Real estate agent says not to give discounts because ‘you don’t sleep with your renter’

A Victorian real estate agent crude reasoning for why renters should not be given discounts has been revealed on social media.

A Victorian real estate agent’s crude reasoning for why renters should not be given discounts has been revealed on social media.

Trevor Pickens, a real estate agent at Quinta Real Estate in Vermont South, 26km east of Melbourne’s central business district, made the comments in a private Facebook group, Landlord’s Victoria.

Mr Pickens was advising landlords not to discount the rent on their investment properties below market rate by even $10 arguing you wouldn’t give your wife a $520 gift and yet you get to sleep with your wife.

“Did you spend $520 on your wife the last time you gave her a gift?” he asked.

“Probably not. Well if you give your renter a discount of $10 per week that’s how much you have given them. $20pw is a gift of $1040. You don’t sleep with your renter so make it market rent.”

Mr Pickens defended the crude comparison to news.com.au, saying he was simply “talking maths”.

“If you rent to your child and you give them a discount it is your family,” he said.

“What sense does it make if you have an investment property which is an investment?”

Mr Pickens said he appreciated there was “a lot of pain for renters” but added there was also “a lot of pain for landlords”.

“Market rent is set by so many different things,” he said.

The comments in question. Picture: Facebook

Trevor Pickens. Picture: Quinta Real Estate

Mr Pickens profile on Quita Real Estate describes him as a “tenacious negotiator” who was “ready to do the long hours when needed”.

But his comments might outrage renters who are facing “unprecedented” levels of rental stress amid a housing affordability and vacancy rate crisis.

According to data from the latest PropTrack Rental Report, rental listings hit a record low in December.

Over the last year, the median rental listing price had ballooned by 11.5 per cent to $580 per week, fuelled by limited demand.

The report found that due to population growth, rental stocks were at record lows, forcing renters to pay more.

In December, the number of new listings on realestate.com.au was down 20.7 per cent on the December 10-year average and down 4.6 per cent on a year prior.

Similarly, total listings were down a whopping 30.2 per cent on the December 10-year average, having fallen by 4.7 per cent over the last 12 months.

“The rental market was characterised by low supply and strong demand in 2023. These conditions made it difficult for renters to find accommodation and saw landlords increase rents, a trend likely to continue in 2024,” PropTrack’s director of economic research Cameron Kusher said.

“While we expect rents to continue to rise this year, it’s likely that the rate of growth will slow.

“The already higher cost of renting and overall increase in the cost of living will limit rent price increases moving forward.

“For renters hoping to purchase a property, higher rents are making it difficult to save a deposit, while higher interest rates will make servicing a mortgage more expensive.”

— with NCA NewsWire