Page 1881 - Week 06 - Thursday, 2 May 1991
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The operation and functions of the office will closely parallel similar bodies operating in New South Wales and Queensland where the schemes have operated successfully for the benefit of both tenants and landlords. The proposed Office of Rental Bonds represents the first stage of the reform of residential tenancy law in the ACT. Under the direction of the Alliance Government, the Community Law Reform Committee will be examining other private and public sector tenancy law issues in the ACT. At present, all bonds collected by real estate agents are held in trust accounts which do not attract any interest. Bonds collected by private landlords are dealt with as the individual landlord chooses. It has been shown that this latter situation can lead to unwarranted retention of bond moneys.
Consultation with all interested community groups has been undertaken in the course of development of this Bill, and the Alliance Government has welcomed the involvement of all key parties during the consultative process. This has included the Real Estate Institute of the ACT, the ACT Council of Social Service and the ACT Tenants Union. Consultation has been undertaken so as to ensure that the enabling legislation is the most effective and appropriate for the special needs of the ACT.
A key issue brought up in consultation, and which the Government has resolved collaboratively, relates to the lodgment of condition reports on all dwellings subject to new tenancy agreements. When the landlord or an agent acting for the landlord lodges a bond with the office, they should provide a written condition report signed by the lessor and the lessee relating to the state of repair of the premises. After the final inspection, the tenant and landlord or agent should decide together how the bond will be refunded by reference to this condition report. These procedures, I am pleased to say, have been fully endorsed by community groups, and it was our Government which consulted fully before it brought a Bill down. They are considered essential in order to provide a proper information base for the resolution of disputes. The lodgment of condition reports has also been fully supported by the Magistrates Court.
The Bill will enable the Director of Rental Bonds to require all parties in conflict to attempt mediation before a bond dispute could be heard in the Small Claims Court. The Conflict Resolution Service will be the approved mediator at this stage for the Office of Rental Bonds. This will present an opportunity for mediation likely to resolve a number of conflicts, while still preserving the option of taking any disputed matters through the due legal process to the Small Claims Court.
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