Dodgy landlords: Should tenants be able to seek a reference?

Many renters have had a landlord who delayed repairs or barged in illegally without notice.

Now, all thanks to an Australian comedian, Canberra landlords may soon have to prove to renters they treat tenants fairly by providing them with a reference.

This could see prospective tenants warned about undesirable landlord behaviour.

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Earlier this week, ACT Labor MLA Michael Pettersson announced he would introduce a motion to the ACT Legislative Assembly to give renters the right to request a landlord reference.

Pettersson’s motion has attracted criticism from ACT Liberal politician Mark Patton, who said, “this motion is actually a joke”.

The motion had, in fact, been inspired by comedian Tom Cashman, who attracted a lot of online attention earlier this year by asking a real estate agent for a landlord reference “as a joke”.

The gag didn’t go down well. Cashman told ABC Radio he asked the real estate agent if the owner would provide a reference from a former tenant.

The real estate agent initially declined, claiming the owner was no longer in contact with the former tenants.

When Cashman continued to prod, asking why the owner wouldn’t still have email addresses for these former tenants, he was dismissed from the application.

“The owner does not wish to contact the previous tenants and it is not a requirement, all the best with your property search,” the real estate agent wrote.

The story blew up on social media, and Cashman has since found himself at the centre of a contentious rental-rights issue many Australians feel strongly about.

He even suspects the “cheeky” behaviour and subsequent media attention may have resulted in him being knocked back from another place he applied for.

“I don't think my current landlord knows I'm the landlord reference guy and I will not be mentioning it to them anytime soon,” he said.

What the motion is seeking

Pettersson hopes to improve the power dynamic between renters and landlords by allowing tenants to ask for references.

He said renters handed over their employment history, income, rental history and personal references to landlords.

“And I can understand why, when landlords are choosing someone to live in their property, that's a big consequence,” he said.

“But similarly, the decision as to where you move into is just as important, and landlords have a tremendous impact on public life.”

He said landlords controlled maintenance and upgrades of property, and could ask for rental increases.

They can also sometimes visit rental properties without notice, which is illegal.

“At the moment, there's no way for prospective tenants to know if any of these behaviours are likely to occur, and hopefully it will improve the local rental market if people do know about these behaviours and can act before they occur,” Pettersson said.

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