26 November, 2025
The Hon. R.A. SIMMS (12:08): I rise to speak on the Residential Tenancies Bill. I note that the bill addresses issues in relation to rooming houses. I am supportive of that, but I do feel that this would be a missed opportunity: given we are opening up the Residential Tenancies Act, this is potentially a missed opportunity for the parliament to deal with some of the outstanding issues that we failed to resolve the last time we opened up the Residential Tenancies Bill.
In particular, I will be moving a series of amendments to address some of those issues. The first of those is to end the practice of rent bidding. The government will claim—and indeed they did so with great fanfare—that they have outlawed rent bidding in South Australia. That is not entirely true. What they have done is prevented a landlord from being able to advertise a range for a rental property, but there is nothing to stop a prospective tenant from turning up to an open inspection and offering more than the asking price, and there is nothing to stop a landlord from accepting a higher price. My amendments would outlaw that practice and introduce penalties for people who engage in that practice. We know that the practice of rent bidding is driving up prices in South Australia, so I urge the Labor and Liberal parties to support that sensible proposal.
The other amendment I am moving will seek to cap rent increases in line with CPI. This is not a radical proposal. The ACT has operated with a similar model in place for many years. The sky has not fallen in there and it will not here in South Australia. It is very clear that we have to do something about rent prices. Just this week, we saw a new survey come out that showed that rental accommodation in Adelaide is now as unaffordable as in Sydney. That is an absolute travesty, and it is an indictment on the Labor and Liberal parties, which fail to support rent capping. Christmas is a time for redemption. There is an opportunity for them to look at this proposal with fresh eyes and do something to help renters as we head into the Christmas period, because we know a lot of people are going to be struggling.
The amendment I am moving would also provide for the concept of a bond transfer. Victoria has recently announced this. This allows people to have their bond transferred directly from property to property rather than having to collect it and reallocate the bond. It is a pretty straightforward proposition. It is something that would make life a lot easier for renters. I hope the major parties support it.
Finally, I am proposing that the money that sits in unclaimed bonds be reinvested towards homelessness services or tenancy support services or indeed to build more social housing. I understand the government has indicated they are going to do everything they can to try to reconnect people with money that has not yet been claimed, but if the money is sitting there for 12 months or more and has not been claimed their proposal is that it will go back towards general revenue.
I am suggesting that instead that money should be allocated towards services that support renters, it should be allocated towards services that support homeless people and advocate for their interests, or it should go towards actually building more housing. I recognise that we are at a time where homelessness organisations are desperately seeking funds. They do not have access to them at the moment, and they are significantly under-resourced. They are getting government funding, but that is well below what they need. So these amendments would provide them with a potential lifeline as we head into the Christmas period.