Government Regional Officer Housing - Frequently Asked Questions

You are eligible to be housed in a GROH home if you are an employee of a GROH client department. However, the decision to provide you with a GROH home and the type of home you are given, is at the discretion of your department and is also dependent on the availability of GROH accommodation at the time of the request. If you or your partner own residential accommodation within 50 kilometres of your place of employment in which you might reasonably reside, you are not eligible for GROH accommodation. Please contact the housing liaison officer in your department if you are in doubt.

Before being provided with GROH accommodation, applicants are required to sign a Statutory Declaration which forms part of their application for GROH accommodation. By signing this Statutory Declaration an applicant warrants that they (or their partner) do not own a property that is within proximity (50km) of the occupant’s place of employment and in which they could reasonably reside. Determinations relating to eligibility, including whether a property is considered reasonable to reside, is made by the Housing Authority (the Housing Authority operates within the Department of Communities). Therefore the ownership of any real property must be declared in the application for housing. 

Where a person completes a false or misleading Statutory Declaration this may amount to misconduct and/or contravention of the Criminal Code.

Communities provides properties to other government agencies and departments through the GROH program. The employing agency sub-leases the properties to their eligible employees.

You pay rent directly to your employer, usually by pay deductions. Any overpayments can only be recouped from the your employer.

We invoice tenants only for Water Consumption and Tenant Liability. These invoices can be paid online via our Online Bill Payment page.

Your tenancy agreement is not for a fixed term. They are periodical and valid until you vacate the property.

Agencies sign fixed term leases for our properties, which they negotiate with us.

There are few common sense rules:

If you are planning to be absent for a period, but intend to return, you mush obtain written approval from us and from your employer for another person to reside in the house.

The caretaker/house sitter must abide by the same tenancy rules that apply to all GROH tenants.

For more information please see your Tenant Handbook.

Yes, our properties will be inspected at least once a year. Leased properties may be inspected more often (usually quarterly) by the owner or the owner’s agent.

The gas bottles are hired from a gas company whose contact details will be shown on the existing bottle. Contact the local supplier to order refills.

If you do not have contact details for a local supplier, contact the gas company for their closest supplier.

You must pay for the refills, unless you reside in a south west serviced unit.

If you live in a remote community, gas is usually purchased from the community store.

Tenants who have taken up occupancy since November 2010 can nominate which LP gas supplier provides a gas bottle service to their GROH property.

Furniture and white goods can be supplied to houses in the north-west, remote locations and shared accommodation in the south-west.

The employing agency pays us for furniture, and may pass this fee on to you.

Our furniture must stay with the house. It should not be swapped, removed or transferred to another property. Replacement fees will apply.

For more information please see the GROH Furniture Policy.

Sometimes the employing agency and / or employee will choose to share accommodation between two or more employees. In these cases:

• The employing agency is responsible for paying all water consumption and tenant liability for shared tenancies. The employing agency may choose to pass these fees on to the tenants.

• Power and gas supply charges are usually the responsibility of the tenants. Tenants should seek clarification from their employer about their policy on utility charges.

• Tenants are still bound by the Residential Tenancy Act 1987 and have the same rights and obligations as other tenants under the Act.

Under the Government Housing Air Conditioning Policy, ducted air conditioning is provided in locations that are:

• North of the 26° south latitude.
• South of the 26° south latitude but north of the fifty (50) day RSI line, where the RSI criteria is for both day and night.

If your property meets these conditions and does not have air conditioning, please contact your department to discuss. 

The Home Ownership Subsidy Scheme (HOSS) provides State Government departments and agencies with an alternative incentive to attract and retain staff in regional locations. 

The scheme provides home loan subsidies as an alternative to rental subsidies for a maximum of five years.

For more information please see the HOSS Policy and/or contact your agency.

You have a right to appeal. This right is an integral part of our Customer Service Charter.

The appeal mechanism is informal, thorough, fair and inexpensive means of appealing a decision.

If you wish to dispute a decision taken against you either during your tenancy or after you have vacated the premises, please contact your Housing Services Officer.

Call Housing Direct on 1300 137 677. Non urgent requests can be lodged with the online form. 

General maintenance must be reported to Housing Direct as soon as practicable.

Emergency maintenance issues must be reported immediately.

Housing Direct provides a 24-hour emergency contact centre to handle emergency maintenance issues between 5 pm and 8 am on work days and 24 hours  a day on weekends and public holidays. 

Problems such as:

• Gas leaks
• Loss of lights or power
• Electric shocks or sparks
• Burst water pipes or water leak where the water must be turned off
• Vandal damage, which compromises the security of the property.

After-hours emergency maintenance should be reported immediately to Housing Direct on the toll free number 1300 137 677. 

Where damage is caused by reasons other than general wear and tear. For example:

• Damage to walls and doors by furniture, wall posters or careless picture hanging
• Damage to floor coverings, window treatments or furnishings by burns, stains etc.
• Cost of clearing blocked drains, if the blockage is caused through misuse
• Electrical fuses or circuits damaged by the occupant(s) using faulting electrical appliances
• Eradication of household pests and vermin such as mice, cockroaches, ants or fleas that can be directly attributed to occupant standards or pets
• Damage to fly-screens caused by occupant misuse
• Damage caused by pets
• Upkeep of lawns and garden areas, including reticulation systems
• Replacement of lost keys
• Damage or loss of any furniture supplied by GROH.

You must pay for the cost for repairs beyond general wear and tear. The cost will be charged as Tenant Liability.

General maintenance must be reported to Housing Direct as soon as practicable. Emergency maintenance issues must be reported immediately.

It is the tenant’s responsibility to maintain the garden areas of their GROH home. Tenants are required to keep plants and lawns watered and to comply with sprinkler restrictions, mow lawn areas regularly and removed weeds and debris as required. If reticulation fails, tenants are responsible for maintaining regular watering until it is fixed.
 
Tenants remain responsible for gardens even when absent on holidays and the cost to repair or re-establish the garden will be charged as Tenant Liability.  

Call your Housing Services Officer at the local Communities Housing office to report the situation. They will follow up with Housing Direct to progress your maintenance request. If you continue to have delays, tell a team leader or manager at your local office.

You may make an arrangement to pay appropriate installments​ by calling your Housing Services Officer. The arrangement will be lodged in your account, and no further action will be taken if you pay the instalments as agreed.

If you fail to make an arranged payment, you may receive a breach notice. If you receive a breach notice you should contact your Housing Services Officer.

If you have lived in multiple GROH properties, your payment may have gone to a previous account.

Please contact your Housing Services Officer or the Finance Officer at Communities on (08) 9286 6000. Please have your payment information ready to help us trace the payment.

A copy of your account can be requested through your Housing Services Officer or the Finance Officer at Communities on (08) 9286 6000. The account will be posted to the postal address listed in our database; if this has changed, please let us know.

Online payments are made through an external Active Call payment site, and technical issues do occur from time to time.

If the problem persists and your account is overdue, call your Housing Services Officer to advise them of the problem, obtain more time to pay or discuss other payment options.

For security reasons, any changes to your details need to be requested in writing by letter, fax or email.

Contact Communities on (08) 9286 6000 to ensure your request has been received and actioned prior to the next due date for payment.

You should only receive water bills from us, not from suppliers, real estate agents or owners. If you receive a water bill from anyone other than the Department please contact the Housing Programs Directorate as it may already have been paid.

• The employing organisation is responsible for water consumption for shared accommodation (i.e. where one or more non-related employees share the same dwelling)

• The Housing Authority is responsible for water consumption in serviced accommodation where there are no individual water meters.

Water consumption accounts must be paid to Housing by the due date. For more information please see the Water Consumption Policy.

Tenants should only receive water bills from the Housing Authority, not from suppliers, real estate agents or owners. If you receive a water bill from anyone other than Housing, please contact the Communities on (08) 9286 6000, as it may already have been paid.

Instructions on reading your water meter can be found on the Water Corporation website.

Read your water meter regularly and keep a simple record of your water use to help you alter your usage habits to suit your budget. 

Your water meter can also help you to detect possible leaks.   

You need to contact your Housing Services Officer. They will arrange a reprint of your account and negotiate an extension of the due date.

 Follow each of the stages below:

1. Check previous consumption

2. Check for leaks 

3. Call Housing Direct to arrange maintenance to repair the leak

4. Contact your Housing Services Officer regarding a possible leak allowance or appeal.

If you find a leak or have had a leak during the course of the billing period you may lodge an appeal against the charges. 

This should be emailed or posted to your Housing Services Officer with any evidence you have to support your appeal. 

Your case will be investigated and if justified an amount may be waived. 

Please note that high consumption caused by failure to report a known leak or damage caused by willful damage, negligence or pets will not be considered for a reduction.

If you have an inexplicably high water consumption account or think you may have a leak, find the instructions to test for leaks on the Water Corporation website.

If you find a leak please contact Housing Direct to arrange maintenance. If a substantial mains leak is found, the plumber may submit a leak allowance form to Water Corporation and a credit may be issued for water lost. 

We may provide partial reimbursement for water consumption charges resulting from the establishment / reestablishment of gardens (including lawns). Full details can be found in the GROH Utilities Policy​.