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The McGowan government is progressing reforms to its state tenancy laws to “strike a balance between tenants and landlords”.
The Western Australian government has drafted new amendments to the Residential Tenancies Act 1987 in order to bolster protections for renters, give greater clarity for landlords, and streamline bond returns and dispute resolution processes.
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The Western Australian government announced in the 2023–24 state budget the funding of $4.5 million per year over the next two financial years for tenancy advocates and community groups to provide the state’s tenants with advice and support.
The proposed changes include barring the practice of rent bidding, disallowing landlords and property managers from pressuring/encouraging tenants to offer more than the advertised rent, and only allowing rent increases once every 12 months.
Furthermore, the changes will allow tenants to keep pet(s) in rental premises in most cases and make minor modifications to rentals with landlords only being able to refuse consent in certain cases.
The amendments will also aim to streamline the release of security bonds at the end of a tenancy that will allow tenants and landlords to apply separately in regard to how bond payments are disbursed.
In addition, disputes around bonds, pets, and minor modifications will be referred to the commissioner for consumer protection for determination.
Commerce Minister Sue Ellery said: “It’s no secret that some tenants in Western Australia are doing it tough at the moment, facing a combination of low vacancy rates and rising rents.
“Prohibiting rent bidding and reducing rent increases to once a year will help ease the financial burden on many families.
“There is no single solution to ease the current tight rental market. The new laws proposed by the McGowan government strike a good balance by protecting the owner’s investment property while providing stability and certainty for tenants.”
The NSW government was set to bring in similar legislation to abolish secret rent bidding practices that would’ve resulted in investors and their agents being required to notify applicants of other offers from potential tenants that are higher than the advertised price.
However, the Minns government has announced it will “press pause” on these proposed laws after the proposal was met with strong opposition by advocacy groups that argued it would “legitimise” rent bidding and lead to “unintended consequences” in a rental market that is already stretched thin.
[RELATED: NSW government scraps secret rent bidding loophole]
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