Victoria's rental reforms refresh concerns of investor exodus

In addition to the no-grounds eviction ban and caps on termination costs, the state will also seek to mandate that tenants cannot be charged service fees for paying rent and prohibit prospective renters from having to pay for a background check.

Victoria is also looking to change the way rental bonds are handled, with a plan to require landlords to present evidence of disrepair and rectification costs if they wish to keep some of a tenant’s bond. New penalties will also be brought in for rental providers who keep bond funds without reason.

REIV CEO Kelly Ryan commented that with these changes, the government had failed to support rental providers who she said were already “exiting the market at an unprecedented rate”.

“A good rental ecosystem depends on both rental providers and renters receiving mutual benefit. We urgently need the introduction of incentives that keep rental providers in the market and supplying homes, rather than more change. What we don’t need is more regulation that makes it harder to build investor confidence,” Ryan said.

She sought to remind the government that the vast majority of Victorian rental providers are so-called “mum and dad” investors, rather than ultra-rich entities.

“According to ATO data, the top rental provider occupations are registered nurses, office administrators, primary or secondary school teachers, IT managers, electricians, and sales assistants,” the REIV noted.

Moreover, REIV data indicates that roughly 90 per cent of rental providers in the state are classed as private investors, the majority of whom own just one rental property.

Ryan added that recent changes to rental policies and investor taxes in the state had already served to push some out of the market.

“At a time when Victoria needs greater rental supply, these announcements again target a market that has seen constant regulatory change,” Ryan said.