Victorian Current Acts Victorian Current Acts(1) This section applies if a person who is not a rooming house operator leases a building to another person and the building is being used to operate a rooming house (whether by that lessee or another person and whether or not the lessee or building owner has consented to that use) and—
(a) notice terminating the lease of the building is given by a party to that lease; or
(b) if the person operating the rooming house is not the lessee, the person operating the rooming house or any other party to any lease or other agreement under which that person occupies the building gives notice terminating that lease or other agreement; or
(c) the lease, or if the person operating the rooming house is not the lessee any lease or other agreement under which that person occupies the building, is terminated by consent or by agreement; or
(d) the lessee or other person operating the rooming house abandons the building.
(2) Subject to subsection (3), if this section applies, notice to vacate must be given to each resident of the rooming house by—
(a) a lessee of the building who is not the rooming house operator, or that person's agent, if—
(i) that person's lease is not terminated as set out in subsection (1)(a), (b) or (c); or
(ii) that person has not abandoned the building; or
(b) the owner of the building or the owner's agent.
(3) Notice to vacate is not required to be given under subsection (2) if either of the following intends to directly operate the premises as a rooming house following any termination or abandonment under subsection (1)—
(a) the owner of the building; or
(b) the lessee of the building who is not the rooming house operator.
(4) A notice to vacate given to a resident under subsection (2) must specify a date for vacating the building which is the later of—
(a) 45 days after the date on which that notice to vacate is given; or
(b) in a case referred to in subsection (1)(a) or (b), the date which is the end of the period specified in the notice referred to in subsection (1)(a) or (b), as the case requires.
(5) A person who gives notice to vacate to a resident under this section, or that person's agent, must make reasonable enquiries to identify each resident of the rooming house for the purposes of giving the notice to vacate.
(6) Despite section 506(3), a notice is taken to be served on a resident of the rooming house if a copy of the notice is affixed to the door of the resident's room.
(7) If a notice to vacate is given under this section, a resident of the rooming house—
(a) may continue to occupy the room in the rooming house on the same terms and in the same state of repair or general condition that the resident occupied the room in the rooming house under the residency right granted by the rooming house operator; and
(b) must pay rent to the owner of the building for the notice period, unless the resident can demonstrate that the resident has paid rent for the notice period to the rooming house operator.
(8) Subject to subsection (10), nothing in this section imposes on a person required to give notice to vacate to a resident under this section the rights, duties and obligations of a rooming house operator.
(9) Nothing in this section prevents a rooming house operator, in accordance with this Act, giving a notice to vacate to a resident with an earlier termination date than that referred to in subsection (3) for a notice to vacate under this section and such a notice to vacate given by the rooming house operator—
(a) prevails over any notice to vacate given to a resident under this section; and
(b) must be complied with by the resident in accordance with this Act.
(10) If a person required to give notice to vacate to a resident under this section, or that person's agent, exercises a right conferred by subsection (2) in relation to a residency right—
(a) Part 3 (except sections 93, 94, 94A, 94B, 94C, 94D, 95, 96, 97, 98, 109, 124 and Division 8 of that Part), Part 5, sections 142ZB, 142ZC, 142ZD, 142ZE, 142ZF and 142ZI, Part 7 and Part 9 apply; and
(b) a reference to a rooming house operator in those provisions includes a reference to that person.
(11) For the purposes of subsection (7), "notice period" means the period—
(a) commencing on the day the person required to give notice to vacate to a resident under this section, or that person's agent, gives the resident a notice to vacate; and
(b) ending on the day specified in the notice to vacate on which the resident must vacate the building.
S. 142ZP inserted by No. 45/2018 s. 237 (as amended by Nos 32/2020 s. 11, 1/2021 s. 95).