Victorians lodge record 5,400 challenges to rent increases over past 12 months

Consumer Affairs Victoria says it redirected extra staff to manage 120% rise in requests for rent increase reviews

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Victorian tenants have lodged a record 5,400 challenges against rent rises in the past 12 months, the state’s consumer watchdog has revealed, in a 120% increase on the previous year’s figures.

As median rents rise sharply, Consumer Affairs Victoria (CAV) was swamped with 5,448 requests for rent assessments in the 2022-23 financial year – compared with 2,452 in 2021-22 – prompting the organisation to redirect staff to handle the additional claims.

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