The ACT Government has pushed its latest renter reforms as providing stronger protections during the country’s ‘housing crisis’. Photo: Michelle Kroll.
Victim-survivors of domestic and family violence will be able to end rental tenancies faster and without penalty under new ACT law changes.
Passing the Housing and Consumer Affairs Legislation Amendment Bill 2024 has also closed a “loophole” around rental increases and month-to-month tenancies.
Attorney-General Shane Rattenbury said the rental market was “unfairly skewed” towards landlords, so these changes were just a few that were needed to provide greater housing security for renters.
“This legislation gives more tenants protection against excessive rent increases,” he said.
“The ACT is the only place in Australia where the law sets clear limits on how much landlords can increase the rent. We’re protecting our most vulnerable and making renting simpler and fairer.”
New laws will close a loophole to prevent landlords from being able to increase rents beyond the current legal limit when tenants renew their fixed term tenancy or where there are changes to the agreement – such as a housemate moving out. This has been designed to provide renters with fairer conditions and greater financial surety.
Rent increases in Canberra are limited by a formula linked to the CPI for Canberra rents.
Landlords won’t be able to impose a greater rent increase unless the tenant agrees or the ACT Tribunal approves it.
ACT Greens housing spokesperson Jo Clay said it was important to make these changes, given the housing crisis gripping the ACT and the country.
“[These] amendments are a small change, but they do close a loophole which allowed rental prices to increase for many in a market already slanted against renters,” she said.
Procedural requirements around starting and ending a tenancy have been made more flexible to better support share-housing arrangements.
“Importantly, the bill also allows victim-survivors of domestic and family violence to end tenancies quickly and without penalty,” Mr Rattenbury said.
“This will make it easier for people experiencing violence to change their housing arrangements where they need.”
Better Renting executive director Joel Dignam said his organisation had often heard from renters who’d been offered rent increases higher than allowed if the renter had chosen to go onto a periodic tenancy.
“This was a big loophole that landlords were exploiting to the hilt,” he said.
“Closing this loophole means that renters won’t have to choose between lower rent and the sense of security offered from a fixed-term lease.”
He also applauded the change to help victim-survivors, stating it would keep people safer and reduce the bureaucracy facing someone who was already “dealing with an awful situation at home”.
Despite these movements in the rental space, Mr Dignam said there was still more the government could consider to continue its record of law reform.
“We still want to see improvements to the protections against unfair rent increases by simplifying the formula so it’s easier for landlords and renters to understand and apply,” he said.
“Renters also benefit when there is a greater supply of rental housing. We support budget commitments to encourage more social and affordable housing, and we want to see more action on planning reform to legalise more housing construction in the ACT.”
Increasing the supply of all housing assets, including social and affordable housing, was also stressed as the “best long-term solution” for vulnerable community members by the Property Council.
ACT and Capital Regions branch interim executive director Gino Luglieitti said while urgent action was needed, solutions had to be “carefully considered” to avoid making things worse.
“Rent capping does not improve affordability – the research consistently shows it stifles investment, stifling the ACT’s housing supply shortage, which makes the overall problem worse,” he said.
“Rent capping prompts many private investors to withdraw from the market, further straining an already pressured rental landscape in the ACT.
“A more productive focus for government would be to remove delays and inefficiencies in the planning system to unlock the supply we need to house a fast-growing population. That would provide a greater level of security to everyone in the ACT, including those most vulnerable.”
The bill also made a number of de-regulatory reforms for charities and recruitment companies.
These include removing licensing requirements for employment agents at recruitment companies and giving the Commissioner for Fair Trading the ability to fine businesses and traders who fail to attend scheduled consumer conciliations for low-value consumer claims (less than $5000).
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