This may be helpful if you have to go to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) at a later date. Make notes of any conversations you have and keep copies of all letters. Send them a letter confirming the agreement. If you agree that you are in arrears, then you should (where possible) pay the arrears off or otherwise, try to come to an agreement with the landlord/agent about paying off the arrears over time. See Factsheet 23: Utilities for more information. Similarly, your landlord/agent can only ask you to pay for water and/or other utilities if the rules are satisfied. Compare your own records to check if you are actually that far behind in rent. Remember, you are entitled to a “rent record” from your landlord/agent and you can make a written request for the record, which has to be provided to you within 7 days. You should firstly check if your landlord/agent is actually correct in saying that you are in rental arrears. There are strict rules as to when the landlord is allowed to charge you water or other utilities. You should check if you have been charged correctly for these other charges. The water or utility charges must remain unpaid for 14 days or more before they can give you this notice.

The landlord/agent can also give you a non-payment termination notice if you have not paid your water usage charges or other utility charges. Arrears of water or other utility charges The rent must remain unpaid for 14 days or more before they can give you this notice. If you are in breach of agreement solely for rent arrears and the landlord/agent wants to end your tenancy, they can give you a non-payment termination notice (see below). Check your rent receipts or other records to see if a mistake has been made. If the landlord/agent tells you that you are behind in your rent, do not ignore it. You do not have to pay more than 2 weeks rent in advance. This is a breach of your tenancy agreement.

If you have not paid rent by when it is due, you are in rent arrears. This factsheet summarises the law in NSW about arrears – being behind in rent or other payments. As a tenant you have rights under the Residential Tenancies Act 2010 and Residential Tenancies Regulation 2019.

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