Home of Your Own
A free self-help tool for renters in Victoria facing family violence
A free self-help tool for renters in Victoria facing family violence
If you are a renter facing family violence, use Home of Your Own to understand your rights and take preventative action to safely avoid homelessness.
Co-designed by women with lived experience of family violence and homelessness, along with frontline community workers, Home of Your Own helps you to safely:
Use Home of Your Own to understand your rights and options in your rental home under Victorian law, and take early action.
Home of Your Own can support you to:
Get personalised legal information about your situation.
Follow practical guidance and steps to help you safely stay housed, leave a rental, or find a new rental home.
Generate tailored documents to communicate with your rental provider about your housing, safety, and privacy needs in your rental home.
Connect with additional, specialised legal, financial, housing and family violence support.
Justice Connect has also created Dear Landlord, a free self-help tool designed for Victorian renters, who have fallen behind in rent to understand their rights and options, and take proactive steps to avoid eviction.
Simply answer a few questions and Dear Landlord will help determine the best way forward, whether that’s helping you draft a payment plan request to your rental provider, request a rent reduction, prepare a VCAT review application, get ready for a VCAT hearing, end a lease, and finding further financial or legal help.
Contact Justice Connect’s Homeless Law for more legal help.
Justice Connect is grateful to all our generous funders who made this work possible: the ERDI Foundation, the Lord Mayors’ Charitable Foundation and Victorian Legal Services Board + Commissioner
We would also like to thank the women with lived experience of family violence and homelessness, as along with the community workers, who shared their insights and contributed to the co-design of this tool.
If you or someone you are helping is facing family violence, Safe Steps can help you to access emergency accommodation and other supports. Call Safe Steps on 1800 015 188 (freecall, 24/7) or webchat: safesteps.org.au
To find your local family violence service in Victoria visit Safe + Equal.
Djirra
For Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples or non-Aboriginal people who are parents of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children.
Ph: 1800 105 303
1800RESPECT
Family violence counselling, information and referral service
Ph: 1800 737 732
Justice Connect
Ph: 03 8636 4408 / 1800 606 313 (free from landlines)
Apply online at help.justiceconnect.org.au/homelesslaw
Use Dear Landlord, our self-help tool for renters at risk of eviction for being behind on rent: https://apps.justiceconnect.org.au/dear-landlord/
Tenants Victoria
Ph: 03 9416 2577
Victoria Legal Aid
Ph: 1300 792 387
Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service
For Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples
Ph: 03 9418 5999
Some Community Legal Centres provide legal help with tenancy matters. Find your local Community Legal Centre on the Federation of Community Legal Centres (Vic) website.
Call the statewide housing support line for emergency accommodation in Victoria. Call 1800 825 955 (freecall, 24/7) to connect with a housing worker at your closest housing and homelessness service.
National Debt Helpline
Ph: 1800 007 007
Mob Strong Debt Helpline
For Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Ph: 1800 808 488