A publication of the Centre for Advancing Journalism, University of Melbourne

Students fight for rental bonds

An increase in rental bond disputes and a backlog of cases is causing frustration amongst international students trying to reclaim their bonds before they return home. Increasingly, students are being forced to take take their disputes with the Residential Tenancies Bond Authority (RTBA) to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, known as VCAT, but a backlog of cases means 12 months after ending a lease, some students are yet to get any part of their bond back.  Once they have finish their studies and returned home, the process becomes even more difficult, as Chanchan Wu reports.
Story by Chanchan Wu
 

About The Citizen

THE CITIZEN is a publication of the Centre for Advancing Journalism. It has several aims. Foremost, it is a teaching tool that showcases the work of the students in the University of Melbourne’s Master of Journalism and Master of International Journalism programs, giving them real-world experience in working for publication and to deadline. Find out more →