• 14 November 2023

It’s been nearly six months since the WA Government announced its reforms to the Residential Tenancies Act.  

They were:  

• The retention of no grounds terminations   
• Rent bidding to be prohibited     
• Rent increases to be limited to once a year     
• Tenants to be able to have pets in most cases     
• Tenants to be able to make certain minor modifications to the rental premises     
• The release of security bonds at the end of a tenancy to be streamlined, allowing tenants and property owners to apply separately regarding how bond payments are to be disbursed     
• Disputes over bond payments, as well as disagreements about pets and minor modifications, to be referred to the Commissioner for Consumer Protection for determination   

When Commerce Minister Sue Ellery announced the changes in May she said she aimed to put the reforms to Parliament by the end of this year and have them come into effect in the second half of 2024. There was the potential for the ban on rent bidding and limits to rent increases to come into effect earlier in 2024.  

The Minister and I meet regularly and in our most recent meeting, she confirmed that this timeframe has been extended and anticipates an Amendment Bill will go to Parliament in the first half of 2024. It is expected to address dispute resolution, limiting rent increases, and banning rent bidding. These reforms are then likely to come into effect in the second half of 2024.  

The development of regulations for other reforms, such as pets and modifications is likely to occur in late 2024 or early 2025.  

We are comfortable with the reforms banning rent bidding and limiting rent increases. Our focus is currently on the reforms to pets and modifications and REIWA Deputy President Suzanne Brown and I met with Minister Ellery earlier this week to specifically discuss these issues, particularly the finer details of the reforms and the practicalities of their implementation. 

When it comes to having pets in rental properties, our main aim is to see the pet bond increased, for it to be used for more than just fumigation, and there be a bond per pet.  

We have also proposed a range of conditions on which pets can be refused and the conditions for keeping a pet.  

When it comes to modifications, we’ve made clear that the tenant be required to make good at the end of the tenancy and any modifications be carried out by suitably qualified tradespeople.  

We have also submitted definitions for minor modifications and noted that significant modifications such as painting walls or rooms, flooring, structural changes, handrails, fixtures, and showers should not be considered ‘minor’ and should continue to require consent as per current arrangements. We will continue our detailed work on this. 

In addition to pets and modifications, we do have some concerns about the implementation of the reform to the dispute resolution process. We will be monitoring its progress and offering feedback. In our pre-Budget submission we will also be requesting the dispute resolution process be appropriately funded to ensure that it functions as intended.  

The Residential Tenancies Act and the state of the rental market continue to be at the forefront of our advocacy work and our engagement with the Cook Government and the community. 

We are also meeting with local members of Parliament and have written to all WA members of Federal Parliament and Senators to brief them on our submission to the Senate’s Rental Market Inquiry and discuss the RTA reforms and their impact on the market. 

We were pleased to welcome recent initiatives from the Government to address the rental crisis including the $24.4m rent relief program to assist tenants who are in arrears – and by extension owners, as well as an initiative to incentivise investment property owners in the short-stay market into the long-stay rental market. 

Over the past 12 months we have engaged strongly with the WA government regarding the rental market, sharing our unique market data and analysis, as well as valuable insights from those on the ground – our members. They have recognised supply is the key issue facing the market and that strict legislative measures – such as rent caps and freezes – would have a negative effect. As a result they’ve announced a range of measures to boost supply and aimed for a balanced to tenancy legislation. 

More recently we were very pleased to see them announce the WA Rental Relief Program – aimed at helping vulnerable tenants at risk of eviction due to arrears, and by extension, investors facing financial stress due to those arrears. We also commend their incentive-based, rather than punitive, approach to the short-stay market. We know short-stay isn’t the silver bullet to solve the problems we are facing, but if the new scheme adds a few properties to the rental, market, that’s a positive outcome for tenants desperately seeking a home.