Rent bidding continues to force potential tenants out of future homes despite crackdown in NSW

Desperate renters have missed out on tenancies as agents have allegedly continued to invite bidding, despite a crackdown.

The NSW government last year banned agents from encouraging prospective tenants to place higher offers on rental properties in response to the state's dire housing crisis.

Authorities then closed loopholes to prevent landlords and third parties from also soliciting deals in June this year but the practice is believed to be still alive.

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Prospective tenants have felt "significant pressure" to place higher bids, according to the Tenants Union NSW.

"This pressure is placed in a number of ways, including unfortunately some agents and landlords' continued behaviour in 'soliciting' in breach of the regulations," the union's Policy and Advocacy Manager Jemima Mowbray said. 

"Renters report they feel conflicted - they can't necessarily afford a higher rent and feel they've wasted their time when it becomes clear they've missed out to someone who offered more."  

NSW Fair Trading confirmed it was forced to issue $26,950 worth of fines to agents for breaching advertising restrictions following a "rent bidding compliance campaign".

Three agents, in particular, are currently being investigated for allegedly soliciting a higher rent than what was advertised. 

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"Two of the agents were identified as part of Fair Trading's proactive compliance campaigns," a NSW Fair Trading spokesperson said.  

"As investigations are continuing, no further information can be provided at this stage."

It is understood NSW Fair Trading began actively enforcing the ban with its first compliance campaign in March, which saw 51 penalty infringement notices worth $54,450 issued for breaches.

The watchdog also monitored private landlords advertising on online platforms like Gumtree and found 33 had failed to follow advertising requirements.

The state's recently appointed rental commissioner Trina Jones said she was working closely with investigators and enforcement teams to monitor compliance and assess whether rent bidding rules were working. 

Do you have a story about rent bidding you would like to share? Get in touch with reporter Yashee Sharma at yashee.sharma@nine.com.au.

"This includes a dedicated compliance campaign involving over 250 inspections that resulted in 76 penalty infringement notices," she said. 

"I would strongly encourage anyone who witnesses agents soliciting offers to contact Fair Trading so we can continue our work to ensure renting is fair in NSW."

The maximum penalty for non-compliance is a court-ordered fine of $5500 for an individual or $11,000 in any other case. 

Mowbray said bans needed to be widened to include both solicited and unsolicited rent bidding to further close the gap with protections.