THE combined stresses of the rising cost of housing, energy bills and summer heat in substandard housing are having a physical and mental toll on renters.<\/p>\n
A report from tenant organisation Better Renting has found renters were putting up with unhealthy temperatures in smelly, mouldy homes.<\/p>\n
“Hell” was a common description of their homes during the summer months.<\/p>\n
Some spoke about feeling “cooked from above” as heat radiated down towards them from their uninsulated ceiling.<\/p>\n
Using portable air conditioners doubled power bills, meaning there was less money for food, rent and essential medicines.<\/p>\n
Future summers are likely to be hotter, with heatwaves becoming more frequent, more severe and longer lasting.<\/p>\n
Governments can respond by introducing minimum energy efficiency standards for rental homes and taking action to end unfair evictions and limit rent increases, the report recommended.<\/p>\n
“As temperatures, energy costs and rents continue to go up, governments need to act to keep renters safe in their homes,” said Better Renting spokesman Joel Dignam.<\/p>\n
Indoor temperatures were above 25 degrees for more than nine hours a day and above 30 degrees for an hour a day on average over summer, according to 77 renter researchers across Australia who tracked heat and humidity.<\/p>\n
Despite milder temperatures from December to February, people who rent still struggled with heat and humidity because of poor insulation and rising energy costs.<\/p>\n
Structural defects and poorly maintained homes, some described as shacks, added to their woes.<\/p>\n
And while an increasing number of homeowners benefit from cheap power from rooftop solar during summer and winter, renters tend to miss out.<\/p>\n
Renters are scared to complain to landlords and real estate agents because they fear a retaliatory rent increase or eviction with housing in such short supply.<\/p>\n
Rising heat is a particular challenge for older renters in public housing, according to Awhina Kapa, who works with Victorian organisation cohealth.<\/p>\n
“Our residents are using local pubs and pokies to get relief from the heat at night,” she said.<\/p>\n
“We are seeing these residents struggling to pay for necessities such as toilet paper, bread, and milk due to feeling the pressure to spend money while inside these venues.”<\/p>\n