{"id":5709,"date":"2025-04-21T14:30:37","date_gmt":"2025-04-21T04:30:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/granville\/?p=5709"},"modified":"2025-04-23T15:51:23","modified_gmt":"2025-04-23T05:51:23","slug":"nsw-rental-reforms-2025-what-landlords-and-tenants-need-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/granville\/landlords\/nsw-rental-reforms-2025-what-landlords-and-tenants-need-to-know\/","title":{"rendered":"NSW Rental Reforms 2025: What Landlords and Tenants Need to Know"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>NSW Rental Reforms 2025: What Landlords and Tenants Need to Know<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>As of 19 May 2025, big changes are coming to the NSW rental market, and they\u2019ll impact landlords and tenants alike.<\/p>\n<p>With the <em>Residential Tenancies Act<\/em> being amended, how properties are managed, leased, and lived in is evolving. At Laing+Simmons, we\u2019re here to break down what\u2019s changing, why it matters, and how we\u2019ll support you as a tenant and a landlord.<\/p>\n<h3>1. No More &#8216;No Grounds&#8217; Evictions<\/h3>\n<p>From 19 May 2025, landlords will need to provide a valid reason to end a tenancy. The days of ending a lease without cause are over.<\/p>\n<p>Acceptable reasons now include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Selling the property<\/li>\n<li>The landlord or a family member moving in (minimum 6-month occupancy)<\/li>\n<li>Major renovations that make the home uninhabitable during the works<\/li>\n<li>A breach of lease terms by the tenant<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Landlords must also follow new notice periods:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>60 days&#8217; notice if the lease is 6 months or less<\/li>\n<li>90 days&#8217; notice if the lease is longer than 6 months<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>These changes aim to provide tenants with more housing security while allowing landlords to manage their property lawfully.<\/p>\n<h3>2. New Pet Ownership Rules<\/h3>\n<p>Pets in rentals have long been a grey area. The new laws bring more clarity. Tenants can now apply in writing to keep a pet, and landlords must respond within 21 days, or the pet is automatically approved.<\/p>\n<p>Landlords can only say no if there\u2019s a valid reason, such as:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Property being unsuitable (e.g., no fencing)<\/li>\n<li>By-laws or council regulations prohibiting pets<\/li>\n<li>The owner also lives at the property<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Blanket bans and additional pet-related fees (like extra rent or bond) are not permitted.<\/p>\n<h3>3. Rent Increases Limited to Once Per Year<\/h3>\n<p>A key change for landlords and tenants is that rent can only be increased once every 12 months, regardless of lease type. This ensures predictability for tenants and simplifies the process for landlords.<\/p>\n<p>A minimum 60-day written notice is still required for any rent increase.<\/p>\n<h4>4. More Options for Rent Payments<\/h4>\n<p>All landlords must now offer at least one fee-free method for paying rent, such as direct bank transfer or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.servicesaustralia.gov.au\/centrepay\">Centrepay<\/a>. Tenants can still choose other methods &#8211; like apps or platforms &#8211; but only if they agree to any associated costs.<\/p>\n<h3>5. Banning Extra Tenancy Setup Fees<\/h3>\n<p>To reduce the financial burden on tenants, certain charges are now prohibited:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Application fees<\/li>\n<li>Lease preparation fees<\/li>\n<li>Charges for background checks<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>6. Upgraded Minimum Standards<\/h3>\n<p>From 19 May 2025, rental properties in NSW must meet stricter minimum standards to be considered fit for habitation. These include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Adequate lighting and ventilation<\/li>\n<li>Working plumbing and drainage<\/li>\n<li>Hot and cold running water<\/li>\n<li>Privacy and proper bathroom facilities<\/li>\n<li>Safe electrical supply<\/li>\n<li>Structurally sound conditions (weatherproof and durable)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If a property doesn\u2019t meet these, it cannot be leased.<\/p>\n<p>Already, from <strong>23 March 2025<\/strong>, properties must have <strong>dual-flush toilets with a 3-star WELS rating<\/strong> to continue charging tenants for water usage.<\/p>\n<h3>What Should You Do Now?<\/h3>\n<p>Whether you\u2019re a landlord or a tenant, it\u2019s important to understand your rights and responsibilities under the new laws.<\/p>\n<p>At Laing+Simmons, we\u2019re already reviewing properties across our network to ensure compliance, update lease documentation, and guide landlords through any required upgrades.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019d like to chat through what these reforms mean for your property or tenancy, please reach out to your property manager &#8211; we\u2019re here to help.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Stay informed. Stay supported. Stay compliant.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>Contact your <a href=\"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/property-management\/\">Laing+Simmons property manager<\/a> for personalised advice.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>NSW Rental Reforms 2025: What Landlords and Tenants Need to Know As of 19 May 2025, big changes are coming to the NSW rental market, and they\u2019ll impact landlords and&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":485,"featured_media":5711,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4373,4374],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5709","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-landlords","category-property-management"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/granville\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5709","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/granville\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/granville\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/granville\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/485"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/granville\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5709"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/granville\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5709\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5715,"href":"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/granville\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5709\/revisions\/5715"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/granville\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5711"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/granville\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5709"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/granville\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5709"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/granville\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5709"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}