NO-cause evictions will be removed from the Residential Tenancies Act 1997 from April 1 following the passage of rental reforms in the Legislative Assembly on Tuesday.

Attorney-General Shane Rattenbury said the changes would balance the concerns of renters and landlords.

“These laws remain balanced by still recognising that landlords will at times need to end tenancies for genuine reasons, such as selling the property, or when a tenant breaches the agreement,” he said.

“In a nation-leading move, the ACT government has also made an important change that eliminates ‘end of fixed-term tenancy terminations’. Ending this type of eviction practice means that renters cannot be kicked out of their homes without reason simply because their lease has expired.”

Other rental reforms include:

• Prohibiting landlords and agents from asking for or encouraging rent bids.
• Allowing tenants greater freedom to grow their own food and to compost.
• Creating a framework to support the future introduction of minimum housing standards for rental properties.

In the reforms make changes to support the introduction of minimum housing standards, landlords will now be required to notify prospective tenants about whether a property meets minimum standards. If a property doesn’t meet a minimum housing standard, tenants will be allowed to seek a rent reduction, compensation or end the tenancy.

The law will also now give landlords a right to access the rental property if they need to upgrade it to meet a minimum standard.