Residential Tenancies Act 1997

This section applies only in relation to a fixed term agreement entered into before the commencement of the Housing and Consumer Affairs Legislation Amendment Act 2024, section 97.

If the lessor received a notice of intention to vacate before the end of the fixed term agreement, and the date nominated in the notice as the date when the tenant intends to vacate is a date before the end of the agreement, the lessor may—

accept the notice; or

if the agreement does not include a break lease fee clause, apply to the ACAT for compensation for—

the loss of the rent that the lessor would have received had the agreement continued to the end of its term; and

the reasonable costs of advertising the premises for lease and of giving a right to occupy the premises to another person.

On application, the ACAT may award compensation of the kind mentioned in subsection (2) (b).

The amount of compensation the ACAT may award—

under subsection (2) (b) (i) must not be more than the lesser of the following:

25 weeks rent;

rent in relation to the unexpired part of the agreement; and

under subsection (2) (b) (ii) must not be more than 1 week’s rent.

In deciding the amount of compensation that may be awarded in relation to the reasonable costs of advertising, the ACAT must have regard to when, apart from the vacation of the premises—

the agreement would have ended; and

the lessor would have incurred the costs.

No compensation may be awarded to the lessor if the agreement is lawfully terminated under the following sections:

section 46A (Termination of agreement for aged care or social housing needs);

section 46B (Termination of fixed term agreements if premises for sale);

section 64AA (Termination—affected residential premises);

section 64AB (Termination—eligible impacted property);

section 46D (Termination for family violence);

section 46G (Co-tenancies—effect of serving family violence termination notice).

In this section:

break lease fee clause means the clause in schedule 2, section 2.1 as in force immediately before the commencement of the Housing and Consumer Affairs Legislation Amendment Act 2024, section 98.

Division 6.5A Powers and decisions of ACAT—protection orders