TENANTS’ PAIN AS LANDLORDS FEEL THE PINCH

RENTAL properties left empty, rent hikes and a bias against lease applications from hospitality and tourism workers are some of the actions landlords are considering, an advocacy group says.

The findings are from a recent survey by the Tasmanian Residential Rental Property Owners Association of its members on the impact of COVID- 19 and subsequent state government protections for residential tenancies.

Key findings include 45 per cent of respondents who said they would avoid leasing property to people who worked in non- essential sectors such as hospitality and tourism; 28 per cent said they would consider short- stay lease options instead; and 27 per cent said they would prefer to leave their property untenanted if another pandemic or second COVID wave hit.

Association president Louise Elliot said the findings were concerning.

“The results are worrying for tenants and landlords alike,” she said.

“Yes, the landlords will be the first to be hit financially but the flow- on effects of homes being withdrawn from the rental market and increased vetting of applicants will affect those seeking out privately owned housing.”

Tenants Union of Tasmania’s acting principal solicitor Ben Bartl said by filtering applications by occupation, landlords could overlook a significant proportion of the Tasmanian workforce.

He urged landlords to look at prospective tenants’ pre-COVID rental histories when weighing up their decision.

“Twenty per cent of the state’s population work directly or indirectly in the tourism industry according to the Tourism Industry Council Tasmania,” he said.

“If there’s no issues with a tenant’s payment of rent then there’s no reason why that person should be discriminated against.”

The survey found 11 per cent of respondents would highly likely stop being a landlord as they were extremely concerned about the financial viability; 33 per cent reported feeling very concerned and were seriously considering not being a landlord; and a further 40 per cent were somewhat concerned that being a landlord would no longer be worthwhile.

To date, 232 Tasmanian landlords have accessed financial support through the state government’s COVID- 19 Landlord Support Fund with payments totalling $ 314,501. The one- off payment is available to landlords who have a residential lease with tenants who have fallen behind in paying rent.

The Tasmanian Residential Rental Property Owners Association intends to offer a dedicated legal service for landlords. See tasmanianrentalowners.com for full survey results.