Tenancy Guarantees were developed by the Community Housing Division to help people who are willing and able to rent privately but are not able to do so because of various barriers.
A Tenancy Guarantee will provide up to $1,000 (including GST) in compensation to landlords/agents over and above the rental bond for rent arrears and property damage, subject to certain conditions. A Tenancy Guarantee is valid for the fixed term of the lease, to a maximum of 12 months from the start of the tenancy or until the tenancy is terminated, whichever occurs sooner.
Target groups
Tenancy Guarantees are available to people who are eligible for public housing and are willing and able to sustain a private sector tenancy. Also, there can be no existing debt from an earlier Tenancy Guarantee and applicants must accept liability for the payment of any claim arising from their tenancy guarantee.
Target Groups for the Tenancy Guarantee are:
- people without a tenancy history or references;
- people with a negative tenancy record whose situation has now changed;
- people with a history of mental illness;
- people facing discrimination due to:
o cultural background;
o Aboriginality;
o disability;
o sexual orientation;
o structure or size of family.
Participating Community Housing Providers
In addition to being located in housing markets that support the success of Tenancy Guarantees, participating Community Housing Providers must meet the following conditions:
Staffing
- Sufficient staffing to enable client access to the product during business hours or any agreed other times if needed;
- Specialist staff with the qualifications and/or requisite skills to assess applicants for Tenancy Guarantees, liaise with tenants, real estate agents and landlords and assess claims; and
- Staff able to meet data collection and reporting requirements
Financial management
Participating Community Housing Providers must have the capacity to set up and manage a separate pool of funds for Tenancy Guarantee claims.
Insurance
- The operation of Tenancy Guarantees is insured under the public liability policy of the Community Housing Insurance Scheme as part of normal community housing business.
- Community Housing Providers must ensure they hold all other appropriate insurances including but not limited to: Public Liability, Workers Compensation and vehicle insurance, a copy of which is to be provided on request.
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