On Wednesday (17th), the Western Australian government announced that the new rental reform legislation in Western Australia has been passed by the state parliament. The new law will be implemented in the middle of this year. What are the implications of the new law for tenants and landlords?
According to a report by ABC, under the new law, landlords will only be allowed to increase rent once a year. Currently, landlords can raise rent every six months.
According to data from REIWA, the median rent for independent houses in Perth is currently $650 per week, compared to $550 per week at the same time last year and $480 per week in 2022.
Under the new regulations, property managers and landlords encouraging tenants to offer rent higher than the advertised price will be considered illegal. This means that landlords cannot demand tenants to provide higher rent to surpass bids from other potential tenants.
Currently, if a tenant wants to hang paintings on the walls or change the showerhead for simple alterations, technically they need permission from the landlord.
However, the new law allows tenants to make minor renovations without permission. For example, installing a garden or fly screens, or hanging artwork. Of course, if tenants leave nail holes in the walls, they are responsible for repairing them to restore the property to its original condition when the lease ends.
In most cases, landlords cannot refuse tenants from having pets. But tenants are still responsible for repairing any damage caused by pets and maintaining hygiene for the animals.
Tenants still need to comply with property management regulations, and landlords can, under specific conditions or with approval from the Consumer Protection Commissioner, reject tenants from keeping pets.
The new law will also take measures to simplify the process for tenants to retrieve their security deposits after the lease ends.
Any disputes related to security deposits, pets, and minor alterations will be determined by the Consumer Protection Commissioner. Currently, all disputes between tenants and landlords are handled by the Magistrates Court. To support the role of the Consumer Protection Commissioner in dispute resolution, the state government will allocate $8.9 million in the 2024-25 state budget.
The new law still retains the “no-grounds evictions” clause.
This means situations where tenants have not violated any lease terms, but landlords want to evict them. Landlords do not need to provide any reasons and can evict periodic tenants with a 30-day notice, while periodic tenants without a designated end date in the lease require a 60-day notice.
In Western Australia and the Northern Territory, landlords are allowed to evict fixed-term and periodic tenants without grounds.
New South Wales has proposed amendments to prohibit the no-grounds eviction of periodic tenants. Queensland and Tasmania have already banned no-grounds eviction of periodic tenants. Victoria, South Australia, and the Australian Capital Territory have fully banned no-grounds evictions.
Responsibility Editor: Yang Xinyun