Vacating a Property
Vacating a Property
As a tenant, you have rights and obligations which are set out under the NSW Residential Tenancies Act 2010 and its associated Regulation which commenced in January 2011. This includes how much notice you must give your landlord when you decide to vacate a rental property, and how much notice the landlord must give the tenant if they want them to vacate.
If you decide to end your tenancy, you must give written notice to the landlord/agent. You must pay the rent up to and including the day your notice ends and you vacate. The notice period required depends on the status of your lease.
At the end of a fixed term lease
If you want to end your tenancy when the fixed term period of the agreement is due to run out, you will need to give at least 14 days notice. This notice can be given up to and including the last day of the fixed term.
After the end of a fixed term lease
If you want to end your tenancy after the fixed term has ended (and you have not signed another lease), you will need to give at least 21 days notice. This notice can be given at any time and does not have to line up with the rent payment cycle.
If the landlord gives you a notice to terminate lease
If your landlord serves you with a Termination Notice, you can move out at any time before the notice ends without having to give your own notice and you only have to pay rent until the day you hand back vacant possession. However, if the notice is because of the end of the fixed term of the agreement, you are responsible for paying rent until the last day of the agreement.
What happens next?
Once written notice has been given by either landlord or tenant, you will be issued with a vacate date. This is the last day that you are allowed to vacate the premises and return the keys to Forsyths. You are required to pay rent up to and including this date regardless of when you vacate the premises.
Leaving the rental property in good order
Tenants are required to leave the property in good order when they vacate. This checklist (click through to checklist?) details what is expected in terms of cleaning, appliances, etc when you vacate the property. You will also need to complete an Exit Condition Report when you leave the property. If the property is not considered to be left in good order, we may have it professionally cleaned or repairs carried out and claim the cost of this against your Bond.
What happens to the Bond?
All rental bonds in NSW must be lodged with NSW Fair Trading. If the landlord or property manager and tenant agree that the property has been left in good order, they will together lodge a bond refund request form to Fair Trading and you will be refunded the full amount of your Bond. If the landlord believes the property has not been left in an appropriate state, if you owe any rent or unpaid water usage bills, or if there is damage to the property, then the landlord can claim these costs against the bond and the tenant will be refunded the remainder. For more information on claims against bonds, visit the Fair Trading website.
Do you have further questions?