Picture: Ray White real estate
It’s one of the infallible rules of life in general – if something sounds too good to be true it is.
And, as most Aussies have discovered, especially during this cost of living and housing crisis, this statement also rings true when it comes to buying or renting a home.
And so it came to pass for those clicking frantically, with naive optimism, on a unit advertised for half the average rent expected.
The studio apartment listed via Ray White in Peakhurst, in the St George area of southern Sydney, 21km from the CBD hit the market for just $280 per week.
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The property for rent for $280 per week. Picture: Ray White real estate
That’s less than half the median rent for a one-bed unit in the suburb of $570, according to PropTrack.
By comparison, the cheapest studio home, without parking, in Peakhurst is currently listed for $450 a week.
The next least expensive studio, without parking, is up for rent for $500 a week.
According to the listing for the $280 a week rental, the home is well located close to public transport, shopping centre and amenities including St George Hospital.
It has ‘water views’ and a parking space.
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Inside the home. Picture: Ray White real estate
Cabinets and a kitchen sink will cost extra. Picture: Ray White real estate
“Offering you a waterfront granny flat quiet enjoyment, right adjacent to the Salt Pan Creek and around 10 minutes walking distance to Riverwood railway station, shopping centre and all amenities would accommodate single or couple,” the listing reads.
“Comes with a private bathroom and an internal laundry. Separate water and electricity meters. Includes one garage.”
Does this all sound too good to be true?
Well it is if you actually want to live in the unit.
“If cabinets and a kitchen sink are required, the rent will be $350 per week,” the listing concludes.
Please now refer again to our opening paragraph.
According to NSW Fair Trading, the NSW Government’s Housing and Construction rules, minimum standards for rental properties: “Landlords and agents are required to make sure rental properties meet 7 minimum standards for tenants to be able to live there.
The shower. Picture: Ray White real estate
And the toilet. Picture: Ray White real estate
It continues: “Landlords must provide rental properties that are in a reasonable state of cleanliness and fit for the tenant to live in. The minimum standards set clearer expectations for landlords and tenants and apply to all rented residential properties. To be fit to live in, the property must, at a minimum:
-be structurally sound
-have adequate natural or artificial lighting in each room, except storage rooms or garages
-have adequate ventilation
-be supplied with electricity or gas, and have enough electricity or gas sockets for lighting, -heating and other appliances
-have adequate plumbing and drainage
-have a water connection that can supply hot and cold water for drinking, washing and cleaning
-have bathroom facilities, including toilet and washing facilities that allow users’ privacy.
The listing Picture: Ray White real estate
Landlords need to ensure their rented properties meet these minimum standards to be fit to live in.”
Those who have come across the listing were less than impressed.
“An extra $70 for a kitchen sink WTF,” one person commented.
“Oh. My. God! I’m speechless!” wrote another.
The NSW Tenants Union are less than impressed, saying the listing raised a number of red flags and questioning whether renovations had been done to a ‘reasonable standard’ and privacy standards may not have been met.
“At some point since 2011 the building now called a granny flat has had an external door blocked off and presumably a doorway made in an internal wall to the bathroom,” NSW Tenants’ Union CEO Leo Patterson Ross told media.
CEO of the Tenant’s Union Leo Patterson Ross is less than impressed. Picture: Richard Dobson
“A person moving in may still have coverage of the Residential Tenancies Act despite the legal issues, and sadly enough people are feeling intense pressure in finding a home that someone may well move in,” he said.
“This indicates why enforced standards need to be in place before the property comes up for lease, and NSW Fair Trading given tools to hold landlords who do the wrong thing accountable,” he said.
However, one Sydneysider has seen the potential in the property. Ray White told us that the listing has been leased to a tenant who didn’t need the kitchen.
A view from somewhere on the property.
They have rented it for $280 a week for the garage mainly and it will be used as a storage facility.
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