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Res. Tenancies Act - Part 6 of legislative changes – housing standards and retaliatory evictions

Writer's picture: Skye TaylorSkye Taylor

Updated: Jun 28, 2023

Just a reminder that none of these changes have been passed as yet, but its likely that it will come into effect in the near future as the government try to align our legislation with other states nationally.





What do we currently have?


The SA Government believe that in some cases, tenants are choosing not to report repairs for fear of a retaliatory eviction or rent increases. I believe this is likely happening, and in my experience, it is happening in the private landlord sector.


Minimum housing standards are currently set by the Housing Improvement Act 2016 (HIA). This legislation is administered by the Housing Safety Authority (HSA) to ensure all residential premises are safe and suitable for human habitation.




What might change?


As outlined in Part 2 of this series, if the law was changed to ensure landlords need to specify a clear, permissible reason for the termination or non-renewal of a tenancy agreement, this may prevent evictions that are retaliatory in nature.


However I believe this to be a simplistic view of a complex situation. The advice provided to the government by the property management industry as a collective was that prescribed reasons are fine, but there needs to be more choices, as there can be many reasons a home is required to be made vacant.


I think if a landlord truly wanted to get rid of a tenant, they would find a way.


"Most investors are not interested in going through the hassle and uncertainty of finding a new tenant, it's risky and expensive for them"

So if this is something they are considering, there is likely a very strong reason.


Not responding to genuine requests for maintenance is not how most investors would go about this - a) their property is not being maintained, and will cause further expense for them down the track, and b) they risk being taken to SACAT for non compliance and having to pay compensation.



What does it mean for you?


As discussed in Part 2, it will be more crucial than ever to ensure your tenant selection is correct. It will be harder to give notice to a tenant even if they are doing the wrong thing, not maintaining the property, or not paying rent on time.


Ensuring you have a good property manager who will walk you through this process of tenant selection, and clearly explain the pros/cons to each potential applicant, will allow you to feel comfortable to make the right decision.


The other item that will be something to consider is the minimum housing standards. I have seen many properties in my time that presented well, but may have elements of "substandard" housing.

This is not a result of a landlord trying to be greedy or take advantage of tenants, but rather more commonly, when a landlord has lived in the property prior, and then it became an investment, its very common for the landlord to be surprised that a repair item falls under the "substandard" category, as they lived there and just tolerated it.


There are also times when tenants can be quite...particular, and it is the role of the property manager to try to minimise the impact this can have on the landlord, through education with the tenant, and support with the landlord to ensure that funds towards repairs are being used where they will attract the most value, and those that are required.


Minimum energy standards


"The introduction of minimum energy standards in rental properties will likely improve the comfort of these homes whilst also reducing their environmental impact."

The thought of an introduction of energy efficiency requirements in rental properties is somewhat alarming.


This may present a significant cost to some landlords, and we have already seen the impact of rising interest rates in the market, with many investors selling. Any changes to legislate standards must be handled carefully so to avoid landlords taking rentals off the market and further reducing supply.


An early measure may include the requirement for any new appliances installed in a renal property to meet a certain energy efficiency standard. This is reasonable, and I think most landlords would be happy to comply with that, however converting some older homes would prove this exercise to be non-viable for an investment property, and would absolutely have an impact on the number of available homes for rent.



There are multiple issues presented in this segment of legislative changes, and it is crucial you have the right support for your investment property when facing significant change such as this, to maximise your expenditure, and protect your ability to continue your investing journey.

Feel free to call me anytime on 0426 241 676 or reach out at hello@tayloredproperty.com.au if you are looking for valuable advice on your property investment.

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