Victoria seeks to end draughty rentals in revamp of heating and cooling standards

Legislation only works when it is enforced and there aren’t any loopholes.

Tenants; The rent is unsustainable and the heating bills are nearly as high as the rent!

Government; Let’s make landlords improve properties so that they are more efficient.

Green-Energy scammers; Let’s sell a solution that rides the loophole line between being government-compliant and non-functional.

Landlords; We can pay the scammers a pittance and charge our Tenants more.

Tenants; We are still cold and now paying higher rents and higher energy bills.

This is the best summary I could come up with:

All Victorian rental properties will need air conditioning, draught proofing on doors and a certain amount of ceiling insulation under new minimum heating and cooling standards proposed by the state government.

The government on Monday announced it would begin consultation on the expanded standards requirements, including for broken appliances to be replaced with energy efficient ones, which it said would drive down power bills for renters by more than $800 a year.

The consumer affairs minister, Gabrielle Williams, said Victoria was facing a growing rental cohort who were also renting for longer.

Farah Farouque, the director of community engagement at Tenants Victoria, said it welcomed any move to improve minimum standards for renters.

“Renting is an essential service, and renters need better requirements for ceiling insulation and sealings against draughts to ward off the impacts of variable temperatures making their homes hotter and colder in different seasons,” she said.

The state government introduced minimum renting standards in 2021 which include a requirement for landlords to provide a fixed heater.

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I get the impression Australian houses are just this poorly insulated in general, and it’s a whole thing.