New South Wales Residential Rental Contracts
NSW Rental Contract Template
In NSW a Residential Tenancy is subject to and governed by the Residential Tenancies Act 1987.
The act applies to both verbal and written agreements and covers most residential tenancies including some caravan parks. However some tenants are not covered under the Act. These include tenants whose principle place of residence is a residential park, those living in hotels and motels, holiday homes and aged care facilities including hospitals and nursing homes. For a list of other exclusions one should consult the Residential Tenancies Act 1987.
Before the tenant moves into the rented premises or enters into a Residential Rental Contracts Agreement there are several documents that they must receive from the Landlord or the landlords agent. These include a written copy of the lease, a list of costs that they will need to pay when they sign the lease and a booklet called The Renting Guide. This booklet explains the rights and responsibilities of the tenant and those of the landlord. It is available free from the NSW Office of Fair Trading.
The Rental Contracts
The lease or Residential Rental Contracts agreement is a binding contract between the landlord and the tenant. The Rental Contracts is made up in two parts .
- The first part defines the rights and obligations of the parties as prescribed under the act.
- The second part is the property condition report. The tenant must be given time to read and understand the terms of the tenancy agreement before being asked to sign it.
Condition Report
At the beginning of the tenancy the landlord fills out and signs 3 copies of the condition report and gives two copies to the tenant. The tenant indicates agreement or disagreement with the condition suggested by the landlord or landlord’s agent by placing a tick or a comment in the correct space. If they believe the report does not represent the true condition of the premises, this is the time to say so. The tenant must return one signed copy of the completed condition report to the landlord or landlord’s agent within (5) business days and keeps the second copy.
Bond
For unfurnished premises the maximum bond is 4 weeks rent, 6 weeks rent for fully furnished premises with a rent of $250 or less per week. Unlimited for fully furnished premises for rent more than $250 per week.
Rent in Advance
The tenant will usually be required to pay 2 weeks rent in advance from the first day of the tenancy if the weekly rent is $300 or less. If the weekly rent is more than $300 upto one calendar month in advance is acceptable.
Terminating Residential Rental Contracts
In the last 14 days of a fixed term agreement, either party can give 14 days notice to end the tenancy. Once the fixed term tenancy has ended Tenants are required to give at least 21 days notice and the Landlord must give at least 60 Days notice.
If the tenant breaks the tenancy lease agreement early the Landlord may claim compensation for any loss suffered, including costs incurred to find a new tenant.
Residential Rental Contracts kits are available from RP Emery and Associates as a downloadable MS word document. Unlike a hardcopy agreement the MS word document can be used time and again and it also allows a certain amount of flexibility to edit as you see fit.