The WA government has passed new laws through parliament set to offer more "certainty and fairness" for park home residents across the state.
Changes to the Residential Parks (Long-stay Tenants) Act 2006 will give tenants who rent a site or a home in a residential park better clarity with contracts and costs, as well as set new rules relating to terminations.
The new laws will ensure security of contract between park operators and their long-stay tenants, including:
- Limiting the termination of fixed-term agreements on the sale of a park or if the owner's financier takes possession of the park
- No longer allowing 'without grounds' terminations of long-stay agreements, instead setting out specific grounds that will provide greater certainty in relation to termination rights
- Improved disclosure requirements on contractual issues such as exit fees
- Clearer rules for park operators, home owners and prospective tenants in relation to the sale of homes
- Clarification of the park operator's obligation to enforce park rules in a fair, reasonable and equitable manner
- Standard lease clauses will no longer be able to be varied and the introduction of standard form agreements for new arrangements
Mandurah MP David Templeman welcomed the announcement and said the laws would better protect long-term park home residents, especially the many in the Peel region.
"The McGowan government committed to deliver fairer rules and improved protections for park home residents and we've delivered," he said.
"I've consulted extensively with local park home residents here in Mandurah over many years and I know they'll be pleased with new laws which offer more certainty and fairness."
Murray-Wellington MP Robyn Clarke said the changes come after extensive consultation with tenants, operators and the community.
"I thank the many local park home residents who engaged with the consultation process to make sure that the views of Murray-Wellington residents were well represented," she said.
Commerce Minister John Quigley said work on developing standard agreements had begun which, once completed, will see the new laws implemented.
"Many issues affecting long-stay tenants will now be resolved including certainty of contract, disclosures, costs of park living, sale of a home, exit fees and park liaison committees," he said.
"I believe the laws strike a fair balance between upholding the rights of tenants and maintaining the financial viability of the park for operators."
Land tax exemptions will also be introduced to parliament to assist owner-occupied relocatable homes in residential parks and caravan park owners.
Under proposed new amendments to the Land Tax Assessment Act 2002, owner-occupied homes in residential parks will remain exempt from land tax.
The amendments aim to ensure people who own and occupy homes in residential parks are not disadvantaged by a change to the definition of a park home.
A residential park is a licensed caravan park containing long-stay sites on which relocatable homes, including park homes, can be placed.
In October 2018, the State Administrative Tribunal confirmed that a park home must be a vehicle.
This means residential parks and lifestyle villages with non-vehicle relocatable homes cannot be licensed as caravan parks and will not qualify for the caravan park land tax exemption.
The amendments will also include an extension of the caravan park exemption for parks that predominantly provide caravan and camp sites.
Currently, the caravan park exemption does not apply to permanent holiday accommodation options in a caravan park, such as cabins and chalets.
A 100 per cent exemption will be extended to all land used in a caravan park for holiday accommodation if at least 75 per cent of the accommodation is caravan or camp sites.
A partial exemption will apply to caravan and camp sites if these sites comprise less than 75 per cent.
Finance Minister Ben Wyatt said the land tax exemptions were proposed to apply from the 2020/21 assessment year.
"The residents in residential parks and lifestyle villages are often older or on lower fixed incomes and use these homes as their place of residence," he said.
"They need our protection to ensure that park owners cannot use a loophole to pass on additional costs.
"We are also extending the caravan park exemption to support these businesses and ensure all Western Australians can continue to experience traditional caravan and camping holidays in our State's prime destinations."
