The Victorian Parliament passed the Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill 2018, which includes more than 130 reforms.
These reforms are designed to increase protections for renters, while ensuring those who provide rental housing can still effectively manage their properties.The reforms are framed around the reality that a growing proportion of Victorians are priced out of home ownership and likely to, rent for longer periods of time.
The review of the Residential Tenancies Act 1997 aims to ensure that Victoria’s rental sector meets the needs of tenants and landlords, now and into the future.
Citation:
https://engage.vic.gov.au/fairersaferhousing
The start date of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2018 has been delayed due to coronavirus (COVID-19), with the amendments to be introduced by 29 March 2021, rather than the original 1 July 2020.
Citation:
https://www.consumer.vic.gov.au/
There is now a list of minimal requirements landlords (RRPs) must ensure they provide in their rental properties. ‘Those who cut corners or who do not prioritise compliance with their obligations will find themselves facing increased monetary penalties and other punitive action.’ (engage.vic.gov.au)
These include substantial changes to introducing a new mandatory minimum standard of living and mandatory safety maintenance.Agencies and residential rental providers now face harsh penalties if they provide housing that does not meet these new requirements.
Consumer Affairs Victoria will oversee implementation of the new laws. The full set of changes have not yet come into effect. They will be introduced progressively as further consultation is required to develop guidelines, with all reforms commencing by 1 July 2020.
(This has now been delayed to 1st January 2021 due to COVID-19)
References:
https://engage.vic.gov.au/fairersaferhousing
The Government is working with REIV and other stakeholders to develop a range of Regulations that sit alongside the Act and make it workable and understandable. Changes to the RTA will be implemented over a period of time.
References:
https://reiv.com.au/policy-resources/latest-policy-news/rta-changes
What happens if the rental providers does not provide these minimal requirements?
‘Rental providers who currently try to do the right thing by renters will not be affected by the changes. However, those who cut corners or who do not prioritise compliance with their obligations will find themselves facing increased monetary penalties and other punitive action.’ (engage.vic.gov.au)
Overall, 11 per cent of renters described their property condition as ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’ when they moved in, with low income renters(those in the bottom two income quartiles) more likely to report that their property was in ‘poor’ condition (11 per cent compared to 7 per cent overall)and less likely to report that it was in ‘excellent’ condition (22 per cent compared to 29 per cent overall).
Standards considered during the Review have tended to follow themes of health, safety, amenity and energy affordability. During the consultation on the proposed Regulations, stakeholders proposed a wide range of minimum rental standards that could be introduced.
It is a societal expectation that people can heat their home to a comfortable temperature, particularly during winter months. There is strong evidence that living in a cold home has significant, direct and indirect health impacts.
Based on analysis by the Department of Environment, Land,Water and Planning (DELWP), an estimated 9 per cent of Class 1 and 16 percent of Class 2 private rental properties in Victoria do not have any heating.
An additional 2 per cent of Class 1 private rental properties would have a heater that is not compliant with the proposed 2‑star standard,and another 2 per cent would have LPG heating. This totals 84,442 existing private rental properties that would be affected by the proposed heating standard, approximately 14 per cent of the private rental market.
A recent survey of the Victorian rental market commissioned by DELWP found that over half of property managers (52 per cent)had poor knowledge of the health implications of properties with low energy efficiency, and only a third of rental providers (34 per cent) understood that properties with low energy efficiency can have negative health impacts on the occupants.
Safety-related standards are provided for in specialist building and electrical safety legislation. However,these laws do not clarify how safety devices or gas and electrical appliances and installations are to be maintained by the parties in the context of a rental agreement. Lack of clarity around rental provider and renter responsibilities for safety-related maintenance under a rental agreement poses health and safety risks for renters.
Feedback obtained as part of the Review, as well as knowledge gathered from Consumer Affairs Victoria’s (CAV’s) regulatory and compliance functions, identified that responsibilities for safety-related activities under a rental agreement was an area of concern, with anecdotal evidence of critical safety tasks not being done.
