Tiny fraction of rentals inspected amid housing crunch

WITH the dream of owning a home becoming harder, tenants are battening down the hatches despite living in problem rentals.

Almost one in three Victorian households rent, but only one in every 1000 rentals is inspected for minimum standards compliance.

The 15 standards range from a functioning shower head and secure window latches to a working stovetop, a toilet that flushes properly, and mold-free walls.

The state has more than 650,000 rental properties, yet a rental taskforce has completed only about 600 inspections in the past two years, according to a Tenants Victoria report published on Friday.

The research paper calls on politicians to draft a rental property registration scheme that requires landlords to lodge evidence that a property meets minimum standards and safety checks. 

The register would allow the regulator, Consumer Affairs Victoria, to better target compliance checks and inject much-needed transparency into the system for tenants and landlords. 

"We hear from tenants every day who are afraid to speak up over fears of losing their home, which is why so many properties don't meet standards," said the group's head Jennifer Beveridge.

"A register would help inspectors identify which homes aren't meeting safety standards so they can go straight to the places where they are needed most."

The call comes as nearly 80 percent of Victorian renters surveyed in a 2025 poll reported having at least one problem with their rental, but only a meager two per cent took their complaints to tribunal.

Changes to rental laws that came into effect earlier in October require owners to keep records showing the property met minimum rental standards before it was advertised or tenants moved in.

They must provide them to the regulator if asked to prove the property is in living condition.

Launched in 2024 by the Labor government and made permanent in August, the Renting Taskforce has issued almost $1 million in fines to dodgy landlords and agents.