Calls for change after 'problematic' tenant questionnaire outrages Aussies
Renters can't gain access to the feedback given about them through the rental application process.
Rental advocates are calling for change after an Aussie landlord lifted the lid on a ‘problematic’ tenant questionnaire that has emerged.
The website realestate.com.au forwards a reference request to previous and exisiting agents and landlords when a prospective tenant applies for a rental listing through the site, and asks 15 questions about their previous tenancy.
The standardised questions ask property managers or landlords listed as a referee if the tenant was “pleasant” to deal with, if the number of maintenance requests was “reasonable” during the property and even to rate out of 5 the overall experience with the tenant. The full list of questions was sent to Yahoo News Australia and is posted below.
While a spokesperson for realestate.com.au has defended the questions, saying it provides an “even playing field for all applicants”, hundreds of Aussies are irked by the questions, and rental advocates are calling for change.
Have you experienced a problem with a rental property? Contact News Editor Courtney Greatrex at courtney.greatrex@yahooinc.com
Yahoo understands tenants would not be able to gain access to the feedback given about them through the rental application process.
“These questions should be regulated,” tenant advocate and qualified lawyer Jordan van den Berg told Yahoo News Australia.
The view was echoed by Leo Patterson Ross from the Tenants Union of New South Wales who said: “We should look to move to a system that doesn't pitch renters against each other, but instead assesses someone's application on their own merit.”
Questions circulated online
The list of questions were first shared by a landlord on Reddit. “Problematic questions much,” the Aussie landlord said, sharing a screenshot.
The landlord goes on to explain their dad has been living in their house and paying board. Applying for new rentals, the dad has listed their child as a referee on his realestate application.
“There are only a handful of questions asked and most of them are mildly problematic to be honest,” the person said on Reddit. “Zero questions about if children have been an issue, two questions about pets.”
“I'm genuinely peeved that they'd ask if I believe as a "landlord" the maintenance request level was appropriate!!! Same goes for if the tenant is 'pleasant'.”
People were quick to echo the concerns raised about the questionnaire, adding that it’s bad for not only tenants but landlords too. “So you rent out a slum which needs frequent repairs....and then punish the tenant with a bad review for your poorly maintained property,” asks one Aussie.
Another disgruntled tenant said they only mention problems with a property to meet their legal obligation but "don’t push because we don’t want to become tenants that are a ‘hassle’. They add that it means the house they rent "is getting more and more damaged by the minute".
Rental advocates demand change
As Aussies continue to grapple with an ongoing rental crisis, Patterson Ross told Yahoo the system has suffered from a “lack of guidance to the sector.”
“As it becomes more and more competitive to find a home, the information being asked becomes more invasive,” he said.
“Websites like realestate.com.au were previously more simply a listings site, but as they expand the information they capture to pass on they are really actively involved in the process and influencing the experience.”
Van den Berg echoed those views, calling the questions ‘shocking’.
“It’s completely unregulated and the fact that there’s a question ‘was the number of maintenance requests reasonable?’ — there is no such thing as an unreasonable amount of maintenance requests,” he says.
“There’s nothing to stop a real estate agent or landlord from lying. It’s not verified by anyone. And it’s really problematic."
Realestate.com.au defends ‘standardised’ questions
A realestate.com.au spokesperson told Yahoo News that they are “firmly committed” to consumers having equal opportunities to access properties listed on their site.
“The standardised list of reference questions provides an even playing field for all applicants. The realestate.com.au rental application process was built based on research and feedback from renters and property professionals.
“The platform was rebuilt last year with the aim of creating a fair and privacy-focused product which makes the process of applying for a rental property more consistent and easier for renters.”
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