The condition record is made in the first days

What the report is for

A condition report is a record of a property’s condition at the start of a tenancy, and a statement of the day it was made. In Queensland it records the condition of the property and any inclusions, such as furniture, at the start of the tenancy, and filling it out properly, with photos or video, will avoid future problems, especially with the bond refund process. New South Wales puts the same point in evidence terms: the more detail, including time-stamped photographs, in a condition report, the less likely disputes will arise at the end of a tenancy. In the ACT, condition reports can be used as evidence if there is a dispute about paying for cleaning, fixing damages or bond claims. And in Western Australia the report can tell fair wear and tear apart from damage, and show who carries responsibility for maintenance or repairs.

From RTA Queensland: entry condition report, Consumer Affairs Victoria: condition reports, NSW Fair Trading: rental property condition reports, Consumer Protection WA: property condition reports, ACT Government: starting a tenancy.

The first days: what you are given, and when

The landlord’s side of the report has a deadline in each of the states and territories below. In the ACT the landlord or their agent must give the tenant two copies of the report within 1 day of moving in, and the report can be provided electronically. In Queensland the property manager or owner must prepare, sign and give a copy at the start of the tenancy, on or before the day you occupy, and it is an offence not to. In Western Australia the landlord has to carry out an inspection and fill in a property condition report ahead of the tenant moving in, and give the tenant two copies of it within seven days of moving in. In Victoria the report must be given before the renter enters into occupation: two copies, or one electronic copy, signed by or for the provider. In New South Wales the landlord or agent must fill out a condition report before a tenant moves in and give two paper copies, or one electronic copy, either before or at the time the tenancy agreement is given to the tenant to sign.

Two states add a renewal rule worth knowing. In New South Wales a new condition report is not needed if the same people renew the tenancy agreement, or if a new co-tenant or occupant moves in. In the ACT, entering a consecutive agreement, the same condition report from a previous agreement can be used.

From ACT Government: starting a tenancy, RTA Queensland: entry condition report, Consumer Protection WA: property condition reports, Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (Vic), Consumer Affairs Victoria: condition reports, NSW Fair Trading: rental property condition reports.

Checking room to room

Queensland’s page reads like a moving-day checklist, and it is the most concrete of the pages below. Fill the report out before you move in, go from room to room, and note everything you see: marks, stains, chipped paint, damage; take photos so there is a record of the condition when you moved in. Check everything works properly, the page says, including windows, doors, gates and locks, taps including hot water, the shower, toilet, bath and sinks, the oven, cooktop, grill and rangehood, air conditioning, fans, lights, powerpoints, smoke alarms, and garage doors. Note the condition of furniture, fittings and outdoor areas including gardens and bins, and record the meter readings to help avoid disputes.

Western Australia asks the tenant to check that fixtures and fittings are present and working, including the TV aerial, the dishwasher, air conditioning units, the oven and the hot water system; to check what services are installed and working; and to photograph the home as a companion to the report, making sure each picture carries a date. Its examples of what belongs in the report are small and specific on purpose: a fly screen torn in the first bedroom, a crack down the left side of the kitchen’s north wall, a brown ring on the lounge-room carpet, and a broken handle on the bathroom door. Victoria keeps the same discipline: anything unclean, damaged or not working should be in the report, covering the property and its fittings and fixtures, inside and out, and it is a good idea for both sides to take photos at the start, dated and labelled and attached to the report.

From RTA Queensland: entry condition report, Consumer Protection WA: property condition reports, Consumer Affairs Victoria: condition reports.

The return window, state by state

The report is not complete until the tenant’s side of it comes back, and the window differs by state. In New South Wales the tenant should complete their part, take photos with time stamps to go with it, and return one completed copy to the landlord or agent within seven days of moving in, keeping the other copy. In Queensland the tenant must return the signed and completed entry condition report within 7 days after the later of the day they occupied the premises or the day they were given a copy of it, and if the report is not completed and returned, it means the tenant agrees with the property manager or owner’s description of the property. In Western Australia a tenant given the copies who disagrees with anything in the report must mark the copy and give it back within 7 days of receiving it, and a tenant who does not give it back is taken to accept the report as a true and accurate description of the property’s condition. In the ACT the tenant has 2 weeks from the day they move in to check the report, make comments, and send a signed copy back, and if it is not signed and returned within those two weeks, the tenant is taken to have agreed with the report the landlord or agent prepared.

Victoria counts its window in business days and adds a fallback. The renter must return the report within 5 business days, which the state’s page glosses as not including weekends and public holidays, and if a renter is not given a condition report before they move in, they can complete their own and should give it to the provider or agent within the same window. South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory: no return window for any of the three is given here. For South Australia, check the Residential Tenancies Act 1995 (SA), linked below; for Tasmania, check the Residential Tenancy Act 1997, linked below; for the Northern Territory, check the Residential Tenancies Act 1999 (NT), linked below. The two rulers on the home page carry words for them rather than a number.

From NSW Fair Trading: rental property condition reports, RTA Queensland: entry condition report, Residential Tenancies Act 1987 (WA), ACT Government: starting a tenancy, Consumer Affairs Victoria: condition reports, Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (Vic), Residential Tenancy Act 1997 (Tas), Residential Tenancies Act 1999 (NT).

What the report is worth later

A returned report is not filing; it is the baseline the end of the tenancy is measured against. In Queensland the report, and any photos or video, can be used as evidence by the Tribunal if there is a dispute, and the property manager or owner must send a copy of the signed and completed report back to the tenant within 14 days. In Victoria a statement in a condition report signed by both sides is conclusive evidence, in law, of how the place stood on the day named in it, so far as repair and general condition go, and a report given to the provider is taken to be notice of any defects or outstanding repairs stated in it, which turns the report into a maintenance record as well. In South Australia the landlord’s side of the same idea is a term of the agreement: the premises must be in a reasonable state of cleanliness when the tenant goes into occupation, and repairs must be made even where the tenant knew about the disrepair beforehand.

The next guide takes the record to the other end of the lease: the final inspection, and how the bond answers to the report. The two rulers under the drawing on the home page are the same comparison this page and the next one share: the days the ingoing report has to come back, and the days that follow the keys going back.

From RTA Queensland: entry condition report, Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (Vic), Residential Tenancies Act 1995 (SA).