Real Estate Legislation

A little about the law of renting a property.

In Queensland, people who rent housing are covered by the law – the Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Act 2008 (The Act). The Act sets out the rights and responsibilities of tenants and lessors. It describes what you and the lessor/agent can and can’t do, how to address issues that may arise during the tenancy, and explains what happens if the lessor/agent or tenant breaks the law.

The Act applies to all types of tenants including:

• private tenants who rent directly from the lessor or through a real estate agent or housing manager
• public housing tenants
• community housing tenants
• tenants of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Community Councils
• tenants in government employee housing and
• tenants in general employee housing

While the Act applies to all residential tenants, some parts of the Act are different for some types of tenants. The Act does not apply to:

• holiday lettings
• boarders and lodgers (except for the section about rental bonds)
• educational institutions (except for employee housing) or
• retirement villages.

For further advice, we recommend contacting the below tenancy services and authorities.

Residential Tenancies Authority (RTA)
Phone:1300 366 311
Website: www.rta.qld.gov.au

Tenant Advice and Advocacy Services Queensland (TAASQ)
Phone:(07) 5428 6011
Website: www.tenancyadvice.org.au