Haley in Fitzroy
A renters perspective
Haley moved to Yarra from regional WA in early 2023 for study and work opportunities, and, like so many Yarra residents, she has experienced the ups and downs of share-house and rental apartment living.
Haley knows more about energy efficiency than many renters - she is currently completing a masters degree in sustainable energy systems engineering, and she has used this knowledge to drive real improvements. She shared her experiences with Electrify Yarra when we spoke with her recently.
What has been your experience in rental properties?
When I first moved from Western Australia into a North Fitzroy share-house, my first Melbourne winter was brutal!
Top of our to-do list was draft-proofing. There were gaps under doors, and around door frames. We reached out to the landlord to ask if we could do some improvements and she was really supportive. We used DIY materials from Bunnings - draft-stoppers for doors, and door and window seals for the gaps we found.
Luckily our landlord had already installed solar panels, so our bills were lower than they might have been.
We also were careful with heating to keep the bills down - just heating single rooms, not trying to heat the whole house. Electric blankets made life a bit easier too, but it’s really important to turn them off, it’s not safe to sleep with them on.
We’re in our second rental property now - this time it’s an apartment. We are working through the real estate agent on making two changes - getting double glazing installed, and replacing an old electric hot water system with a heat pump unit. The landlord has been pretty receptive, and the body corporate is working on where they can locate the hot water unit.
What do you look for in a rental property?
I’m always trying to work out the energy efficiency and comfortable heating and cooling. Very few agents can answer my basic questions, so I have to try to figure it out. I look at the heating and cooling, hot water and cooking appliances, as well as whether there are big gaps around doors, windows and floors, and draughty fireplaces..
I will always ask the agent how recently filters on any split system have been cleaned. This can improve the appliance’s efficiency by about 15%. I’ve had friends who found the filters so dirty they contained mould and were making their property unsafe - they had to stop using the system until it could be properly cleaned.
What are the best ways to get a landlord to make improvements?
I find the trick is to get on the front foot by reaching out to the landlord via the agent and emphasising how changes will improve the property’s value. It’s generally recognised that an all-electric property with energy efficient appliances can bring around 15% improvement in value.
It’s also really worth putting the time into offering to check out suppliers and even going so far as to arranging quotes. It’s a bit of an effort but really helps make things happen - we have agreement to go ahead with double glazing and more efficient hot water in our current place.
