Aussie landlord is branded a ‘criminal’ after single email to tenant: ‘This shouldn’t be legal’

A landlord has been branded a ‘criminal’ after increasing his tenant’s rent by more than 60 percent.

Tenant rights advocate Jordan van den Berg, known online as Purplepingers, shared an email from a letting agent stating that an anonymous landlord had implemented a rent increase.

The email initially expressed empathy, stating that the “landlord understands that raising rent can be difficult.”

It stated that with this in mind, the owner of the property ‘has carefully considered whether this rent increase is necessary, has compared the rents of comparable properties in the area and believes that the new rent is fair and reasonable’.

But then comes the highlight: the rent increases by no less than 61.7 percent.

The tenant, who previously paid $1,200 every two weeks, must now pay $1,940 for the same period if he wants to remain in the home.

“The landlord understands that it can be difficult to raise the rent and has carefully considered the need for this increase. As such, they are raising the rent by 62 percent,” the email said.

Tenant rights advocate Jordan van den Berg, known online as Purplepingers, shared an email from a letting agent reporting that an anonymous landlord (pictured) had increased the rent.

Mr Van den Berg simply added: ‘Abolish landlords. This should not be legal.’

His post, shared on social media, angered Australians, who called the landlord’s behavior “criminal.”

“There must be a law against this extortion,” someone wrote.

“Who can produce $360 a week out of thin air!”

Another accused the landlords of being “scum.”

“They are greedy profiteers who take advantage of hardworking people who, unlike them, actually contribute to the economy,” they added.

According to one of them, the situation sums up everything that is wrong with Australia’s worsening housing crisis.

“Greedy landlords and scam agents leave people with no chance of keeping affordable housing,” they wrote.

But not all blame lay with the landlord.

“The property managers are responsible too,” someone noted.

‘Since they take a percentage of the management fees, there is no reason to act ethically.’

Rental law attorney Mr. van den Berg (pictured) advocated the abolition of landlords

One X user said the situation sums up everything that’s wrong with Australia’s worsening housing crisis

It is unclear where in Australia the property is located. For $600 a week, a small apartment in any major city in the country would suffice.

Another pointed out how this kind of behavior exposed the generation gap between the typically affluent baby boomers and the rest of society.

“I think one of the fault lines between Millennials/Gen Z and older generations has to do with a clear understanding, if not personal experience, of the sheer greed and uselessness of landlords,” they wrote.

However, not everyone agreed that the landlord was wrong.

“Do you have a house that people rent? Or do you still live with mom?” someone asked.

“Have you ever heard of rates? Home insurance? Maintenance? If you can’t afford it, don’t live there. And if there are no houses, talk to Albanians.”

Another Australian user told Mr van den Berg to ‘control himself’.

‘Who will buy houses then? Who will pay for the increase in mortgage rates, municipal rates, insurance, etc.’, they wrote.

‘Grow up – if you want to live in a communist society, try Russia, but don’t whine and complain when you find out it’s exactly the same there.’

Daily Mail Australia has asked Mr van den Berg for comment.