Australian comedian Tom Cashman reveals he's been denied again after landlord reference saga

Australian comedian Tom Cashman who requested a reference from a landlord has revealed his viral video has only caused him more headaches. Photo / Supplied

An Aussie comedian who had his rental application cancelled after requesting a reference from the landlord has revealed his viral video has only caused him more headaches.

After getting approved for a Sydney apartment in early 2022, Tom Cashman decided to ask the property's real estate agent for a landlord reference from a previous tenant.

Cashman surprisingly gained support from the head of the nation's real estate body after his initial video.

"I wanted to know if the landlord was good to their tenants," Cashman said, sharing the story on TikTok.

Cashman said he was only asking for references when he had time up his sleeve to move.

Now, with the clock ticking on his old lease, he admitted he offered $100 extra to secure his new two-bedroom rental with another agent.

The agent queried if he was the same person who went viral for his denied application a fortnight ago, appearing to brush off the ordeal as a joke.

"It was a looking good and I was texting the real estate agent," he said.

"He asked me 'are you going to ask me for a landlord reference?'

"I played along, saying if they had one lying around I wouldn't mind having a peek. That has not worked well for me in the past."

The landlord asked if he was legitimate about securing the property before informing him the wheels were in motion.

"I thought this was good news," Cashman continued.

"Then, the next morning, we get an email congratulating us for having the tenancy approved.

"But a few hours later we get another email saying 'unsuccessful' … I asked for a reason why, where they said the landlord informed the real estate 'we would like to continue our search'."

The real estate agent said they had "done their best to convince them, but the decision is final".

"F***ing hell. I must be getting trolled, were they trying to get to me, in solidarity with other landlords. This is how power-mad these people are," Cashman said.

In the initial video, Cashman questioned the fact the landlord did not have any previous tenants' emails to get in touch with.

The agent said she didn't understand the question and asked for clarification before saying the owner would not provide a reference because they were not in contact with the previous tenant.

The agent responded: "The owner does not wish to connect the previous tenants and that is not a requirement. All the best with your property search."

Cashman immediately received a separate email informing him his application to rent the apartment had been withdrawn.

Real Estate Institute of Australia president Hayden Groves told news.com.au while a request for a formal reference from a previous tenant was unusual, he thought Cashman's request was "perfectly reasonable".

"In the main I'd imagine most landlords would be happy to accommodate," he said.

"In this market it is a bit trickier because the nature of the market is pretty competitive but it shouldn't deter other tenants and would-be-tenants in my view to ask these sorts of questions of the property manager to make sure they have a comfortable living experience in their homes.

"Typically the questions tenants want to know is 'do they undertake maintenance very quickly, are they on to things when things go wrong, do they plan to sell the property in the near term, which would potentially compromise my lease term?' Those sorts of questions are very reasonable to ask."