Renter slapped with ‘pest control’ fee for just four ants

A comedian has shared his disbelief after a real estate agent tried to charge him for an “infestation” that amounted to “$25 per ant”.

An Australian comic known for his savage take-downs of the real estate market has found himself on the receiving end of an outlandish fee from his landlord after an “ant infestation”.

Sydney comedian Tom Cashman and his two housemates had moved out of their apartment when they received an email from their real estate agent about deductions to their bond.

Sydney comic Tom Cashman revealed his rental nightmare at the Sydney Comedy Festival Gala. Picture: Supplied

Performing at the Sydney Comedy Festival Gala, Cashman revealed the agent had deducted $99 after sending a pest controller to eradicate ants spotted in the kitchen and bathroom.

In the email, the real estate agent told Cashman and his roommates that it was the responsibility of the tenant to “treat or eradicate” ants and attached a copy of Fair Trading legislation.

Cashman, whose run-in with a real estate agent after asking for a “landlord reference” went viral last year, told the audience that he was confused by the bizarre – and costly – predicament.

The photo supplied by Cashman's real estate agent showed just four ants. Picture: Supplied

Cashman and his roommates were informed over email that they were going to be charged a ‘pest control’ fee. Picture: Supplied

“I’d never noticed any ants in the place — I swear to god,” Cashman said.

“So, I responded asking for some evidence of this ‘ant infestation’.”

Cashman showed an image he was sent of just four ants, stating: “That’s $25 per ant.

“I’ll flick an ant for two bucks, what are you talking about?”

Cashman said the agent told him in a heated response that “there is never just four ants”.

“There were no ants noted when you moved in and there were ants there when you vacated,” they said.

The state of Sydney’s real estate market has increasingly become the target of young online creators, including videos detailing the disparity between income and house prices in 2023.

Cashman – a self described up-and-coming comic – went viral last year after a series of TikTok videos exposed an heated exchange over a request he made jokingly for a landlord reference.

@tom.cashman

Everyone start asking for Landlord References #renting#landlords#sydney#australia#fyp#foryou#foryoupage#fy

♬ original sound - cashman.tom

Since the incident, Cashman returned to TikTok stating he’d been knocked back from a property he had previously been approved for after the agent brought up the “landlord reference saga”.

The comic told 7 Life his roommates were fortunately able to get the “ant infestation” fee dropped when the group moved out of the property in 2018 after an application to NSW Fair Trading.

“The real estate agency challenged this, so then we were given a date to meet with the real estate agent and chat,” Cashman told 7 Life this week.

“The tribunal will only give them money out of the bond for things they can prove, and I guess a photo of four ants doesn’t prove there’s an ant infestation. Weird that.”