Renting

Guide to Renting

The Residential Tenancies Act 1997 commenced on 26 May 1998. If you enter into a tenancy agreement on or after this date the new law will apply. If you are a tenant, property owner or an agent in an existing agreement prior to this date then the Act will affect you in certain circumstances.

This Act applies to both private and public tenancies. If a person rents a house, a unit or a room from a private owner or the government then the Act will apply.

This is a guide only and does not take the place of legal advice.

TENANCY AGREEMENTS

When you sign a tenancy agreement you are entering into a legally binding relationship. Tenants and lessors should think carefully before entering into a tenancy agreement as once the agreement is signed it is too late to change your mind.

The Residential Tenancies Act has standard residential tenancy terms that apply to all tenancy agreements. These are set out in the Schedule to the Act. All written and oral agreements made on, or after 26 May 1998 must include these tenancy terms.

Different words and terms may be added to the standard terms and conditions in all tenancy agreements. However, if these terms are inconsistent with the standard residential tenancy terms, the terms are void and of no effect unless the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal endorses those terms. Either the lessor or the tenant may apply to the Tribunal for the endorsement of a term.

BEFORE SIGNING THE AGREEMENT

• The lessor must give the tenant a copy of the proposed tenancy agreement
• The lessor must indicate to the tenant any terms or conditions which are inconsistent with the standard residential tenancy terms and the manner in which they are inconsistent
• The tenant must be given a reasonable time to consider the agreement
• The tenant in turn must provide the lessor with his or her full name and
• A property owner must provide the tenant with his or her name and an address where the tenant can contact the owner or
• If the agreement is signed by a real estate agent on behalf of a property owner, the agent must provide the tenant with the agency’s full name, the fact that they are acting as an agent, and if the agent is a company, an employee (usually the property manager) who can be contacted in relation to the agreement.

Unless both parties agree a tenant or lessor cannot change a tenancy agreement after it has been signed.

A lessor can require that a tenant pay a bond for the tenancy agreement. The maximum bond that can be requested is equivalent in total to four weeks’ rent.

As an alternative or in addition to the bond, the lessor can request that the tenant obtain a guarantee, indemnity or insurance for the performance of any obligation under a tenancy agreement.

The lessor must lodge the bond with the Office of Rental Bonds within 2 weeks from the date of receiving the bond, not from the date when the tenancy agreement starts.

The tenant cannot use the rental bond to pay the rent for the last weeks of the tenancy. A tenant cannot stop paying the rent a month before the end of the tenancy on the assumption that the bond will cover the rent.

A condition report must be filled out whenever a tenancy begins.

Once a tenant has entered into a tenancy agreement with a lessor both parties have rights and obligations.

Rental increases cannot be increased in the first year of a tenancy and may only be increased once a year after that unless the Tribunal has endorsed a term saying otherwise. For any rental increase to be effective the lessor must give the tenant 8 weeks’ notice in writing of the rental increase.

The tenant has the responsibility for maintaining the property in a reasonable condition throughout the tenancy agreement. The tenant should:

• Not intentionally or negligently damage the property
• Notify the lessor of any damage as soon as practicable
• Maintain the property and any contents in a reasonable and clean condition

The tenant is responsible for the cost of services used during the tenancy provided there is a separate meter, for example, electricity, gas, water and telephone. The lessor is liable for the cost of services up to the commencement of the tenancy agreement and after the tenancy agreement has expired.

If the tenant wants to leave or the lessor wants the tenant to leave, there are certain procedures that must be followed to terminate the tenancy agreement.

If the tenant has been given a notice to remedy on two previous occasions, a lessor is not required to issue a notice to remedy for a third failure to pay rent – the lessor can automatically issue a notice to vacate.

For further assistance to tenancy agreements refer to the Residential Tenancies Act 1997.