Rental law changes and what you need to know
CHANGES to Queensland’s tenancy laws are coming into effect on October 1.
These changes are designed to give tenants, property owners and managers more certainty and transparency around tenancy arrangements and decisions.
If you’re a tenant or a property owner, for this month’s monthly tip, here’s how these changes affect you…
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1. End to tenancies
One of the changes is how tenancies can be ended.
These changes will provide tenants and property owners/managers with a wider range of specific reasons to end a tenancy with the appropriate notice periods.
New changes ensure tenancies can’t be ended by a property owner or manager without approved grounds such as preparing a property for sale or choosing to move in.
Tenants also have additional reasons to end a tenancy such as a property not being in good repair or a co-tenant passing away.
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2. Pets
There are also changes to requesting a pet in rental properties during a tenancy.
A new framework will be introduced to support negotiations about renting with pets
The RTA has a new form for tenants to request approval to have a pet.
Owners must respond within 14 days and need to specify a reason under the new laws for refusing a request.
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3. Repairs
The changes will introduce repair orders as an additional pathway for tenants to have repairs addressed in a timely manner.
This includes a new pathway for ensuring repair work is undertaken in a timely manner, with tenants able to seek a repair order if reasonable timeframes are not met.
The value of emergency repairs that a tenant or a property manager can undertake if the owner can’t be contacted has also been increased.
These changes start on October 1.
The RTA “encourages tenants, property managers and property owners to take time to understand the upcoming rental law changes, including how they may impact their rights and responsibilities and make necessary preparations”.
For more information visit the RTA rental law changes resources.
