Residential Tenancies Act 1995

• All landlords and tenants in South Australian residential tenancies, including private rentals, social housing and community housing providers.
• Real estate agents acting as property managers.
• Rooming house proprietors and residents.
• Residential tenancy database operators.
• SACAT and the Commissioner for Consumer Affairs in their dispute resolution roles.

Part 2 and Part 3: Administration and tribunal jurisdiction

The Commissioner for Consumer Affairs administers the Act (section 6). SACAT has jurisdiction over disputes under the Act, including termination orders, rent orders, compensation orders and orders about tenancy databases (sections 24-35).

Part 4: Mutual rights and obligations

Pre-agreement obligations (Division A1): Landlords must notify prospective tenants if the premises are for sale (section 47A), provide prescribed information (section 47B), and must not advertise in a misleading way (section 47C).

Agreement requirements (Division 1): Landlords must provide prescribed information to tenants at the start of the tenancy (section 48). The agreement must be in writing and include prescribed terms (section 49). The landlord bears the cost of preparing the agreement (section 50).

Rent (Division 3):

• Premises must be advertised at a fixed price (section 52A).
• Rent may only be increased by notice in accordance with section 55, and not more than once every 12 months.
• The Tribunal may declare rent excessive (section 56) having regard to the general level of rents for comparable premises, the capital value of the premises, and other factors. Applications for excessive rent based on a rent increase must be made within 90 days of the notice.

Bonds (Division 4): Bond must be lodged with the Commissioner and held in the Residential Tenancies Fund. The bond is repayable to the tenant at the end of the tenancy, subject to any claim by the landlord for damage, unpaid rent or other amounts.

Minimum housing standards (section 67A): Premises must comply with minimum housing standards prescribed by regulation. Occupation of non-complying premises is restricted.

Drug contamination (section 67B): Testing and remediation obligations apply where drug-related conduct has occurred on premises. A landlord may terminate on the ground of drug contamination (section 80A).

Landlord's obligation to repair (section 68): An implied term of every residential tenancy agreement requires the landlord to ensure the premises and ancillary property are in a reasonable state of repair at the beginning of the tenancy and throughout the tenancy, having regard to age, character and prospective life. The obligation does not require the landlord to act without notice: the landlord is in breach only if given notice of a defect and fails to act with reasonable diligence. Where the landlord fails to remedy a defect that is likely to cause personal injury, property damage or undue inconvenience, the tenant is entitled to compensation, to have the repairs done and recover the cost, or to terminate (section 85B).

Minimum efficiency standards (section 68A): Regulations may prescribe minimum energy efficiency standards for premises.

Tenant's obligations (Divisions 8 and 9): Tenants must maintain cleanliness, not damage the premises, and not engage in conduct that disturbs neighbours or endangers health and safety (sections 69 and 71).

Landlord's right of entry (section 72): Landlords may enter with not less than seven days' notice (or 48 hours' notice for inspections) for specified purposes. Emergency entry is permitted without notice where immediate entry is necessary.

Pets (Division 6A): Landlords must not unreasonably refuse consent to keeping a pet. A right-to-keep provision allows tenants to keep an exempt animal without consent.

Part 5: Termination

Termination by landlord (Division 2):

• Breach (section 80): A landlord may give a notice of termination for breach, requiring the tenant to remedy the breach within 14 days or vacate. If the breach is remedied, the notice has no effect.
• Drug contamination (section 80A): A new termination ground for confirmed drug contamination.
• Possession required (section 81): A landlord may terminate a periodic tenancy with at least 60 days' notice where possession is genuinely required for demolition, renovations, owner-occupation or sale requiring vacant possession.
• End of fixed term (section 83A): A landlord must give notice of non-renewal before the fixed term ends.

Termination by tenant (Division 3):

• Breach (section 85): A tenant may give a notice for the landlord's breach.
• Condition of premises (section 85B): A tenant may terminate if the premises are in an uninhabitable state.
• Domestic abuse (section 85D): A tenant who is a victim of domestic abuse may terminate with reduced notice.
• Without specifying ground (section 86): At the end of a fixed term, a tenant may give notice without specifying a ground.

Termination by Tribunal (Division 4): The Tribunal may terminate on application by either party, including on grounds of hardship (section 89), domestic abuse (section 89A), or unacceptable tenant conduct (section 90).

Part 5A: Residential tenancy databases

Landlords may only list a former tenant in a database if the tenancy was terminated because of a tribunal order for possession and there is an unpaid debt exceeding $1,000, or the tenant abandoned the premises, or the tenant was in breach of the agreement in a specified way (section 99F). Listings must be accurate and removed when no longer accurate. Tenants may apply to the Tribunal for removal or amendment of a listing (section 99L).

Part 7: Rooming houses

Proprietors of designated rooming houses must be registered (Division 1A). Parallel obligations to the residential tenancy framework apply: repair obligations, minimum standards, notice for entry, rent regulation and bond requirements. House rules may be set but must not be unreasonable.

SACAT powers (Part 3, Division 7, section 35): The Tribunal has broad powers to make orders, including orders for payment of compensation, orders requiring repairs, orders directing parties to comply with the agreement, orders for termination, and injunctions.

Commissioner (Part 2, section 8): The Commissioner has functions including advice and information provision, conciliation of disputes, and intervention in proceedings (section 109).

Tribunal: Termination for hardship (section 89): The Tribunal may terminate a tenancy on grounds of severe hardship to either party, balancing the interests of the landlord and tenant. This is a discretionary power.

Tribunal: Intervention by designated housing agency (section 32): A designated housing agency may intervene in proceedings.

The Act uses civil remedies, not criminal penalties, as its primary enforcement mechanism. Landlords and tenants who breach obligations face orders from SACAT for compensation, specific performance, rent reduction or termination. Criminal penalties appear only for specific provisions:

• Misrepresenting the ground of termination in a notice (section 81(3)).
• Reletting premises in breach of a termination notice (section 91A).
• Circumventing the Act by contract (section 115).

Bond penalties: A landlord who requires an excessive bond (more than four weeks' rent for premises with a weekly rent above a prescribed amount, or two weeks' below) commits an offence.

Key notice periods under the Act:

| Situation | Minimum notice | |---|---| | Landlord terminates for breach (s 80) | 14 days (allow remedy) + further notice to vacate | | Landlord terminates: possession required, periodic tenancy (s 81) | 60 days (or period of tenancy if longer) | | Landlord terminates: end of fixed term (s 83A) | Notice before end of fixed term | | Tenant terminates for breach (s 85) | Reasonable notice allowing remedy | | Tenant terminates without ground, periodic tenancy (s 86) | 28 days or longer if agreed | | Tenant terminates for domestic abuse (s 85D) | Reduced notice (as prescribed) | | Periodic tenancy minimum period (s 92) | As per agreement, subject to Act minimums | | Tenant to remedy excessive rent application (s 56(1a)) | 90 days after notice of increased rent |

Residential Tenancies (Miscellaneous) Amendment Act 2025: The most recent amending Act, incorporating changes commenced 15 January 2026.

Civil Liability Act 1936 (SA): General law of negligence applies to landlord-tenant disputes not resolved by the Act itself; the HCA Jones v Bartlett decision (a WA matter) addresses the interplay between statutory tenancy obligations and common law negligence.

Domestic Violence laws: Section 85D (termination for domestic abuse) and sections 89A, 90A and 90B interact with the Intervention Orders (Prevention of Abuse) Act 2009 (SA) and broader domestic violence legislation.

Community Housing Sector: Provisions in section 68(2)(b) allow regulations to limit repair obligations for registered community housing providers. Section 82 provides a specific termination mechanism for community housing providers.

Privacy: The database provisions in Part 5A operate alongside general privacy principles, requiring accuracy and appropriate use of personal information in residential tenancy listings.

Rent increase: 12-month restriction and notice requirements: Section 55 prohibits a landlord from increasing rent more than once every 12 months (treating a series of agreements between the same parties as one agreement unless 12 months have elapsed). Failure to comply with the notice requirements means the increase is of no effect.

Landlord must have notice before being in breach of section 68: The obligation to repair under section 68 does not require the landlord to proactively inspect for latent defects. Liability does not arise until the landlord is given notice of the defect and fails to act with reasonable diligence. Tenants who do not notify cannot automatically claim compensation for damage from an unreported defect.

Fixed terms do not automatically terminate: Under section 79A, a fixed term agreement continues as a periodic tenancy at the end of the fixed term unless a notice of termination has been given. Landlords who want to terminate at the end of a fixed term must give notice under section 83A before the fixed term ends.

Database listings are strictly restricted: Section 99F limits listings to very specific breach types with a minimum debt threshold. A landlord who lists a tenant outside these circumstances commits a breach that can be remedied by a Tribunal order.

Pets: Default is consent must not be unreasonably refused: Since the reform of the pet provisions, landlords cannot simply prohibit all pets. The Act allows tenants to keep an "exempt animal" without consent, and requires landlords not to unreasonably withhold consent for other pets.

Example 1 (rent increase): A landlord wants to increase rent for a periodic tenancy. The rent was last set or increased 9 months ago. The landlord cannot increase the rent yet: section 55 and the 12-month restriction applies. When 12 months have elapsed, the landlord must give notice in writing in the form required by section 55.

Example 2 (repair dispute): A tenant notices a significant crack in the roof causing water ingress. The tenant notifies the landlord in writing. The landlord fails to repair within a reasonable time. The tenant may apply to SACAT for an order requiring repairs and for compensation for damage to furniture caused by the ingress (section 68(3)). Alternatively, if the condition is such that the premises are uninhabitable, the tenant may give a notice of termination under section 85B.

Example 3 (termination for possession): A landlord has entered into a contract to sell the premises requiring vacant possession. The tenant is on a periodic tenancy. Under section 81(1)(d) and (2), the landlord must give the tenant at least 60 days' notice. If the tenant leaves early after receiving a section 81 notice, the tenant is not liable for rent after seven days from giving the landlord written notice of intention to vacate (section 81(2a)).

Example 4 (residential tenancy database): A former tenant left premises owing $1,500 in unpaid rent after a Tribunal order for possession. The landlord wishes to list the tenant in a database. Section 99F allows listing in this situation (unpaid debt exceeding $1,000 following a termination by tribunal order). The landlord must notify the tenant of the listing. If the debt is subsequently paid, the landlord must ensure the listing is removed or updated (section 99K).