Have you lived in a rental property that was freezing in winter, only to be sweltering in summer? Maybe you know someone whose home had mould, or was so hot in summer they had to move.... Whatever your reason for supporting the campaign, we'd love to know.
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We rent a house in Lake Macquarie, NSW. The house is not insulated at all. It does have an air conditioner in the lounge room. We can set the air con temp to 16 degrees and the thermometer on the wall during summer says the temperature in the same room as the air con will sit at 32 degrees. This is after putting up a sheet in the entry to the lounge room and having the blinds and windows closed. We have been renting here for 6 years now. We asked the landlord in first year if something could be done and he suggested whirly birds on the roof. 6 years later and still no solution has been done.
We rented a house in Thornbury in Melbourne for 3 years 2013 – 2015 and although in a great location it was pretty basic. I always felt like we should just be grateful to be in a neighbourhood we’d never be able to own in! Honestly Our landlords were always pretty good at attending to major breakdowns – but they always gave the vibe thst they wanted to spend the least amount possible on getting anything done. Our biggest ongoing issue was the heat in summer. The living room, kitchen, and a very basic completely uninsulated back room all had West facing windows.
The sun would hit the windows in the mid afternoon and the temperature in the whole house would seriously go up! (I wish I’d thought to measure it bsck then)
There were still wooden frames above the windows where external awnings would previously have been (and in fact one window had a ripped/partially missing one that I would try to pull down)
During heatwaves I actually took to tying old bedsheets up with string to these awnings so the sun would hit them and not the glass!
Added to this The back room had no windows that could be opened due to them being rotten and siliconed shut (another story!) so we struggled to get any sort of airflow through the house to cool it down in the evenings.
I spent 2 out of those 3 years asking and asking if something could be done and it felt soooo disheartening and disempowering.
We ended up moving out and away to Geelong and managing to buy a house. As soon as we could afford it The first thing we did was properly insulate the roof and floors and fix the windows so they could open and close properly!!
We heard from our old neighbours thst after we left our hotbox rental the owners took the awning frames down from above the windows (destroy the evidence!), gave it a quick lick of paint, and a price increase and flicked it on to the next bunch of unsuspecting renters :-(
And ps my actual answer is because it’s a basic human right. If landlords wouldn’t feel comfortable and safe to live in a place themselves then they shouldn’t expect anyone else to!
Social housing incurs an income, as does private rental. All of which can, and should be used to the benefit of the tenant. And not for the profit of the landlord.