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FACT SHEET
Residential Tenancy Amendment Bill 2015
The Residential Tenancy Amendment Act 2013 was passed by the previous Parliament
late in 2013. This Amendment Act contained a range of reforms including the changes
to notice periods, the creation of special rules for social housing and the expansion of
the role of the Residential Tenancy Commissioner.
This Amendment Act was to commence on proclamation, which did not occur prior to
the calling of a State election. It therefore fell to the current government to proclaim
this legislation.
Following further consultation with various stakeholders, the State Government
determined that, although the Act as a whole provided a range of beneficial reforms to
the Residential Tenancy Act 1997, there were several provisions that brought an
unnecessary burden onto property owners. The Minimum Standards section and the
provision relating to the display of photographs were excluded from the proclamation
of the Act on 1 October 2014 pending minor amendment.
The Residential Tenancy Amendment Act 2015 seeks to restore a better balance
between the rights of property owners and tenants by two changes.
Firstly, the minimum standard relating to cooking elements has been amended to
require a premise with three or more bedrooms to have at least three cooking
elements, and all smaller premises to have at least two cooking elements.
Secondly, the restriction on the publication of photographs of a tenanted property has
been limited to applying to photos, film or video recordings that identify the tenant or
another person. The provision thereby protects the privacy and security of the tenant
while not placing too great a restriction on the owner’s ability to sell or let the property.
The Bill also contains provisions remedying several earlier drafting oversights. Section 39
has been amended following a drafting oversight in the 2013 Bill which inadvertently
affected a tenant’s ability to issue a notice of termination.
The provision in the 2013 Amendment Act relating to the installation of locks following
a family violence order has been widened to include Police Family Violence orders.
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