). He attends to repairs immediately and when the stove went on the fritz, he let the tenants go pick out their new stove (with a price limit) from the Good Guys. We do not put the rent up yearly, preferring to keep long lerm stable tenants. Not all landlords are terrible, there are some very decent ones as well.
Good for him!