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Cancer patient faces eviction over unpaid rent
15 Feb
Summary
- Elderly couple faces eviction from their home.
- Tenant owes thousands in unpaid rent since October 2025.
- Cancer patient's health and finances are severely impacted.
An elderly couple in Melbourne's inner north is facing potential eviction from their own home due to a tenant dispute. The tenant, who owes over $7,100 in unpaid rent dating back to October 2025, has filed an intervention order against the couple. This legal action, scheduled for a ruling next month, could force the couple from their property.
The couple, aged 67 and 84, rely on the $450 weekly rent from their granny flat for income. The wife, Kez, is undergoing treatment for aggressive skin cancers, and the situation has severely impacted their health, finances, and sense of security. Despite a Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) ruling that the tenant could stay until February 3, an appeal granted the tenant over two years to pay the arrears and an additional two weeks of free rent.
Further complicating matters, the tenant has served Kez with an intervention order based on alleged events that did not occur. The couple reports receiving demeaning and intimidating emails from the tenant, who has allegedly breached their agreement with no consequences. Property Investors Council of Australia suggests this is part of a growing trend of tenants exploiting reforms to remain in rental properties.
