2.4 Exemplary Damages and Unlawful Acts

Exemplary Damages, Unlawful Acts and powers of the Regulator - overview

So far, we have covered some of the basic aspects of the RTA, looking at what rights and responsibilities parties have to each other. But what happens if things do not go according to plan and there is a breach of RTA?

By now you would have heard us mention that particular breaches of the RTA are an unlawful act. What does this mean and what are the potential consequences?


2.3 Rights and Responsibilities

Overview

In this section of the module, we look at the rights and responsibilities of both the tenants and the landlords. Rights and obligations of the parties involved in the tenancy are covered between section 36 and section 66 of the RTA. With the passing of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill 2020, we have seen significant updates that do strengthen tenants rights. We cover some of these updates here.

 


2.2 Rents and Bonds

Overview

For a residential tenancy to be in place, the rent will be paid by the tenant to the landlord or the landlord’s agent, for the use of the property and the land that comes with the property. This is typically in the way of money. There can be plenty of confusion in terms of rent being paid if both parties are not fully clear on certain aspects. These can include the following.

  • What is the rent period being charged?
  • What day is rent due?
  • How should rent be paid?
  • How often does the rent get paid?
  • What has to be written on the Tenancy Agreement?

Under Interpretation, Section 2 of the RTA it states that ‘rent means any money, goods, service, or other valuable consideration in the nature of rent to be paid or supplied under a tenancy agreement by the tenant, but does not include any sum of money payable or paid by way of bond’.[1]

Sections 23 through to 35 of the RTA cover different aspects in regards to rent.

Then there is the bond. Under Interpretation, Section 2 of the RTA it states that the bond means any sum of money payable or paid under a tenancy agreement as security for the observance and performance of the tenant’s obligations under the agreement and this Act; but does not include any sum payable or paid by way of rent.[2]

This means that if the tenant does not perform in their duties and responsibilities at the end of the tenancy, the bond may be used to cover the costs associated in remedying this.

Sections 18 through to 22E covers legislation in regards to the bond.

Again, there are strict rules with regards to what you can and cannot do in terms of collecting a bond from the tenant. We will come onto this later.

For starters, we will look at what rent is, how and when it can change and how to read a rent statement.

 

 

 


2.1 Tenancy Agreements

Overview

This is the foundation document that any relationship between a landlord and a tenant is built around. There are strict rules that must be adhered to when establishing your contract. No matter if you are a landlord or a property manager, you have to have a strong understanding as to what you are producing and asking the tenant to commit to.

You also have to be aware of what cannot be put into a Tenancy Agreement as putting unlawful clauses that are outside the Residential Tenancies Act can be costly and get you into trouble.

Before any tenancy commences, a Tenancy Agreement between the tenants and the landlord should be written up and signed by both parties. A Tenancy Agreement is a contract between a landlord and a tenant, recording all the key things  that a landlord and a tenant have agreed to about the tenancy. The agreement must comply with the RTA which is the key piece of legislation that both parties must work with.

All Tenancy Agreements need to be in writing and signed by both parties and every party to the agreement should receive a copy. This is stated under section 13 of the RTA, Form of Tenancy Agreement. Failing to have a Tenancy Agreement in place is now considered to be an unlawful act with exemplary damages of up to $750 being able to be awarded.  However, even if there is no Tenancy Agreement in place, the Residential Tenancies Act will still apply.

In this lesson, we will look at what you can and can’t put into a Tenancy Agreement plus what happens if situations change throughout the duration of the tenancy such as rent increases or the property sells?

We will also look at the different types of Tenancy Agreements and also some common mistakes that we see landlords and property managers make.

When doing your research around Tenancy Agreements, sections 12 to 16B of the Residential Tenancies Act come into play and for Boarding Houses, section 66C to 66F apply. We will also look at section 137 of the RTA as this covers Prohibited Transactions. More about this later. For now we will look at the basics of a Tenancy Agreement.

 


Lesson 2.4: Exemplary damages and unlawful acts

So far, we have covered some of the basic aspects of the RTA, looking at what rights and responsibilities parties have to each other. But what happens if things do not go according to plan and there is a breach of RTA?

By now you would have heard us mention that particular breaches of the RTA are an unlawful act. What does this mean and what are the potential consequences?

Begin this lesson by clicking the first topic and marking each as complete as you work your way through.

Lesson 2.3: Rights and responsibilities

In this section of the module, we look at the rights and responsibilities of both the tenants and the landlords. Rights and obligations of the parties involved in the tenancy are covered between section 36 and section 66 of the RTA.

Begin this lesson by clicking the first topic and marking each as complete as you work your way through.

Lesson 2.2: Rent and bonds

For a residential tenancy to be in place, rent will be paid by the tenant to the landlord or the landlord’s agent, for the use of the property and the land that comes with the property. This is typically in the way of money. There can be plenty of confusion in terms of rent being paid if both parties are not fully clear on certain aspects. These can include the following.

  • What is the rent period being charged?
  • What day is rent due?
  • How should rent be paid?
  • How often does the rent get paid?
  • What has to be written on the Tenancy Agreement?

Under Interpretation, Section 2 of the RTA it states that rent means any money, goods, service, or other valuable consideration in the nature of rent to be paid or supplied under a tenancy agreement by the tenant, but does not include any sum of money payable or paid by way of bond.

Sections 23 through to 35 of the RTA cover different aspects in regards to rent.

Then there is the bond. Under Interpretation, Section 2 of the RTA it states that the bond means any sum of money payable or paid under a tenancy agreement as security for the observance and performance of the tenant’s obligations under the agreement and this Act; but does not include any sum payable or paid by way of rent.

This means that if the tenant does not perform in their duties and responsibilities at the end of the tenancy, the bond may be used to cover the costs associated in remedying this.

Sections 18 through to 22E covers legislation in regards to the bond.

Again, there are strict rules in regards to what you can and cannot do in terms of collecting a bond from the tenant. We will come onto this later.

For starters, we will look at what rent is, how and when it can change and how to read a rent statement.


Lesson 2.1: Tenancy agreements

This is the foundation document that any relationship between a landlord and a tenant is built around. Every residential tenancy will have an agreement, even if it isn’t in writing. However, there are strict rules that must be adhered to when establishing your contract. No matter if you are a landlord or a property manager, you have to have a strong understanding as to what you are producing and asking the tenant to commit to.

You also have to be aware of what you cannot put into an agreement as well as putting unlawful clause that are outside the Residential Tenancies Act can be costly and get you into trouble.

Before any tenancy commences, a Tenancy Agreement between the tenants and the landlord should be written up and signed by both parties. A tenancy agreement is a contract between a landlord and a tenant, recording all the key things that a landlord and a tenant have agreed to about the tenancy. The agreement must comply with the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA) which is the key piece of legislation that both parties must work with.

All Tenancy Agreements need to be in writing and signed by both parties and every party to the agreement should receive a copy. This is stated under section 13 of the RTA, Form of Tenancy Agreement. However, if there is no Tenancy Agreement in place, the Residential Tenancies Act will still apply.

In this lesson, we will look at what you can and can’t put into a Tenancy Agreement plus what happens if situations change throughout the duration of the tenancy such as rent increases or the property sells?

We will also look at the different types of Tenancy Agreements and some common mistakes that we see landlords and property managers make.

When doing your research around Tenancy Agreements, sections 12 to 16B of the Residential Tenancies Act come into play and for Boarding Houses, section 66C to 66F apply. We will also look at section 137 of the RTA as this covers Prohibited Transactions. More about this later. For now we will look at the basics of a Tenancy Agreement.