On 7 August 2018, the Victorian Minister for Consumer Affairs, Gaming and Liquor Regulation, Marlene Kairouz MP, introduced the Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill 2018 (‘the Bill’) in the Victorian Legislative Assembly.

The Bill seeks to make significant changes to the regulatory regime concerning residential tenancies in Victoria and proposes a number of amendments including, among others:

• updating the terminology used in the Act;
• setting minimum standards for rental properties;
• allowing animals to be kept in rental properties;
• allowing renters to make minor modifications to a rental property; and
• establishing a non-compliance register listing residential rental providers and agents who fail to meet their obligations.

In the second reading speech, delivered on 9 August 2018, the Minister stated that the Bill was ‘the culmination of a four-year, broad-based review’ of the Residential Tenancies Act 1997. The Minister added that this review represented ‘a once-in-a-generation opportunity to revisit the regulatory settings that have been in place since 1997, and to ensure they meet the needs of participants in today's modern rental housing market’.

This Bill Brief provides an overview of the Bill, including:

• a comprehensive background to the Bill;
• an analysis of several key features of the Bill—specifically, the setting of minimum standards, family violence provisions, and the keeping of pets; and
• a comparison with other jurisdictions in Australia.

It also contains links to relevant legislation, media and further reading.

Please note that this Brief does not cover the content of the Bill in its entirety.