ACAT decides a rare Canberra rent increases dispute in renter’s favour

We’re seeing more and more talk about rent controls [such as a cap on the amount a landlord can increase their tenant's weekly rent] as a solution to housing affordability issues.

Since 2019, the ACT that has been limiting rent increases without Tribunal orders.  It’s the only Australian state that does so even though renters in all states can dispute rent increases.

This @CanberraTimes article reports on an ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal case where a Canberra landlord attempted to raise a tenant's rent by $85 per week which was above the prescribed amount, so needed approval.

In that case, ACAT refused the increase and said the landlord's submissions highlighted "the power imbalance between landlords and tenants" the ACT's tenancy legislation sought to fix.

So, it looks like these kind of controls would work to keep rents lower where Tribunal’s get to supervise increases.  Perhaps, that’s why we’re not seeing similar controls everywhere else.

Read the full article here.