Your Rights & Risks As A Renter When Requesting Repairs

Your landlord must make sure your rented home is maintained in good repair. This includes anything in the home and any shared areas they own or manage (and it means they cannot refuse to do repairs if there is a real need for them!).

You are required to tell your rental provider if you see anything that is broken. If the damage wasn't caused by you doing anything other than just living in the property, then you have the right to ask your landlord to come fix it. You can check out our top six tenancy repair rights here.

The quick answer? Contact your landlord or agent in writing. If you don’t hear back from them or if they won’t carry out your repair, you can start your case with us here.

If you prefer to fly solo, here are some other options we’ve put together:

• Study up on free sites like Consumer Affairs Victoria and Tenants Victoria – there’s heaps of information there that might help you.
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• Seek free legal help from other organisations, such as Community Legal Centres or Victoria Legal Aid. It’s helpful to know that the amount of help you can receive from these providers will depend on the nature of your case and whether you’re eligible for their service.
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• If you have the money, you could hire a lawyer to assist you with your tenancy dispute.

Even though you have the right to a home in good repair, requesting for something to be fixed may annoy your landlord – we totally disagree with this, but sadly this can happen. To know your tenancy rights, you can check out our blog here.

No. Your landlord cannot to evict you simply because you have asked for repairs to be performed around your home. If your landlord tries to evict you by giving you a notice to vacate, you can challenge this at VCAT on the basis that it is retaliatory. This means that they are asking you to vacate simply because you’re requesting that something should be fixed or repaired in your home. However, it is also worth noting that:

• A landlord is able to ask a renter to vacate the property without reason, as long as they're provided with 60 days notice
• Sometimes the property is so damaged it can be deemed uninhabitable, which can be a valid and immediate reason for eviction.
  

Yes, but your landlord or agent can only raise your rent by following specific rules. The following rules apply:

• Your rental provider must give you at least 60 days' written notice of the rent increase
• Your rental provider cannot increase your rent if you are still renting under a fixed-term agreement
• If you have been living at your property since 19 June 2019, your rental provider can only increase your rent once every 6 months
• If you moved into your property after 19 June 2019, your rental provider can only increase your rent once every year

Yes! If you stop paying rent and you become at least 14 days in arrears, your landlord can begin the eviction process by issuing you with a notice to vacate – which can require you to leave the property within 14 days! So, in short, always pay your rent.