About 10,600 eligible public housing tenants in Western Australia will soon be able to claim a refund of their security bond in time for the festive season.
The Department of Communities has already begun a mail-out to eligible public housing tenants who have a security bond account in credit.
Provided tenants are more than two weeks in advance of their rent, they may request a refund of any surplus security bond funds by completing a refund form and returning it to their local office. It may take up to four weeks to process the refund.
Any accrued security bond credit may be applied to offset outstanding debts including rent, water and tenant liability related to their tenancy.
In November 2019, the Department of Communities held 10,600 security bonds relating to current tenancies. The bonds were valued at approximately $5.4 million.
Since 2013, under the Residential Tenancies Act 1987, all rental bonds have been required to be lodged with the central Bond Administrator, managed by the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety.
Amendments to the Act require Communities to transfer security bonds previously collected to the Bond Administrator or refund the security bonds to tenants by July 1, 2020.
As stated by Housing Minister Peter Tinley:
“The return of security bonds to eligible public housing tenants will provide a much-needed financial boost for some families and individuals in the lead-up to the Christmas period.
“The department has commenced the refund process by contacting tenants with the highest value security bond balances of $800 and over.
“The mail-out of notification letters will be staggered over several weeks to prevent a spike in workload for the department’s regional office staff, but will finish by mid-December.
“Provided tenants are more than two weeks in advance of their rent and do not have any other debts owing in relation to the tenancy, they will be entitled to a refund.”
