A renter looking for a property to lease said she turned down one place because of a very suspicious request made by the landlord.
Jill Clark, 26, had been struggling to find a rental in Sydney when a real estate agent offered her a lease on one condition: the electricity bill must remain in the landlord’s name for the first six months of her tenancy.
The offer fell through after Ms Clark told the agent such a request would be illegal to which he replied that it was ‘what the landlord wants’.
‘The unfortunate thing is that someone will be desperate enough for a property to accept that without question and real estate agents and landlords know this,’ she told news.com.au.
Ms Clark believed the landlord had been trying to take advantage of the First Home Buyer’s scheme.
The grant is available for first homebuyers who purchase a property under $1million.
Applicants are only eligible if they live intend to live in the property for the first 12 months.
Ms Clark believed the landlord wanted to keep their name on the bill so it appeared they were actually living at the house – and not renting it out.
Jill Clark, 26, turned down a lease offer after a real estate agent said that the electricity bill had to be kept in the landlords name for the first six months
The 26-year-old is a development manager and was working with a budget of up to $700 per week but still struggled to find a home in the ‘difficult’ market.
Sydney currently has a vacancy rate of just 1.68 per cent and the median price of rent in the city has soared to $600.
Ms Clark said that while some real estate agents were ‘helpful’ the one who asked her to keep the electricity bill in the landlord’s name had been ‘incredibly frustrating’.
Ms Clark immediately suspected the real estate agent’s request was an attempt by the landlord to access the First Home Buyer’s scheme while renting out the property
The First Home Buyer’s Grant varies by state but in NSW it can offer new homeowners a $10,000 lump sum towards their first property purchase.
To be eligible however, the buyer must live in the property for the first 12 months.
Ms Clark was told that in order to move into the home she would need to agree to the landlord forwarding the bill onto her.
Eventually she declined the offer and continued hunting for a rental under immense stress.
In her most dire moment Ms Clark revealed she was only two weeks away from being homeless.
Despite working with a $700-per-week rental budget Ms Clark still struggled to find secure a lease in Sydney (pictured) which has a vacancy rate of just 1.68 per cent (stock image)
Her lease was about to run out, she had no family in the city to fall back on in case for a place to stay, and she had a pet which made everything even harder.
‘For those of us who don’t have the option to couch surf with friends or move back in with family, the thought of having my lease ending before finding a new apartment is incredibly stressful,’ she said.
Luckily Ms Clark was offered a new lease at the last minute.
‘But had I not been, there would have been no plan, honestly,’ she said.
