Tenancy laws apply to boarding houses

All tenancies, including boarding house tenancies, must have a written tenancy agreement that is signed by both landlord and tenant (s 13 RTA).

A list of the things that must be included in the boarding house tenancy agreement can be found in s 66C(1) RTA. These include the landlord’s contact details, whether the tenant’s stay will be longer than 28 days, the tenant’s bedroom number, the maximum number of occupants (if it’s a shared room) and a description of the fire evacuation procedures. Tenancy Services has a template Boarding House Tenancy Agreement.

A boarding house landlord can ask a tenant for a bond of up to four weeks’ rent. If one week’s rent or less is received as bond under a boarding house tenancy, the bond doesn’t need to be lodged with the Bond Centre (s 66D(1) RTA).

The landlord still has to give a receipt for the bond, and refund the bond at the end of the tenancy.

The landlord can take out of the bond any money owing for damages or unpaid rent. The tenant can apply to the Tenancy Tribunal if they think the landlord has kept bond money that they shouldn’t have (s 66D(3) RTA).

Click here for more information on bonds.

The landlord is responsible for paying for all the outgoings of the boarding house, including rates and insurance premiums. Tenants can only be asked to pay for outgoings that are directly attributable to their stay. For example, if they have an electricity meter for their room, or an internet connection, and they are the only person in their room (s 66E(3) RTA).

Each tenant in a boarding house has a separate legal relationship with the landlord, and is separately liable for paying rent and for the costs of any damage.

An exception is if two or more tenants sign a tenancy agreement. For example, a couple might share a room in a boarding house and sign a tenancy agreement together. In this case, they would be jointly and separately liable for paying rent and for any damage to the room.

Damage to a boarding house room will be presumed to have been caused by the tenant in that room unless the tenant proves otherwise or they’re not the only tenant in the room (ss 66K(2)(a), 66L RTA). Boarding house tenants are also responsible for the actions of their visitors or guests (66L RTA). Read more on damage by guests here.

A tenant’s right to quiet enjoyment applies to boarding houses. They are entitled to quiet enjoyment of the premises, free from interruption from the landlord and other tenants (s 66G(1) RTA). They also must not interrupt other tenants.

However, the Tenancy Tribunal has said that you can’t expect the same kind of peace, comfort and privacy in a boarding house that you’d expect with someone living alone (Tenancy Tribunal Order 4238374 at paragraph 29).

A boarding house tenancy cannot be assigned to someone else (s 66F RTA). This means that the tenant can’t just organise another person to take over their room and take on their obligations to pay rent, etc. (Assignment is usually possible with other tenancies - read more here.)

The landlord of a boarding house can make a list of house rules that relate to the use and enjoyment of the boarding house, and the provision of services such as meals and laundry (s 66O RTA). Tenants must follow the house rules (s 66K(1)(e) RTA).

The house rules can’t be inconsistent with a tenant’s legal rights under the RTA, or other laws (such as the right to privacy). For example, it can’t say that a tenant has to give one week’s notice to end the tenancy (because the law says 48 hours). If need be, a tenant can apply to the Tenancy Tribunal for a declaration that a house rule is unlawful (s 66P RTA).

The landlord must give the tenant a copy of the house rules at the start of the tenancy (s 66H(1)(a) RTA) and they must be on display in the house. The landlord can change the house rules but they have to give everyone a week’s written notice that this is happening (s 66O(3) RTA).

The landlord can enter a boarding house at any time, but can’t use the facilities for their own domestic use (eg, showering, cooking) unless they also live there (s 66Q RTA). And even though they can enter at any time, they can’t disturb the tenants’ right to quiet enjoyment of the premises.

Boarding house landlords aren’t allowed to enter bedrooms whenever they want to. A landlord only can enter a boarding house tenant’s bedroom without prior notice for one or more of the following reasons (s 66R(1) RTA):

• with the consent of the tenant immediately before they enter the room
• if the landlord believes on reasonable grounds that there is an emergency and immediate entry is necessary to save life or property
• if the landlord believes on reasonable grounds that there is a serious risk to life or property and that immediate entry is necessary to reduce or eliminate the risk
• to provide services (such as laundry or cleaning) in accordance with the house rules or the tenancy agreement.

There are a list of other situations when a landlord can enter a boarding house room. These are listed in s 66S(1) RTA. This includes inspecting the room, but not more than once every 4 weeks. In these listed situations, the landlord must give 24 hours’ notice to any tenant of the room before entering, and they can only come in between 8am and 6pm.

The notice can be given orally or in writing. The notice must include the date and approximate time of entry, who will be entering, and the reason (s 66S(3) RTA). If the notice is in writing it must be handed to the tenant, or put on the tenant’s bedroom door or inside the room (s 66S(4) RTA).

A boarding house tenant can apply to the Tenancy Tribunal for exemplary damages and / or compensation against a landlord who enters their bedroom without giving the appropriate notice (see above), uses or threatens to use force to enter or attempt to enter a tenant’s room, or damages their property (s 66T RTA).

The same rules for rent increases apply as for normal tenancies, except that the day the new rent amount is due has to be at least 28 days after the date the notice of the rent increase is given (s 24(1)(c) RTA). (For standard tenancies, it’s 60 days.)

The same rights and obligations of ordinary tenants apply to boarding house tenants, with a few differences (s 66K RTA):

• Tenants are only responsible for keeping their bedroom tidy, not the whole premises. The bedroom must be kept in a condition that does not create a health and safety hazard.
• Tenants can only keep pets with the landlord’s permission.
• Tenants must observe the house rules.