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The state is moving closer to implementing a number of updates to its rental regulations, including banning no-grounds evictions.
Minister for Better Regulation and Fair Trading, Anoulack Chanthivong, is set to introduce the legislation to the Legislative Assembly today, 15 October 2024, after months of consultation that reportedly received more than 16,000 submissions and survey responses from across the state.
The Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill 2024 moves to close a loophole in the state’s current regulation, ensuring rental increases must be limited to once per year by applying the law across periodic and fixed term leases.
It also seeks to end no-grounds evictions, which was a promise of both the Labor and Liberal governments going into the last election, and introduces a new system that will make it easier for tenants to keep pets in rental accommodation.
The laws would also mandate that renters are provided with a free way to pay rent, including via bank transfer or the Commonwealth government’s Centrepay, and end the practice of asking prospective tenants to pay a fee for a background check.
Ahead of the legislation’s introduction, Chanthivong explained that the updates seek to align the state’s laws with the national plan agreed to by state and territory leaders in 2023, called “A Better Deal for Renters”.
“Ensuring renters can only be hit with one rent increase a year will provide greater certainty and protection for renters regardless of whether their lease type changes. By ending no-grounds evictions, making it easier to have pets and ensuring people can pay their rent without hidden charges, these landmark reforms will make it fairer for the state’s 2.2 million renters,” Chanthivong said.
He stressed that the legislation was developed through “extensive consultation on how to best modernise the market with renters, owners, industry groups, experts and advocates”.
“These reforms are focused on getting the balance right,” Chanthivong added.
The Real Estate Institute of NSW (REINSW) evidently does not feel that has been achieved, with the organisation warning that the reforms could cause landlords to sell their properties, putting further pressure on the rental market.
“The rental reforms the NSW government has signalled its intention to pursue will result in more investors selling up or opting for a short-term accommodation strategy, both of which remove more properties from the private rental market,” Tim McKibbin, REINSW CEO, said.
“This is already happening and it’s happening at a time when the NSW population is increasing by over 15,000 people each month. The rental market is in crisis and we need solutions, not reforms that we know because of direct and recent experience will make the problem worse,” McKibbin added.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Juliet Helmke
Based in Sydney, Juliet Helmke has a broad range of reporting and editorial experience across the areas of business, technology, entertainment and the arts. She was formerly Senior Editor at The New York Observer.
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