Page 9 - The Ultimate Lanlord Guide_Neat

Should no amounts be due and owing by the tenant, the landlord must refund the full deposit
and interest to the tenant within 7 days of the expiry of the lease.

A third timeframe exist in the Rental Housing Act for the refunding of the deposit and that if
the tenant fails to respond to the landlord’s request to do an exit inspection, and the landlord
does the inspection and records damage done by the tenant, then the landlord can deduct the
amount owing by the tenant and refunds the balance plus interest within 21 days after the
expiry of the lease.

The details of the deposit including the amount of the deposit and how it will be treated
must be contained in the lease agreement. If not, you cannot deduct any money owed to
you by the tenant from the deposit!

THE ENTRY INSPECTION

The Rental Housing Act requires that a joint
inspection between the tenant and the
landlord (or agent) be conducted before the
tenant moves into the property. The aim of
the inspection is to record the condition of
the property and the existence or not of any
defects or damage and to determine the
landlord’s responsibility for rectifying them or
simply to register the existence of the defect
or damage.

The landlord is only required to rectify items that will impact on the beneficial occupation of the
tenant. The tenant cannot be held liable for items registered on the defects list (usually called
and entry inspection) when the lease ends.

The defects list / entry inspection should be signed by both landlord and tenant and must be
attached as an annexure to the lease agreement.

It is a good idea to use an entry inspection sheet or template that will also serve to
capture the exit inspection on the same sheet. That makes it a lot easier to compare the
entry and exit inspections. The entry inspection sheet should also make provision for a
summary of the list of defects and whether the defects are simply noted or if the landlord

will be rectifying them, and if so the date that each item was rectified.

VERY IMPORTANT: if a joint entry inspection is not done in the presence of the tenant at the

start of the lease, this is deemed to be an acknowledgement by the landlord that they will have
no claim against the tenant for any damage caused to the property at the end of the lease.
ALWAYS ensure that a joint entry inspection is done and attached to the lease as an annexure.

Etchells and Young Property Brokers P A G E 8