Based on your responses, your notice of rent increase might be invalid. If a rental provider wants to increase your rent, they must send you a valid notice of rent increase, and the proposed rent must not be excessive.
If you have received a notice of rent increase that might be invalid or excessive, you can challenge the increase by applying for a free rent assessment from Consumer Affairs Victoria (CAV). You must make this application within 30 days of receiving the notice.
After applying for a rent assessment, a case officer from CAV will contact you. An inspector from CAV may also need to visit your home as part of the rent assessment. This will help them decide whether the rent is too high. If an inspector visits your home, this is your opportunity to show the inspector why the rent increase should not be allowed, for example by showing the inspector the state of the property.
CAV will then send a written report to you and the rental provider. The report will include an outcome about whether the rent is excessive. You can use this report to negotiate the rent with the rental provider and to apply to VCAT.
If the rental provider does not want to negotiate, you do not agree with the report, or your notice might be invalid, you can apply to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) for an order that the rent increase not be allowed. If you are considering applying to VCAT, we recommend getting legal advice about your options.
You have to apply to VCAT within 30 days of receiving the CAV report. If you do not apply within 30 days, you need to explain to VCAT why it took you longer than 30 days to apply and why the delay has not caused detriment to your rental provider. VCAT will decide whether to allow your application.
VCAT has the power to order that:
- the proposed rent is excessive and for a period of time the rent cannot be higher than a certain amount,
- the rent increase is allowed, and you must pay the new amount from the date the increase comes into effect,
- the rent increase is invalid, and you continue paying your regular rent amount.
A rent increase notice may be invalid because:
- the rental provider increased rent during your fixed term rental agreement but there is nothing in the agreement letting them to do so,
- you have already had a rent increase in the last 12 months if your rental agreement started after 19 June 2019 or in the last 6 months if your rental agreement started before 19 June 2019,
- the new rent is excessive,
- the rent increase notice is not in the right form. The rental provider must use the ‘Notice of proposed rent increase’ form from CAV.
- the rent increase notice does not contain the correct information about how the rental provider calculated the increased rent,
- the rental provider did not give you at least 60 days’ notice before the rent increase started.
If the notice is invalid or the proposed rent is too high, you should ask VCAT for an order that the rental provider refund any extra rent that you have already paid.
Any decision made by VCAT must be followed.
If you do not take any further steps to challenge the notice, the rent increase will start on the date set out in the notice.
