New proposed legal guidelines would imply landlords cannot flip away tenants if they’ve a pet. Photograph: Unsplash.
By SHARLOTTE THOU
Sydney renters could quickly be allowed to personal pets while not having approval from landlords, below new proposed legal guidelines. At present, whether or not pets are allowed in rental houses is as much as the house owner or landlord’s discretion (with help animals being an exception to this rule).
Proponents for the modifications say that the present legal guidelines will not be pet-friendly, with many renters being pressured to surrender their pets – usually to adoption shelters – when renting houses.
Blanket ‘not pet clauses’ trigger vital points
Talking to Metropolis Hub, Coverage and & Advocacy Supervisor of the Tenants Union NSW Jemima Mowbray defined that “very few” properties are marketed as being pet pleasant, and that tenants with pets face discrimination and blanket “no-pet clauses”.
She stated that victims of home abuse “often report delaying leaving an unsafe situation because they can’t secure new housing where they can take their pets”. Moreover, there are reviews of households affected by the Lismore floods who’ve been unsuccessful to find pet-friendly rental properties, which has pressured them to “sleep in their cars or to take up unsafe, untenable housing situations”.
“We need more pet friendly renting laws in NSW”, she added.
Talking to the Sydney Morning Herald, Actual Property Institute of NSW Chief Govt Tim McKibbin stated that “any proposals that remove landlords’ rights would inevitably make the rental crisis worse by drawing investors out of the market”.
In response, Mowbray informed Metropolis Hub that “in practice both [domestically] and internationally when renting laws have changed to improve renter’s rights, we haven’t seen this actually eventuate”.
On a broader stage, the change would supply renters with better autonomy by proscribing the flexibility of landlords to disclaim freedoms reminiscent of proudly owning a pet.
Interior West Councillor Dylan Griffiths informed Metropolis Hub that the modifications would supply renters with “greater autonomy and dignity”. Cr Griffiths tabled a movement in help of those proposed modifications at a current Interior West Council assembly.
“Renters are too often denied the opportunity to make basic decisions about our homes…these rights are taken for granted by owners”, he stated.
Dylan Griffiths. Photograph: Fb.
