Moving in

Once your rental application has been approved, you’re almost ready to move into your new home.

Before you move in, you need to:

• sign your tenancy agreement
• pay the rental bond and rent in advance
• pick up the keys.

Signing the tenancy agreement

The tenancy agreement is a legal contract between you and your landlord or agent.

The agreement outlines each party’s legal rights and responsibilities throughout the duration of the tenancy.

There are different types of tenancy agreements depending on the type of home you move into.

• General tenancy agreement (Form 18a)—houses, townhouses, units, apartments and houseboats.
• Moveable dwelling tenancy agreement (Form 18b)—caravans, caravan sites and mobile homes
• Rooming accommodation agreement (Form R18)— boarding houses, supported accommodation services where a person pays for a room and services (e.g. meals and/or personal care), student accommodation (not including on-campus accommodation) and a place/house where the landlord/agent lives on the property and rents out 4 or more rooms.

Before signing the tenancy agreement, make sure you read and understand it. The agreement states:

• the name and address of the landlord or agent
• who is renting the property and who can live there
• the start and end date of the agreement (or if it is periodic)
• the amount of rent to be paid and how often
• how the rent will be paid
• the date of the last rent increase
• contact details for nominated repairers
• the standard and special terms of the agreement—any special terms should be discussed and agreed to prior to both parties signing the tenancy agreement.

• the room that can be occupied and what common areas can be used
• house rules
• costs other than rent, such as food, personal care or other services
• if a bond will be charged.

You must sign and return the tenancy agreement within 5 days of receiving it.

When you sign the tenancy agreement, your landlord or agent must give you a:

• signed copy of the tenancy agreement within 14 days of them receiving it back from you
• signed copy of the Entry condition report—general tenancies (Form 1a), Entry condition report—moveable dwelling/site (Form 1b) or Condition report—rooming accommodation (Form R1). The Condition report is only required for rooming accommodation if a bond has been paid.
• the Pocket guide for tenants—houses and units (Form 17a) or Pocket guide for tenants—caravan parks (Form 17b).

The pocket guides contain information about what to do during your tenancy.

Paying the rent and rental bond

Most landlords and agents require tenants to pay rent and a rental bond before moving in.

Rental bond

A rental bond is money you pay at the start of your tenancy to your landlord or agent. The bond is paid back to the tenant when the property is vacated, if no money is owed for rent, damages or other costs.

The rental bond amount depends on the type of tenancy agreement and rent amount.

Your landlord or agent must lodge your bond money with the Residential Tenancies Authority (RTA) within 10 days, where it is held in trust while you live in the property. The RTA sends you a receipt with your rental bond number. Keep this receipt in a safe place with your rental documents for when the tenancy agreement ends.

If you can’t afford the full rental bond, ask your landlord or agent if you can pay in instalments. You can also check your eligibility for a bond loan.

At the end of your tenancy, apply to the RTA to get your bond back by completing a Refund of rental bond (Form 4) as soon as you return the key to your landlord or agent.

Entry condition report

You should complete the entry condition report before you move in, to record the condition of the property, any existing damage, and any inclusions (e.g. furniture).

This is an important document—take the time to closely inspect the property and correctly complete the report. Filling out this report properly will help avoid future problems, especially with the bond refund process.

Your landlord or agent must prepare, sign and give you a copy of the report at the start of the tenancy. Your landlord or agent will indicate if each item on the list is clean, undamaged and working.

You should then:

• check all the details and comments made by your landlord/agent on the report—the accuracy of the report will be very important if you need to resolve any disputes about the condition of the property when moving out
• agree or disagree with the condition of the items by including your own comments in the report
• sign and return the report to your landlord or agent within 7 days of receiving it.

Who to tell that you're moving

The checklist below may help when moving into a new place.

• Australia Post (for mail redirection)
• Electricity, phone, internet and gas providers
• Insurance providers: house contents, health, life and car
• Employer
• Bank, credit union or building society
• Finance services
• Superannuation funds
• Services Australia – Centrelink, Medicare and Child Support
• Australian Electoral Commission
• School/university/TAFE
• Day care, kindergarten, outside school hours care
• Health providers such as your doctor and dentist
• Car registration
• Driver licence
• Paper deliveries and newspaper/magazine subscriptions
• Vehicle breakdown service (e.g. RACQ)
• Veterinary surgery
• Department of Veterans’ Affairs
• Australian Tax Office
• Pet registration (local council)
• Pet microchip registry
• Linkt (toll road payment)
• Family and friends

More information

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