Getting your rental bond back

Build your evidence before returning the keys

Compare the property with your entry condition report, photograph every room in good light and keep invoices or messages about agreed repairs. Record the date and time you return every key.

Complete the exit condition report carefully. Ordinary wear is not the same thing as tenant-caused damage; the evidence and circumstances matter.

If someone claims part of the bond

Ask for an itemised explanation and the evidence behind each amount. Save the RTA notice and act within the deadline shown. Bond disputes can move from self-resolution to RTA dispute resolution and, when unresolved, to QCAT.

Start the refund only when the tenancy has ended

The RTA cannot accept an ordinary bond refund request before the expiry date of the notice that ends the tenancy. Once the tenancy has ended, a renter or managing party can begin the refund through RTA Web Services or use the current Form 4 process. Before lodging, check that the RTA has your current email, forwarding address and Australian bank-account details so a notice or payment is not missed.

You do not need to wait indefinitely for an agent to prepare deductions. If everyone agrees, the other parties can accept an online fast-track request or all contributors can sign the same paper form. If the amounts are not agreed, the RTA can release any undisputed part while the disputed amount stays on hold. Never sign a blank refund form or an amount you do not understand.

What a strong exit evidence pack contains

Use the entry condition report as the baseline rather than relying on memory. Add the exit condition report, a complete set of dated photographs or video taken after cleaning, invoices, repair correspondence, rent records, meter readings and proof of when every key or remote was returned. Photograph both wide room views and close details; one image rarely proves where a mark is or how large it is.

Separate ordinary wear from claimed damage. A worn traffic path in old carpet, sun fading and minor age-related deterioration are different from a fresh burn, hole or missing item. The age and pre-tenancy condition of an item matter when a dollar amount is claimed. Ask for an itemised calculation, the invoice or quote, and the evidence used to connect the cost to your tenancy.

The 14-day Notice of claim countdown

When the refund is disputed, the RTA sends a Notice of claim to the people who did not agree with the first request. A person who wants to contest that request generally has 14 days to lodge a Dispute resolution request (Form 16). If no dispute is lodged in time, the RTA pays the bond as directed by the first request. Treat the date on the RTA notice as urgent and confirm how the period is counted.

A property manager or owner who makes a bond claim or disputes a refund must also provide supporting evidence to the renter within 14 days of making the claim or dispute. The evidence goes to the renter, not the RTA. That obligation does not automatically prove the claim is reasonable; it gives you material to assess and, where necessary, answer during conciliation.

Worked example of a disputed refund

Imagine a $2,400 bond. You request the full refund after returning the keys. The agent claims $350 for cleaning and supplies photographs and an invoice; you agree to $100 but dispute $250 because the entry report already records the issue. The RTA can release the $2,150 that is not disputed while holding $250, then conciliation can focus on the evidence for that smaller amount.

Prepare a one-page chronology for conciliation: move-in date, entry-report return date, when the issue was reported, exit date, key handover, refund request and every offer made. Put the supporting documents in the same order. A concise pack makes it easier to explain the disputed amount than a folder of unlabelled screenshots.

If conciliation does not settle it

The RTA conciliator helps the parties negotiate but does not decide who is right. If the dispute remains unresolved, the RTA may issue a Notice of unresolved dispute. A party who wants a binding decision may then need to apply to QCAT within the applicable time. Read the notice carefully because the form, documents and deadline depend on what is being claimed.

Different processes apply when a renter is ending a tenancy because of domestic and family violence, including Form 4a for a relevant bond refund. Do not expose safety information unnecessarily in an ordinary dispute pack. Contact the RTA or a specialist tenancy service for the safer process that applies to your circumstances.