Rental home is being sold

Following  a notice of their intention to sell the property, the landlord (officially called the rental provider), or their agent, must give you a written ‘notice of entry’ at least 48 hours before they want to enter the property to show a potential buyer the home or conduct an open for inspection, and 7 days notice if they want to enter the property to take photos or videos for advertising or conduct a valuation.

The notice of entry must:

• Be in writing – a phone call or text message telling you about it is not enough
• State the reason under the law that allows them to enter your home
• Be given to you in enough time to ensure you are given the minimum notice period (as stated above)

You must receive the notice of entry in one of the following 3 ways:

• In-person between 8 am and 6 pm
• By mail
• By electronic communication, such as email, if you have given written consent to receive notices this way

See our page on starting a tenancy for more information on consenting to have notices sent electronically.

Entry to your home by the landlord (officially called the rental provider) or their agent is allowed between 8am and 6pm, but not on public holidays.

If the reason for the entry is to show an individual buyer the property, or to take photos or videos for advertising, your landlord or their agent can only enter if they have made reasonable attempts to agree with you about the days and times.

Your landlord (officially called your rental provider) or their agent can only stay for as long as is reasonably required to conduct the individual sales inspection or to take photos and videos for advertising.

A photographer or sales agent, or any other agent, must act reasonably and respect your privacy during the visit. For example, they cannot go through your drawers or wardrobes or damage your belongings.

In relation to an open for inspection, these cannot take place more than twice a week and cannot last for more than an hour.

Family or personal violence

There are also extra legal protections for those experiencing, or at risk of, family or personal violence. These include a requirement to only hold inspections by appointment, not public open for inspections.

For more information, see our page on your privacy while renting.

You have the right to object to certain photos or videos being taken, including if they expose you or someone else to the risk of personal or family violence, or because valuable items shown expose you to the risk of your home being broken into.

See the information on our page on your privacy while renting, to learn more about your right to object to photos or videos.

Family or personal violence

There are extra legal protections for those experiencing, or at risk of, family or personal violence.

See the information on our page on your privacy while renting.

The landlord (officially called the rental provider) must pay you compensation equal to half a day’s rent or $30, whichever is greater, for every sales inspection held when your rental home is being sold.

If this is not paid to you, you can apply to VCAT for compensation, although it is unlikely to be a very large sum. You can also complain to Consumer Affairs Victoria, which may be able to contact the landlord about paying your what you are owed. Note: Consumer Affairs Victoria does not pay compensation to renters.

Consumer Affairs Victoria has an online ‘Make a complaint’ form, or you can call them on 1300 55 81 81.

For more information, see our page on complaints about landlords and agents.

You can apply to VCAT for compensation if:

• Any of your belongings are damaged or stolen during an entry to your home
• The landlord or agent has failed in their duty to make sure you have ‘quiet enjoyment’ of your home

Examples of this would be failing to give enough notice or warning about a sales inspection, failing to negotiate a suitable time for an individual sales inspection, or if a sales agent stays too long during an open for inspection.

For more information, including how to apply for compensation, see our pages on your privacy while renting and claiming compensation.

There are actions you can take, when the landlord (officially called the rental provider) or agent does not follow the rules about privacy and entry or access to your home. These include sending them a ‘notice of breach of duty’ (asking them to fix the problem and compensate you) or applying to VCAT for a restraining order, compensation order or other type of order.

What action to take depends on what rules have been broken and your circumstances.

See our page on your privacy while renting, to learn what to do.

If the landlord (officially called the rental provider) or their agent gives you a notice of intention to sell and did not tell you about the landlord’s plans to sell the property before you signed your lease (officially called the rental agreement), you can tell them that you want to move out. You can do this even if you have a fixed-term lease. You cannot be asked to pay any ‘lease break’ costs (compensation to the landlord) if you end your lease this way.

To do so, you need to give the landlord or agent a ‘notice of intention to vacate’ with at least 14 days written notice. You must pay the rent while you are in the property, up until the date listed on the notice, even if you move out before that date.

For information on how to give a notice of intention to vacate, see our page on ending or breaking your lease.

If your landlord (officially called your rental provider) gives you a notice to vacate because the property has been, or is being sold, and you want to move out before the vacate date that is in the notice to vacate, you can do this.

You will need to give at least 14 days notice of your intention to vacate, and you can do this even if you have a fixed-term lease (officially called a rental agreement).

You will have to pay rent while you are still in the property, up until your move-out date. You cannot be asked to pay ‘lease-break’ costs for leaving early, because the landlord is selling the property and not re-letting it. If the landlord does ask you to pay ‘lease break’ costs, we recommend you do not pay anything. The landlord would have to make a claim to VCAT, which decides whether any costs should be paid.

For information on giving a notice of intention to vacate, see our page on ending or breaking your lease.

If you need support when your rental home is being sold, help is available.

There are step-by-step guides, self-help tools and other resources to assist you with understanding more about when a landlord or agent can enter your property if your rental home is being sold, as well as compensation for renters.

The Residential Tenancies Act 1997 is Victoria’s main law for renting. It describes the rights and duties of renters and landlords in numbered sections.

The sections in this list relate to when a private rental home is being sold. Click on a link to see more about the section.

• Section 30D – Information that residential rental providers must disclose before entering residential rental agreement
• Section 67 – Quiet enjoyment
• Section 85 – Entry of rented premises
• Section 86 – Grounds for entry
• Section 87 – Manner of entry
• Section 88 – What must be in notice of entry?
• Section 89 – Duty to allow entry if requirements met
• Section 89A – Rental provider may enter rented premises to produce advertising images or videos
• Section 90 – Applying to VCAT for compensation if damage is caused during entry
• Section 91 – Applying to VCAT for a restraining order
• Section 91A – Offence to enter premises without meeting requirements
• Section 91ZB – Reduced period of notice of intention to vacate in certain circumstances
• Section 91ZZB – Notice to vacate for sale
• Section 91ZZO – Form of notice to vacate
• Section 209 – Application for compensation or compliance order for breach of duty
• Section 210 – Application to VCAT for compensation order on other grounds
• Section 452 – General applications to VCAT

The Residential Tenancies Regulations 2021 provide more detail and definitions, and specify updates to the Residential Tenancies Act.