Australian Property News

Tenants' right to make minor cosmetic changes limited

Posted on Monday, June 07 2010 at 6:19 PM

Key amendments to the New South Wales Residential Tenancies Bill 2010 have been implemented to further strengthen landlord rights, according to the Real Estate Institute of New South Wales (REINSW).

REINSW said the key changes suggested to government and successfully amended include:

- Further limiting the government’s proposals to allow tenants to make 'minor' changes to the landlord's property (e.g. painting is not a 'minor' change) or to sub-let the property without the landlord's consent.

- Replacing a proposal to give tenants the right to break a fixed-term tenancy agreement during the fixed term with a payment of a 'break fee'.

- Scrapping the compulsory proposal to cap a landlord's damages (including loss of rent) if a tenant abandoned rented premises, and maintaining the current obligation on a landlord to mitigate their loss in such circumstances.

- Providing greater certainty for landlords when terminating periodic tenancies.

"Unfortunately the REINSW has not been provided with a complete overview of all changes to the Bill which means it has been impossible to review all amendments prior to the Minister introducing the legislation," said REINSW president Wayne Stewart.

REINSW has requested the Minister delay debate on the 2010 Bill until the next parliamentary session in late 2010, "to allow all stakeholders a reasonable opportunity to examine the Bill in its latest, amended, form".