Western Aboriginal Tenants Advice and Advocacy Service (WATAAS)

 

CONTACT

Phone

(02) 6881 5700

1800 810 233

Hours:

Mon:

9am - 5pm

Tue:

9am - 5pm

Wed:

9am - 5pm

Thu:

9am - 5pm

Fri:

9am - 5pm

Contact online

ABOUT

COVID-19 service update: Tenant Advocates are working remotely to keep our advice service operating. Contact us on 02 6881 5700 or 1800 810 233 or email us: admin_wataas [at] alsnswact.org.au

Western Aboriginal Tenants Advice and Advocacy Service (WATAAS) provides advocacy and advice to tenants who are faced with difficulties in the relationship with landlords and social housing providers. We can negotiate on behalf of tenants to enhance an outcome that is beneficial to all parties. WATAAS also assists tenants when attendance at the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) is required. Our services are available to Aboriginal renters in Western NSW.

This is a specialist Aboriginal Service. Non-Aboriginal tenants please contact your local tenants' service.

NEWS

Celebrating NAIDOC Week: Always Was, Always Will Be.

NAIDOC
Tenant Advocates have joined in NAIDOC 2020 celebrations across NSW, in person and online. Western Aboriginal Tenants' Advice and Advocacy Service participated in the Dubbo NAIDOC event. They provided resources and information, and talked about how WATAAS supports the community with tenancy matters.
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Staying Connected – TAAS Conference 2020

TAAS Conference 2020
Last week, over 100 Tenant Advocates participated in our first online Tenants Advice and Advocacy Services Conference. We explored a range of topics, including changes to tenancy laws, policy reform, and advocate work practice. We looked in detail at the effects COVID-19 has had on tenants lives, the Tribunal’s practices, tenancy law, and mental health. 
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Renters' Guide to COVID-19

Covid19 graphic
This guide covers common questions about renting during Coronavirus COVID-19 in NSW. A 60 day stop on evictions for some tenants began on the 14th July 2021. This has now been extended and will end on the 11th November 2021. The previous Eviction Moratorium Period which began in April 2020 came to an end on 26 March 2021. However a six-month Transition Period was implemented. During the Transition Period there will be limited protections against eviction for tenants with COVID-induced arrears and these are in addition to the 60 day stop on evictions for some tenants.
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Advice and advocacy for renters in every community

Tenant Advocates at the Network Meeting
Tenant Advocates are hard at work all across NSW – making sure tenants know their rights, so we can keep on building good homes and communities. Here are some of the recent examples of the work of our Network, from stalls in the community, to our Network Conference, to winning compensation for tenants, to resisting unfair evications, and helping tenants who are facing mutiple disadvantage.
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Q+A: Water restrictions, drought and rental bond

Watering can
"The agent is demanding all of my bond to pay for turf and lawn work. The lawn is not what it was at the beginning of the tenancy. But, we are in drought and there are water restrictions. It does not seem fair that I have to pay for turf etc when the lawn would probably have died anyway. Where do I stand? What can I do?"
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