Media release – Elise Archer, Minister for Building and Construction, 4 September 2020
Extending support for Tasmanian tenants and new assistance for landlords experiencing hardship
The Tasmanian Government is committed to supporting tenants and landlords as the State recovers and rebuilds from COVID-19.
That is why we acted quickly to protect and support residential tenants at risk of eviction as a result of the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, extending the initial emergency period in the Residential Tenancy Act 1997 until 30 September 2020.
The decision to extend protections to 30 September 2020 was not made lightly. In order to best support residential landlords, some minor changes to the existing protections at the time were made to allow a notice to vacate to be issued for a lease of no fixed period in the event of the sale of property, major renovations, or for the owner or a close family member to move into the property.
We have continued to closely monitor the situation, consider all the options, and listen to Tasmanians to best inform the next steps.
After careful consideration, the Government will:
- extend the emergency period for residential tenancies to 1 December 2020;
- extend the financial hardship period for commercial tenancies to 1 December 2020;
- extend the Rent Relief Fund to 1 December 2020; and
- introduce a new COVID-19 Landlord Support Fund.
As of Thursday, 3 September 2020, more than 700 Tasmanian residential tenants had accessed the Rent Relief Fund. In addition to extending the Rent Relief Fund, the Government will also allow tenants who have accessed the Fund to apply for a further payment of up to four weeks rent to a maximum of $2000, if they are still in arrears.
The Government’s advice has, and continues to be, that this is not a rent holiday for residential tenants.
We also recognise the impacts of COVID-19 have been felt by many residential landlords, which is why the Government will also introduce a new COVID-19 Landlord Support Fund. The purpose of this Fund is to provide financial support to those residential landlords experiencing financial hardship.
This Fund will offer landlords, who can demonstrate they have tenants in rent arrears, up to four weeks rent to a maximum of $2000 in financial relief.
Furthermore, the Government will soon release for consultation a Bill that will provide for residential landlords and tenants to formally enter into a payment plan to deal with the tenant’s rent arrears. This Bill will be brought to Parliament before December 2020, and will help provide a pathway forward for tenants and landlords when the emergency period concludes.
Media release – Cassy O’Connor MP | Greens Leader and Housing spokesperson, 4 September 2020
Tenant Protection Extension Welcome
Tasmanians living in rental homes will warmly welcome today’s announcement of extended residential rental protections and the Rent Relief Fund.
Many Tasmanian renters have already been confronted with threats of eviction and rent increases from landlords in recent weeks. This is why the Greens and social welfare organisations have been urging the government to make this decision.
Protections and support for tenants will become even more crucial as the Morrison Government slashes the income of tens of thousands of Tasmanians on September 30.
Greens’ amendments to the government’s COVID-19 emergency laws allowed tenants to be protected from eviction and rent increases through the pandemic period.
The Gutwein Government also committed to establishing the Rent Relief Fund under questioning and pressure from the Tenants Union, and the Greens in Parliament. These measures have given crucial peace of mind to those pushed to the financial brink by COVID-19.
We also recognise this has been a hard time for landlords, few of whom have huge financial resources. We trust the legislative package also announced today will also ensure landlords aren’t left behind.
Given the difficult experiences of Tasmanian tenants and flow on impacts to landlords before today’s announcement, and the prospect of more federal income support cuts at the end of December, we encourage government to decide on a further extension much earlier next time if it’s needed.
Alison Standen MP, Shadow Minister for Housing, 4 September 2020
Rent relief a no-brainer to support vulnerable Tasmanians
Labor has welcomed the extension of protections for tenants and landlords in the private rental market.
Shadow Minister for Housing Alison Standen said this is a common sense response to calls for action from Labor and the community sector.
“With JobKeeper and JobSeeker payments reducing from later this month, many tenants would have been at risk of eviction or rent hikes.
“Scott Morrison’s decision to cut back the support that is keeping many Tasmanians afloat meant the Tasmanian government had no choice but to act.
“This provides greater certainty to all parties, with protections extended for a further two months.
“We also applaud the move to extend the rent relief fund for one-off payments to landlords and tenants who have suffered financial hardship through COVID-19.
“We look forward to seeing details of the proposed payment plan Bill to deal with rental arrears, and Labor will work to ensure this serves the best interests of both tenants and landlords.
“Housing security is critical to helping Tasmanians get back into work and it’s important that those suffering hardship due to the pandemic are supported and protected.”
