Rooming Accommodation Agreements (Qld)

In Queensland, there are two main ways in which residential properties may be leased. This may occur via a residential tenancy agreement, where a person agrees to let another person occupy and live in their premises, or through a rooming accommodation agreement, where a person agrees to provide rooming accommodation to another person in exchange for rent. This page deals with rooming accommodation agreements in Queensland.  

Legislation

Rooming accommodation agreements are governed by the Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Act 2006 and the Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Regulations 2009.

Under section 16 of the Act, a rooming accommodation agreement is an agreement to provide rooming accommodation to a person in rental premises. The agreement may be written, oral, or implied.

What is rooming accommodation?

Rooming accommodation is accommodation where each resident has the right to occupy one or more rooms. The resident does not have the right to occupy the entire premises or a self-contained unit and shares some of the facilities with other occupants. The rooms do not necessarily have to be within the same premises.

Common types of rooming accommodation are boarding houses, supported accommodation and student accommodation. Other types of accommodation, such as motel, backpacker hostels and nursing homes, are generally not classified as rooming accommodation.

Rooming accommodation is not covered by the Act if the owner lives on the premises, where there are three rooms or fewer available for occupation, or where the accommodation is a self-contained unit.

Residential tenancy or rooming accommodation agreement?

The majority of rooming accommodation agreements are not covered by residential tenancy laws. However, if a rooming accommodation agreement specifies that it is a residential tenancy agreement then residential tenancy laws do apply. A rooming accommodation agreement that is not a residential tenancy agreement is governed by the laws set out in Division 2 of the Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Act 2006.

Rooming accommodation laws

Rules that apply to rooming accommodation agreements include the following.

• Rooming accommodation must be offered for rent at a fixed amount (section 76AA)
• An offer of rooming accommodation must include all the information prescribed by regulation. This includes (section 76A)
• The provider must disclose all prescribed information to the resident before entering into an agreement (Section 76B)
• The agreement must be in a written form which must be clear and precise. It must include the terms of the agreement, the amount of rent payable, and the amount of bond payable (section 77)
• The resident must be given a copy of the agreement (section 78)

Removing a person from rooming accommodation

If a provider of rooming accommodation wants to get an occupant to leave, they must serve them with a Notice to Leave. As with a residential tenancy, an occupant of rooming accommodation can be required to leave at the end of a fixed-term period, or at any time during a periodic agreement (subject to notice periods), or because of a breach of the agreement.

If an occupant is served with a Notice to Leave and does not agree with the notice, they can seek to resolve the situation directly with the provider. Alternately, they can seek dispute resolution services through the Residential Tenancy Authority (RTA).   

Applications to QCAT

If a dispute arises between an occupant of rooming accommodation and the provider, either party can make an application to QCAT.

An application to QCAT can be made where an occupant considers a rental increase that has been sought to be excessive or invalid. In this situation, QCAT may order that the rental increase be reduced, that the rental increase not be imposed, or that the provider to increase the rent by a specified amount.

If a part of the premises has deteriorated in quality, QCAT may make an order that the amount of rent payable by an occupant be reduced.

QCAT may also make a determination as to whether an agreement is a rooming accommodation agreement or some other type of arrangement such as an agreement for boarding or lodging. If a person is found to be a boarder or a lodger they are not covered by the Act but by common law.  

If you require legal advice or representation in any legal matter, please contact Go To Court Lawyers.