Krissy tried to negotiate her rent increase lower, then the agent asked for more money

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Tenants have the option to fight an excessive rental increase in the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal. NSW Tenants’ Union chief executive Leo Patterson Ross said very few did so as the process was not conducive to renters in need of a quick resolution.

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Several economists have warned rent caps would stymie the development of new rental properties, but Patterson Ross has urged a more nuanced debate.

He said legislation against excessive rent increases, similar to the ACT where rents are capped at the rate of inflation for Canberra rentals, plus 10 per cent, could be one part of a broader strategy of ongoing construction to increase supply and address the chronic shortage of housing in NSW.

Patterson Ross said waiting for supply to increase, a long-term solution, wouldn’t help renters like Kristina today.

He urged better regulation around housing, similar to water and electricity, viewing it as an essential service, not an investment.

NSW rental commissioner Trina Jones said: “There are already rules in place to prevent ‘excessive’ rent increases through the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal, considering factors such as average prices, location or the type of property. In the case of a 50 per rent increase, that’s in excess of the market standard. I would strongly encourage renters to challenge this at the tribunal.”

Jones encouraged tenants to check if a rent increase was excessive using the Tenants Union rent tracker tool.

Per Capita’s Center for Equitable Housing director Matt Lloyd-Cape said while a rent freeze would be a poor response, there was scope for rent stabilization – limiting excessive rental increases.

“The types of rent controls that can work are smoothing out these increases, like the ACT. Their rent price increases have kept up with the rest of the country in the long run, but the jumps can’t happen as quickly,” Lloyd-Cape said, adding this would prevent the displacement of key workers like Kristina.

He said many countries have rent stabilization, including Germany, Ireland and Canada.

He called for better regulation of housing and more social housing, and said the government could offer tenants similar guard rails to provisions for landlords to smooth hefty land tax bills by paying in installations.

“What you can do is slow down the speed of change, so people aren’t whammed with a 50, 60, 70 per cent [rental] increases,” he said.

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UNSW business school professor of economics Richard Holden said while Kristina’s case was unacceptable, rent caps would reduce the number of rentals available.

“She is in a horrible situation through no fault of her own. “This is a very unfortunate consequence of what happens when you have too little supply and a lot of demand,” Holden said. “This will all take a lot of time, that’s not going to be an immediate fix, it’s not going to solve the supply issue in the short term.”

REINSW chief executive Tim McKibbin had no short-term solutions for renters and questioned why landlords had to provide affordable housing in lieu of government.

“There is a lot of hardship out there… But what’s happening is private investors are being pushed into the affordable housing area,” McKibbin said. “Social and affordable housing is the domain of government, not private investors.”

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