With the dream of owning a home becoming harder, tenants are battening down the hatches despite living in problem rentals.
Almost one in three Victorian households are renting but only one in every 1000 rentals are inspected for minimum standards compliance.
The 15 standards range from having a functioning shower head and secure window latches to a working stove top and a toilet that flushes properly as well as mould-free walls.
The state has more than 650,000 rental properties, yet some 600 inspections have been completed in the past two years by a rental taskforce, according to a Tenants Victoria report published on Friday.
The research paper is calling on politicians to draw up a rental property registration scheme mandating landlords lodge evidence that a property meets minimum standards and safety checks.
The register would allow the regulator, Consumer Affairs Victoria, to better target compliance checks and inject much-needed transparency into the system for tenants and landlords.
"We hear from tenants every day who are afraid to speak up over fears of losing their home, which is why so many properties don’t meet standards," said the group's head Jennifer Beveridge.
"A register would help inspectors identify which homes aren't meeting safety standards so they can go straight to the places where they are needed most."
The call comes as nearly 80 per cent of Victorian renters surveyed in a 2025 poll reported having at least one problem with their rental but only a meagre two per cent took their complaints to tribunal.
Changes to rental laws that came into effect earlier in October mandate that owners must keep records showing the property met the minimum rental standards before it was advertised or tenants moved in.
They must be given to the regulator if they're asked to show proof the property is in living condition.
Launched in 2024 by the Labor government and made permanent in August, the Renting Taskforce has issued almost $1 million in fines to dodgy landlords and agents.
