A major Australian real estate agency has apologised after one of its franchises introduced a ‘Tenant of the Month’ award, sparking a backlash from renters who labelled it ‘degrading’.
To be eligible for the award, tenants with the Ray White agency had to consistently pay rent on time, keep the property in good condition, and be ‘pleasant’ to interact with.
However the award has been widely slammed, with tenant’s rights activist Jordan van den Lamb labelling it as ‘condescending’.
‘Renters don’t need to be competing with each other to survive, which is what this award seems to be encouraging people to do,’ he said.
‘Housing is a human right and it doesn’t require you to be pleasant.’
Mr van den Lamb believes that the real estate agency’s emphasis on being ‘pleasant’ might stop tenants from complaining when repairs are needed.
‘Agents often consider unpleasantness as asking for basic repairs to be done,’ he said.
‘They are insinuating you should keep quiet.’
The post (pictured) that triggered outrage among many Aussies for being ‘humiliating’ and ‘degrading’
A Ray White spokesperson apologised for any offence caused by the award.
‘We value all our tenants and always strive to create a respectful and inclusive community,’ they told Daily Mail Australia.
Ray White is a franchised network with 1,000 offices and 13,000 members.
A Tenants Union spokesperson said the real estate industry needed to treat renters with more respect.
‘We pay tens of thousands of dollars a year in rent, we should expect a level of service and respect that reflects this, not an arbitrary determination of being a pleasure to deal with.’
Mr van den Lamb said the current situation for renters is extremely difficult, and that more needed to be done to protect tenants.
‘People can’t afford their rent,’ he said.
‘And if they can, the standard is terrible.
‘We are paying a lot of money to access something that is substandard.’
His comments come as national rents remained unchanged over the June 2024 quarter at $600 per week, but this marks a 9.1 per cent increase, or $50 more, since the same time last year, according to REA Group’s PropTrack Rental Report for June.
New rental listings on Realestate.com.au were 4.7 per cent lower in June compared to a year earlier, which was the lowest since 2010.
While total listings increased by more than 10 per cent in the June quarter, conditions remained tight with total stocks 4.4 per cent lower year-on-year.
Sydney fared the worst during the June quarter as renters faced the lowest supply of available properties for the month in more than a decade, with new rental listings declining by 2.8 per cent and total rentals down by 4.8 per cent.
Despite recording an increase in vacancy rates to 1.7 per cent, median advertised rents in the Sydney rose by $60 to top the nation at $740 a week.
It was not much better for NSW’s regional renters with listings contracting by 19 per cent over the year, resulting in tougher competition between prospective renters.
Melbourne’s rental supply remained tight in June as 16.8 per cent fewer new listings hit the market over the year, but total listings remained relatively stagnant.
The rental vacancy rate grew by 0.34 per cent over the quarter to reach a 12-month high of 1.5 per cent but that also signalled a rise in median rents to $575 a week, a $55 increase from a year prior.
While rentals in regional Victoria tightened and new and total listings declined, prices remained unchanged at $450 a week.
New rental listings on Realestate.com.au were 4.7 per cent lower in June compared to a year earlier, the lowest June level since 2010
Brisbane renters faced a sunnier outlook as market conditions eased over the June quarter, bringing with it a growing rental supply and listings while competition eased.
Vacancy rates rose to 1.2 per cent over the quarter and median rents for both Brisbane and regional Queensland sat at $620 per week.
Adelaide and Perth experienced an increase in rental supplies and also increases to their asking rents as conditions eased across both markets.
The median rent for Adelaide in the June quarter rose to $570 while Perth had an advertised median rent of $650.
Rental asking prices in Canberra remained stagnant at $600 over the year to June despite tighter supply and growing demand.
