About three tenants on average each day are phoning to ask for advice on how to get their bond back across the New England North West region.
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That is according to New England and Western Tenants Advice and Advocacy Service's (NEWTAAS) KerryAnn Pankhurst, who said it is a "scourge" what people are having to go through in the unfair power balance between landlords and tenants.
"They actually call it bond harvesting," she said.
"This is the tenants' money we're talking about, not the landlord's money, and it is not a gift for a landlord."
Ms Pankhurst said there is a general expectation from real estate agents that a tenant can't have their bond back without their consent.
The tenancy advocacy and advice expert said a resident can claim their bond after they have returned the keys and have left the premises in the same or better condition "less fair wear and tear".
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Ms Pankhurst said there have been instances where real estate agents have not even let the tenant know they can be at the final inspection and have thus made unreasonable claims on the bond.
She said tenants can go to NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal NCAT, but that it is a lengthy process for some who are time-poor and it can be seen as "just too difficult to fight", so the "bond just goes".
Ms Pankhurst gave the example of a young woman who phoned in tears because the landlord asked her to clip the grass at the edges of the carport with a pair of scissors because a whipper snipper would cause too much damage.
She said there needs to be regulation, enforcement, and recognition of the power imbalance between landlords and tenants.
What the real estate agents said
Marie Fenn from Fenn Real Estate in Tamworth said she is fortunate that she has not had to take bond money where it was not necessary from those moving out of rental properties.
She said there is no law to specifically state the tenant has to hire a professional cleaner before moving out, but that some do.
"I know a couple of clients of ours that have done it themselves and it's absolutely impeccable," she said.
She also encouraged tenants to complete the ingoing condition report and get it back to the real estate agent within the seven-day timeframe.
"If an agent overlooks a small hole in the wall they could be held accountable for that if that tenant doesn't complete that report," Ms Fenn said.
Bill Watson from Professionals in Tamworth said they only expect three things from tenants: pay rent on time, look after the property as if it were their own and respect the neighbours.
"And life will be easy," Mr Watson said.
He said an agent from Professionals of Tamworth will go through the property at the end of the lease and do an inspection with an eye to what is "fair and reasonable".
"If we've got some Chux in our pocket, we might dampen it and wipe down two or three cupboards, we're not going to get someone back to clean a couple of cupboards," he said.
"But if we go from one room to the other and it becomes cumulative, how long do you spend there? And what do you call fair and reasonable?"
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