Housing Legislation Amendment Bill 2021

Overview

This bill delivers major reforms to Queensland's rental laws and retirement village regulations. It ends 'without grounds' evictions, introduces minimum housing standards for rental properties, strengthens protections for people experiencing domestic violence, creates a framework for tenants to keep pets, and exempts resident-operated retirement villages from mandatory buyback requirements.

Who it affects

The bill primarily affects renters, who gain significant new protections and rights, and landlords and property managers, who face new obligations around evictions, property standards and pet requests. Residents of resident-operated retirement villages benefit from exemption from buyback requirements.

Key changes

• Landlords can no longer evict tenants 'without grounds' - they must provide a valid reason such as sale, demolition, owner occupation or end of fixed term
• All rental properties must meet prescribed minimum housing standards for safety, security and functionality, with tenants able to seek repair orders from QCAT
• Tenants experiencing domestic violence can end their tenancy quickly with seven days notice and capped costs, access their bond share, and change locks without permission
• Tenants can request to keep pets and landlords can only refuse on prescribed reasonable grounds - no response within 14 days means automatic approval
• Resident-operated retirement villages are exempt from the 18-month mandatory buyback requirements that were causing financial hardship
• Tenants are protected from retaliatory action when they enforce their rights, such as requesting repairs or making complaints