A property company exposed celebrating a $225 per week rental price rise as an “achievement” in an email to clients has apologized.
In a statement to Nine from its spokesperson, property management firm Ironfish said it accepted “that the tone of the update was insensitive.”
Last week, a renter shared a screenshot of an email update from Ironfish, releasing its numbers for June.
“Achievement in June: Biggest rent increase – $225 per week,” the flyer said.
Below the details is a photo of kids pillow fighting on a bed.
The user posted the email to Reddit with the comment: “My rent just went up $400 a month and the agency sent me an email bragging about it…”
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The email also told recipients the average weekly rental increase is almost $100 a week, and revealed comparative increases in asking prices: “July 2021 to December 2021: $393. January 2022 to June 2022: $460”.
The Reddit thread exploded in response.
A spokesperson for Ironfish told Nine an email apology has been sent to recipients, and the business recognized the hardship within the housing market.
The spokesperson said Ironfish had “kept tenants and owners informed of support measures for those experiencing financial distress” and advised owners of properties with tenants facing financial difficulty to offer rental discounts.
The rental increase referred to in the original email was applied at the end of a tenancy agreement, following a discount period during the pandemic, the spokesperson said.
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“Ironfish has apologized for a recent email newsletter which highlighted rental price increases, sending an apology to recipients,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
“We know that many of our clients, tenants and owners, have experienced intense stress and financial hardship during the Covid-19 pandemic and accept that the tone of the update was insensitive.
“We will ensure our future content is more carefully considered and provides greater insights for all of our clients. The update highlighted a rent increase of $225 per week – in context, this was due to a new tenancy and an adjustment from a previously Covid discounted rent, returning to normal and current market rates.
“The pandemic was a difficult time for tenants and also for owners, as lockdowns hit and vacancy rates emerged.
“Recent rental adjustments follow substantial decreases in the past two years, and median rents in Melbourne’s CBD remain below pre-Covid levels.
“Since the start of the pandemic, Ironfish has kept tenants and owners informed of support measures for those experiencing financial distress. We advised owners to engage with tenants facing financial difficulties and offer rental discounts. We facilitated many substantial rent reductions and also assisted owners and tenants in compiling and lodging applications for Covid relief support packages.”
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The Reddit responses to the original email included some from landlords (not associated with Ironfish).
“Landlord here, it’s not justified. It shouldn’t even be legal to increase the rent that much for the same tenant. Different if new tenants come in but that’s an outrageous amount,” one user commented.
Another said: “I have been a landlord for a couple of years, and will not be putting up the rent (to the annoyance of the Real Estate Management company) – tenants have been there 12 years and keep the place immaculate, always pay on time. They got young kids, both working in low paid jobs, doing the best they can.”‘
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One tenant called the email “cringe” and a landlord remarked: “I received the same email and had the same disgusted feeling, and I’m an owner (just not with them).”
Data from large national real estate agency Ray White shows that advertised rental prices have increased by almost 14 per cent, outpacing CPI rental price rises of 1.6 per cent.
At the same time, the national vacancy rate this month has tightened to a record level of less than 1 per cent, according to Domain.
A lack of listings has increased competition, and rising interest rates – with costs being passed on by landlords to tenants – plus inflation, has continued to squeeze the rental market to a crisis point.