It has been a long and difficult wait for landlords, tenants and real estate businesses alike over the past weeks as the economy has deteriorated significantly and many Government assistance measures have been announced. 

Until recently, there had been next to no mention of how landlords, tenants, and real estate agencies should navigate this challenging time. Finally, clarity has been delivered via a media release from the NSW Government on Easter Monday 13th April.

Among many residential tenancy law changes being introduced from 23 March 2020 in NSW, there are changes to mandatory break fees i.e. the compensation the tenant agrees to pay if they move out before the end of a fixed term lease agreement.

As detailed in our post "What Are The Changes To Residential Tenancy Laws In NSW Which Start on 23 March 2020?", there are significant changes to NSW residential tenancy laws which come into effect from 23 March 2020.

One such change is that tenants will have improved clarity around their ability to make alterations, additions or renovations during their tenancy. 

Whenever we meet a new landlord, part of our conversation around preparing the property for the rental market includes a discussion of smoke alarm compliance and testing. Often, landlords may be unaware of their obligations, while others have a limited understanding of what appropriate smoke alarm testing and compliance entails. 

In this post we discuss the primary elements of smoke alarm law in NSW as it impacts landlords, and address the question of whether landlords should feel satisfied with testing smoke alarms themselves.

Quality tenant selection in the first instance and a professional property management approach will do much to avoid the need to even consider how to remove a tenant from your property. However, it is still possible that at some stage in your property investment journey you will be faced with the challenge of how to remove a difficult tenant. 

In this article we cover how a termination notice must be issued to a tenant, the amount of notice required to terminate the tenancy, and what happens if the tenant doesn't leave as ordered. 

​When an applicant is interested in securing a rental property and moving ahead with tenancy, the real estate agent will often request payment of a holding deposit. 

The holding deposit removes the ability for the landlord or agent to enter into a lease agreement for that property with any other person within 7 days of the holding deposit being paid (or for a further period as may be agreed with the tenant). 

However, there are some circumstances in which an applicant may have paid a holding deposit but after paying the deposit, finds that they are no longer able to or willing to proceed with tenancy. The applicant may have had a relationship breakdown with a potential co-tenant, an alternative property may have become available which is more preferable to them, etc. 

In these cases the question arises - is the rental holding deposit refundable?

Most investors and tenants have heard of people being put on a tenancy database or placed on a "blacklist". Often there is little understanding around how these lists work, the circumstances under which a tenant can be added to the list, and how someone can be removed from the list.