On Tuesday 18 April 2023, the Queensland Government opened community consultation for Stage 2 rental reform laws and passed legislation to limit rent increase frequency to once every 12 months. The annual limit on rent increase frequency will come into effect for all new and existing tenancies from 1 July 2023.
All Queenslanders are encouraged to have their say on the proposed changes by 5.00pm Monday 29 May 2023 via an online survey or by providing a written submission at qld.gov.au/rentinginqld.
Stage 2 rental law reforms community consultation now open
The Queensland Government has released its Stage 2 Rental Law Reform Options Paper to seek feedback on proposed changes to tenancy law.
Feedback is being sought on proposed changes to tenancy law including:
- installing modifications – make it easier for tenants to install the safety, security and accessibility modifications they need
- making minor personalisation changes – help parties negotiate about making minor personalisation changes to rental properties
- balancing privacy and access – better balance between tenants’ rights to privacy and owners’ need for information to inform their investment decisions
- improving the rental bond process – ensure rental bond settings provide appropriate security and parties are transparent and accountable for their bond claims
- fairer fees and charges – ensure rent payment, utility and reletting fees and charges are fair and reasonable.
The proposed Stage 2 changes would build on Stage 1 rental reforms, which have been coming into effect in phases under the Housing Legislation Amendment Act 2021 (HLA Act) since October 2021.
The final phase of Stage 1 reforms around minimum housing standards are due to come into effect from 1 September 2023 for new tenancies and from 1 September 2024 for all tenancies.
Limiting rent increase frequency to once a year
On Tuesday 18 April 2023 the Queensland Parliament passed legislation to limit rent increase frequency to once a every 12 months.
The annual limit on rent increase frequency will apply to all new and existing tenancies and will come into effect from 1 July 2023.
Learn more about these changes on the Rent increase frequency changes webpage.
Note: While the RTA makes every reasonable effort to ensure that information on this website is accurate at the time of publication, changes in circumstances after publication may impact on the accuracy of material. This disclaimer is in addition to and does not limit the application of the Residential Tenancies Authority website disclaimer.