Water is a precious resource. Perth City has one of the driest climates in the world and the rainfall of 21.8mm recorded between October 2023 and March 2024 was the lowest since rainfall data was first recorded almost 150 years ago
According to the 2021 Census, close to 30 per cent of all residential properties are rental properties3, and under current legislation, residential tenants have absolutely no incentive to conserve water. Even if they agree to pay their own water costs, the Water Corporation attaches water consumption costs to the property, and not the consumer. If the tenant moves to another property, they leave their water consumption costs behind them, to be paid by the next tenant or the property owner.
Electricity consumers have to pay for the electricity they consume, and even if they move house, any debts to the electricity supplier remain with them. This is not the case for water consumers; and those who have worked this out include consumers in the top percentile of the residential water consumption distribution, who consume around ten times as much water as those in the bottom percentile.
As well as encouraging profligate wastage of water, the current legislation is also very unfair to Mum and Dad investors, who face unlimited liability from the Water Corporation. Investors on the stock market enjoy the protection of limited liability under centuries old investment law, but investors in the residential property market do not enjoy such protection. Under current legislation, they could ultimately lose their home and their savings, as a result of law suits brought by the Water Corporation.
Everybody knows there is a housing shortage in Perth. There is also and acute shortage of residential rental properties in many regional towns. Yet in some towns up to 15% of residential properties are unoccupied. The owners of these properties leave them empty because the costs and risks associated with renting them out outweigh any possible returns.
The law as it stands not only encourages water wastage, but also creates unacceptable risks for potential investors in the residential property market, and thus exacerbates the housing shortage.
The Water Services Act should be amended to ensure that everyone pays for the water they consume.
