Disgruntled tenant Brian Murphy points to the gap in the roof of the house he and wife Sylvia are renting in Dandenong.
By Shaun Inguanzo
AN ELDERLY couple is packing their bags and leaving Dandenong after what they say was a nightmare rental experience.
Brian and Sylvia Murphy are at the end of a 12-month lease of a unit on the Princes Highway in Dandenong.
The couple is paying $155 per week but has had to contend with a gaping hole in the ceiling through which water leaks, and has been forced to have a bath every day because the shower has no hot water.
Mr Murphy said he had contacted his real estate agent three times in six months to have the ceiling and hot water problems fixed, but to no avail.
Mr Murphy, 70, and Mrs Murphy, 75, will now move to Bacchus Marsh to be near their grandchildren as their 12-month lease expires on 26 January.
But this week Mr Murphy told Star people should beware the pitfalls of renting in Dandenong.
“I’d rate it (housing quality) very, very low,” Mr Murphy said.
“You go to inspect places and the spouting has got holes in it everywhere, and this is before moving in.
“Landlords just want people to come in and take it as it is.”
Mr Murphy said demand for rental properties meant landlords did not have to maintain their homes immaculately as there was always a bidder willing to settle.
While the couple will move to Bacchus Marsh to escape the rental problems, Mr Murphy said he felt sorry for newly arrived migrants who had no choice but to live in Dandenong’s cheapest – and most run-down – houses.
“They would have to take the homes,” he said. “They would have no choice out here.”
Damien Stock, solicitor with the Tenants’ Union of Victoria (TUV), said landlords had a legal obligation to fix damaged properties.
Mr Stock said other tenants experiencing similar problems should contact the TUV for advice before taking any action against their landlord.
“Tenants do not need to put up with a house in disrepair, because that is what they are paying rent for,” he said.
“We are constantly seeing landlords not undertaking their obligations.”
Mr Stock said high demand for rental properties did not mean landlords could slack off on maintenance.
“The supply and demand situation doesn’t affect their legal obligation to keep the house maintained in any way,” he said.
