Rent, bond and other costs
Bond: The landlord’s security against damage or unpaid rent
What is a general bond?
A general bond is money that you, the tenant, pay to the landlord at the beginning of the tenancy as security. This is in case you don’t pay all your rent, or you cause damage to the property. In those cases the landlord will be able to take the rent or repair costs out of the bond at the end of the tenancy. If you don’t owe any money to the landlord at the end of the tenancy, you will get it all back.
How much general bond can a landlord ask for?
Residential Tenancies Act 1986, ss 18, 18A
A landlord can ask you to pay a general bond equal to up to four weeks’ rent. They can’t ask for any other form of security, other than a pet bond, on top of the general bond – for example, they can’t ask you to put up your car as security.
What is a pet bond?
Residential Tenancies Act 1986, ss 18AA, 22BA, 42G, Schedule 1AA clause 46
As a condition of allowing you to keep a pet at the property you rent, from 1 December 2025, landlords may require you to pay a pet bond in addition to the general bond.
The amount of a pet bond cannot be more than the equivalent of 2 weeks’ rent and a landlord cannot require you to pay more than one pet bond at a time, regardless of the number of pets you are keeping at the property.
You can apply for a pet bond to be returned to you at any time, if you cease to keep a pet at the property (for example, if your pet died).
If you began keeping a pet at the property with the approval of your landlord before 1 December 2025, the landlord cannot require you to pay a pet bond.
Note: While pet bonds are limited to the equivalent of 2 weeks’ rent, this is not the limit of your liability for any damage resulting from keeping a pet. See: Living in your house and flat: Rights and obligations.
What happens to the bond after I pay it to the landlord?
Residential Tenancies Act 1986, ss 19–21, 109
The landlord has to give you a receipt for the bond and pay the bond over to Tenancy Services within 23 working days. If they don’t pay it over to Tenancy Services, the Tenancy Tribunal can order your landlord to pay you a penalty of up to $1,000. Alternatively, you can pay your bond directly to Tenancy Services, if the landlord agrees to this.
A completed bond lodgement form must be sent to Tenancy Services with the bond money. Tenancy Services will give you both a written acknowledgement that they’ve received the bond.
What happens to the bond at the end of the tenancy?
Residential Tenancies Act 1986, ss 22–22E
This depends on whether there’s any disagreement between you and the landlord about whether you should get all the bond money back:
- If you and the landlord agree, either of you can apply to have the bond refunded. If you both agree that everything in the property is OK, or if you agree that the landlord can take some money out of the bond to cover damage, cleaning or unpaid rent, then both of you sign a bond refund form that says what you’ve agreed should happen with the bond.
- If you and the landlord don’t agree, then one of you can apply to get the bond, and the other side then has 10 working days to object. If the other person doesn’t object in time, the bond will usually be paid to the person who applied for it. As the tenant, you can apply for a bond refund at any time after the tenancy ends, but the landlord has only two months after the tenancy ends to apply. If there’s a dispute about the bond refund, you can take it to the Tenancy Tribunal (see: “Problems with your landlord: What you can do”).
Can I transfer my bond if I move to a new place with a new landlord?
Yes, if the old landlord agrees. You can just keep the old bond with Tenancy Services and have them transfer it to cover the new tenancy. You’ll have to fill out a “bond transfer” form, which has to be signed by you, the old landlord and the new landlord. The new landlord then sends the form to Tenancy Services.
What happens to the bond if a flatmate moves out and another moves in?
If the person moving out was a tenant and had signed the bond lodgement form, the new tenant can pay their bond directly to the old tenant. You should only transfer the money after everyone has signed the “Change of tenant” form, and sent it to Tenancy Services.
If the person moving out hadn’t signed the tenancy agreement and the bond lodgement form, they don’t have a legal right to the bond that’s held by Tenancy Services. You can come up with a different agreement between flatmates if you choose, and this may be enforceable in the Disputes Tribunal. For more about the difference between a tenant and someone who’s just a flatmate, see: “Who’s covered by the minimum tenancy protections”.
