‘No easy fix’: Victoria’s short-term rental levy pits regional tenants against hosts

Carrie Donaldson, who spent two years renovating a period home in regional Victoria, believes a blanket 7.5% on short-term rentals is not the way to go. Photograph: Nadir Kinani/The Guardian

When Carrie Donaldson and Luis Casanova first bought their historic property in rural Tatura, 20 minutes south-west of Shepparton, it was in a state of disrepair. “It was basically falling down,” Donaldson says.

The couple spent two years renovating the period home and transforming it into a short-term accommodation space. Known as the Storekeeper’s House, the rental has fast become one of Tatura’s most coveted accommodation spaces.