From hiding their belongings to avoid a landlord's detection, to the anxiety of handing over a bond they might never get back, many renters have to navigate the market while also waiving their rights to legally occupy the home.

Advocates for renters say more needs to be done to inform and protect those on the lowest rung of the rental market.

And, with a chronic shortage of rental properties being reported across the country, there are calls to change the legislation to give subtenants legal rights for the first time in the ACT.

Eviction and financial strain: The reality of renting

Judith Zhu had lived in Canberra for more than three years when she placed an advertisement on a local share housing website seeking a new place to live.

"I really needed to get out of my current situation at the time because I was with a really messy housemate," she said.

The 22-year-old was contacted by two other students who had just applied for a new home in Canberra's north.

She said it was clear from the start that she would not be immediately able to go on the lease, but, as she was contributing to the rent, she believed she had some legal rights to occupancy.

She also hoped to be added to the lease before long, and waited for her new housemates to arrange it.

Advocates say subtenants often find they have no choice but to live illegally. ( Unsplash: Johanna Dahlberg )

It was a mistake she later regretted.

"As two students they had a lot of difficulty securing a lease and they needed someone with a full-time job," she said.

One of the students had their mother, who did not live at the property, co-sign the lease to get them over the line with the real estate agent.

Ms Zhu was expected to stay as an undocumented subtenant.

"So whenever we had inspections they'd try to hide the fact that I was actually living there," she said.

Then, after just two months of paying rent, Ms Zhu was told to leave due to "personality issues" and was given only two weeks to find a new home.

Stranded, just months after paying to move into the residence, she had to move again on her low income.

"The fact that I had to find a new place during the worst time of the year for searching, really made me upset," she said.

"At that time I was not doing emotionally well."

As head tenants benefit, subtenants face uncertainty

People line up to view an apartment for lease in Canberra. ( ABC News: Jordan Hayne )

Maude*, 28, had just moved to Canberra when she was accepted into a share house in the city's inner north.

Relieved to have a roof over her head, she did not immediately learn the her subtenancy was unlawful.

The head tenant laid down rules, but she soon realised they had no right to do so.

"It turned out the old tenants were still on the lease, and my new housemate was a subletter," she said.

"But, when I asked to be added to the lease, he didn't want to include me, as he was concerned that an entirely new set of tenants might be rejected."

Uneasy with that arrangement, Maude left, but was forced to pay double rent for weeks.

"I didn't have any security over the bond I paid my housemate," she said.

"The experience was stressful mainly because of the uncertainty.

"I spent five weeks being uncertain about my address and permanent location, which was disruptive to the rest of my life."

But Maude said she was aware she was one of the lucky ones.

"I'm pretty well off in that I have a good education and friends I can fall back on," she said.

"It concerns me that many others wouldn't, and I can absolutely see how huge amounts of stress and possibly homelessness come on well-intentioned people if their income or family situation is insecure."

Low-income earners, migrants more likely to be caught out

Share house life can be great, but it can also be a nightmare when things turn sour. ( Unsplash: Kaleidico )

Canberra's median rental price in the first quarter of 2019 was $550 per week, rising 3.6 per cent over the previous 12 months.

That amount was also more than $100 higher than the national average.

Better Renting founder Joel Dignam said the current rental market was putting vulnerable people at risk.

"The fewer houses there are for people to rent, the more desperate people get to find a place and the more they're willing to compromise," Mr Dignam said.

"There are a lot of people in Canberra who might be sleeping at their friends' houses or sleeping in their car while they're looking for a place to rent. They don't have their own home, and for these people they need somewhere to stay.

"And that's pushing people to these sorts of marginal forms of housing."

This week, Anglicare published data showing there was a chronic shortage of affordable, secure rentals across the country.

"That's causing record levels of rental stress and even homelessness," Anglicare executive director Kasy Chambers said.

Subtenants should be able to demand rent back, union says

The territory's legislation around tenancy is different to New South Wales in that it does not include a provision that protects subtenants.

Anglicare reported affordable rentals had become critically low in number across Australia. ( ABC News: Kathleen Dyett )

ACT Tenants' Union principal solicitor Charlie Faulder said it was difficult to know just how many unlawful subtenants there were in Canberra, because many did not know they were not allowed to live there, and those that did were often too scared of eviction to speak up.

"But I would say there's probably almost as many subtenants as there are rentals," he said.

He said the law needed to be rewritten to acknowledge those who, for various reasons, were unable to get written consent to live in the residence, or were not aware it was needed.

"There's no way of them verifying whether what the head tenant says is true," Mr Faulder said.

He said it was common to be contacted by a person who had been evicted with little notice, and usually there was nothing they could do to help that person prolong or avoid their eviction.

Mr Faulder said the union wanted the laws to be changed to come more into line with NSW legislation, to make it easier for subtenants.

"Really, legislative reform is one of the biggest and probably the most influential changes that can happen," he said.

"Our view is also that the head tenant, in circumstances where the head tenant has not obtained written consent, … they have no right to take rent.

"The tenant should then be able to claim against the head tenant ... and to say, 'I want my rent back'."

*Name has been changed to protect the person's identity.