UPDATE: Inverloch property owners have chosen not to fall into the Desal Rental Trap.

We applaude those owners that have chosen to stand by their local
tenants and we hope that further owners will do the same.

We know that some management agents have attempted to encourage
owners to increase rent values or to sell while the desal boom is here
and we know how difficult this decision has been for many owners.

We have some good news to report, we were told today that some
owners have decided not to increase their residential rents because
they want to hold onto their current permanent tenants and not fall
into a trap of tenants not being available in 15 months when the
desal plant workers move on.

We have been told directly from Aquasure that they have contacted
many of the agents signed up to the Housing Accord and for them 
to be aware of:

1. Listing desal rental properties on the desal site only
2. Renting properties to their workers that have been made vacant
purposely for the desal project.
3. Increasing rents to more than 500 per week.

Aquasure will deregister these agents not abiding by the Accord.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank Aquasure's
Wonthaggi Office for their quick response and attempts to resolve
a very complexed problem.

We would like to inform any owner thinking about evicting current
tenants from their properties that:

You may not rent your property to any desal worker for 6 months
after vacating a fulltime tenant as a breach of this rule, will involve
a Tenants union and/or consumer affairs investigation.

After meetings with the Basscoast Council, it has still not come
forward with any resolutions to this Housing crisis and we were not
that surprised after meeting with the " Its not our problem Mayor "

It seems that they believe that their hands are clean of this situation
even though, they knew this housing crisis existed in 2005 and that
they have not planned for this issue after 5 years to have readied
themselves.

It also was the Basscoast Council that would not allow an
accomodation camp to be erected beside the desal plant which
would have stopped this housing crisis in the first place but
apparently, they had concerns about the views others would have
when visiting the basscoast which is a total cop out especially
when they are supposed to have built 1800 low income houses
and havent. 

I wonder how they are going to view this situation when they
have families living on their streets or in their cars like Lynne-Maree
and her 6 kids will be in 2 months!

As for the local agents who have breached the housing accord and
vacated full-time tenants so they can sell the property and then
re-offer it for desal rentals or those that have just increased rents
by illegal amounts, you will be caught and eventually prosecuted
for this behaviour by consumer affairs victoria.