RTA Rental COVID-19 Update
By: Anne Powell
July 14, 2021
The Queensland Government has today (16 September 2020) announced changes to some COVID-19 arrangements for residential tenancies.
The six-month eviction moratorium to protect COVID-19 impacted tenants, which has been in place since 29 March 2020, will cease to apply from 30 September 2020.
Many other support measures will continue to apply until 31 December 2020.
You can read about these upcoming changes in full on the Queensland Government’s Residential Rental Hub website.
Some changes include:
- Protections for tenants from being listed in a tenancy database for unpaid rent caused by COVID-19 impacts;
- Tenants experiencing domestic violence being able to end their interest in a tenancy agreement quickly;
- Limited re letting costs for eligible tenants who end their fixed lease early;
- Entry restrictions and requirements that support social distancing requirements; and
- Relaxed repair and maintenance obligations that recognise impacts on lessors while maintaining tenant safety in the rental property.
Tenants, property owners and property managers are encouraged to continue working together and negotiating temporary tenancy variations to manage any COVID-19 impacts on their residential tenancy arrangements.
Since April, the RTA’s free, impartial dispute resolution service has assisted Queenslanders to negotiate and resolve 70 per cent of all conciliated tenancy disputes within an average of just over eight days.
To find out more about how the RTA can help you during the COVID-19 pandemic, please visit rta.qld.gov.au/covid, read the Residential Tenancies Practice Guide, call our 24/7 COVID hotline on 134 COVID (13 42 68), or call 1300 366 311, Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 5pm.
