When you're a renter, there's always that worry hanging over your head: you just don't know how long the landlord is going to let you keep living there.
That's because 'no-grounds' evictions are allowed in NSW and other states and territories across Australia, meaning the landlord can serve you with an eviction notice without having to give a reason.
In NSW, that can happen 30 days before a fixed-term lease expires. If you're on a periodic month-to-month lease, you'll get a minimum of 90 days' notice.
The nagging uncertainty affects renters psychologically, emotionally, and, of course, financially
With rental markets across Australia at boiling point, an out-of-the-blue eviction is a very bad piece of news to receive. Yet somewhere around 28,000 people receive a no-grounds eviction notice in NSW every year.
The nagging uncertainty affects renters psychologically, emotionally, and, of course, financially, as a new report by Tenants' Union NSW, A Constant Worry: Renters confront the impact of unfair evictions, makes clear.
The report draws on the experiences of 123 NSW renters who've been subject to a no-grounds eviction and highlights the many negative impacts the event has had on their lives, from the onerous task of trying to find a new home, to unforeseen moving costs, to being pulled from community and friends, to, in some cases, becoming homeless.
'A loss at what to do': Renters share their stories
"The weeks and months following the no-grounds eviction was one of the most stressful periods of my life," a renter in Sydney's Inner West told Tenants' Union NSW.
"It was logistically challenging and emotionally taxing to be house hunting while also working full time. Most housing inspections were during business hours, which either meant that I couldn't attend or that I had to take time off work to check out a property that might not be suitable or that I might not get."
A woman in her 70s reported: "I have had four no-grounds evictions in 10 years. It depletes my small reserve of savings as it costs money to move. It has just happened again and I am at a loss at what to do."
I have had four no-grounds evictions in 10 years. It depletes my small reserve of savings as it costs money to move
Families with children describe the deep disruption of having to change schools, make new friends, find new day care arrangements, and essentially start over with some of life's most important markers of stability.
Rental laws under reviewThe timing of the report is no accident: The NSW Government is currently reviewing rental laws and has floated the possible removal of no-grounds evictions in an update to NSW tenancy legislation.
CHOICE lodged a submission to the review in August 2023, calling for an end to no-grounds evictions and advocating for the inclusion of a range of other renter protections.
The Tenants' Union NSW report draws on the experiences of 123 NSW renters who've been subject to a no-grounds eviction.
What needs to change?
Tenants' Union NSW CEO Leo Ross Patterson tells CHOICE the report comes at a particularly difficult moment for NSW renters and others across the county, when rents are high, availability is low, and landlords and agents have all the power.
"We have become used to a system that treats people's homes too cavalierly," Ross says. "It's too easy to just evict someone, and that's not seen as a serious thing to do, it's not seen as something that has serious impacts on their lives. Sometimes the outcome of leaving a home is having to leave a community and leave connections to a whole range of other things."
Ross points out that protections for renters against groundless evictions have been in place in other advanced economies around the world for years.
Tenants' Union NSW is calling for no-grounds evictions to be replaced by reasonable grounds evictions, some of which are already codified in the NSW Residential Tenancies Act.
They include a landlord moving back into the home, a major renovation, a tenant breaching the tenancy agreement, or the sale of a home.
These may well be the reasons that some tenants receive an eviction notice as it stands, but in today's rental environment the tenant may never know.
Sometimes the outcome of leaving a home is having to leave a community and leave connections to a whole range of other things
Tenants' Union NSW CEO Leo Ross Patterson
It's an information imbalance that pervades the rental market and has engendered a culture of distrust, if not antagonism, between landlords and renters, Ross says.
"What comes up through this report again and again and through conversations with renters is that, although there are usually reasons behind an eviction, renters are not told what they are," Ross says. "And when you're not being given any reason at all, you fill the vacuum with worry. That really undermines people's trust in the landlord or agent."
Tenants may wonder if a request for repairs was the cause, for instance, or if the landlord simply wants to significantly raise the rent.
Eviction through rent increases
Excessive rent increases are one way landlords try to get rid of tenants in NSW, but tenants have the right to contest such increases at the state tribunal.
In reality, though, few have the time or resources to go through the process.
"We have seen people receive a rent increase and an eviction notice at the same time and essentially told to pick one," Ross says. "That means there's a very strong incentive to accept the increase regardless of any evidence that it's fair, because you would rather do that than move out."
The contractual agreement outlined in a lease is meant to give the landlord certainty of rental income and the tenant certainty of a place to live. And while tenants do have some rights under the contract, the landlord has the ultimate right to end it whenever they want.
If a landlord wants to evict a tenant, it should be because they've breached the agreement or the tenancy is no longer viable because of a home sale or a major renovation
Tenants' Union NSW CEO Leo Ross Patterson
"The human consequence of all this is the constant worry about not being able to rely on having a home," Ross says.
The move to end no-grounds evictions in NSW is partly about increasing transparency, so tenants know they're not being kicked out as retaliation for requesting repairs or otherwise exercising their rights.
"If a landlord wants to evict a tenant, it should be because they've breached the agreement or the tenancy is no longer viable because of a home sale or a major renovation. There needs to be a genuine reason why a renter should leave their home."
Tenants' Union NSW is calling for compensation for renters who've been evicted without the reasonable grounds criteria being met. The government review is still underway.
Stock images: Getty, unless otherwise stated.
