charming! wonder if op has children and will have to uproot schooling, friends etc, but hey ho as you say dollars before children, their education, their feeling of stability and their rights.

I though in most (if not all) states rent increases during the contract had to be specified in the contract, outside or contract I think there are only limits around frequency of increases and noticed periods for increases

Move down the road - problem solved. If not, buy a house.

Catch the bubble before it bursts you mean. Great advice now I know why I laugh every time I read your comments.

Oh if only life was so straight forward

Hubbly, bubbly it's London's No.1, and most modest, IT guru.

House price predictions? I never get involved in those and leave them up to 'experts' like you.

I have a lovely house with very little mortgage so CF=0.

Sure, but if you are not happy with the rent you are being asked to pay then move to somewhere that you are.

I moved 'cos my landlord wanted to increase the rent from $550 to $800!
Very little protection for tenants here (Brisbane) -
We're a hard working reliable family who leave homes in better condition than we found them, don't bother landlords unecessarily and prefer to rent rather than buy due to the ridiculous overinflated cost of housing. We've got a reasonable amount to spend on rent as we both have good jobs but that's no reason for people to take the piss

Perhaps there is scope in the market for a rental agency who matches honest tenants with honest landlords........

I wish I could find a landlord with integrity but thin on the ground here...

To be honest, where Amazulu comes from is nothing to do with the conversation and these comments are getting nasty.

You may not like the comments he made in reference to housing/renting/moving out/finances but making comments about his country of origin/blacks etc is out of order.

Lets be honest though, he has a long history of giving as good as he gets.

I know he does but you can just see where this is going and how nasty it is going to get. I just dont see what his country of origin and black people have to do with the comments he made about housing.

It probably has nothing to do with it. But if a poster has a history of stirring trouble in threads by making a certain kind of comment to a particular poster or posters, then that poster should expect to get comments made to them in return by those who have been on the receiving end.

If you want to discuss it further please take it to pm and lets get the thread back on topic.

...and in this case I agree with him.

I know many rent because they can't afford to buy, but we have plenty of renters on here, banging on about what a great lifestyle choice they made in renting and how all those who bought their homes are mugs.

The landlord owns the property, not the renter and should be able to charge whatever they damn well want to.

I agree you you and Zulu. Whilst it's no fun to have your rent hiked, it is a "market". In a market people have to vote with their feet. I benefited for about 3 years from renting, I paid about $400 a week for a front row house in Ocean Reef with the best sea views ever. When the landlord kicked us out we had to find somewhere else, a pain but that's renting.

What I do object to is contracts that allow for rent increases during the period of the contract and also being obliged to have home opens when the landlord decides to sell. In my opinion if they want to sell wait until the contract expires and sell the house empty (or come to an arrangement with the tenant - free rent for each week there is a home open or something)

Agree with you. To many on BE, owning property in Australia makes you either an idiot or some kind of modern age robber baron.

The point I was trying to make was that the market dictates the cost of things - including home rents. If a landlord wants to double the rent, then the market will decide. He will either get it or be made to look like a fool. But apparently, having that viewpoint can equate me to be a cold-blooded, racist murderer.