How much notice must my landlord give for a rent increase in NSW?
Your landlord must give you at least 60 days written notice before any rent increase — and they can only raise your rent once every 12 months.
Getting a rent increase notice in the letterbox is stressful. But NSW law sets clear rules about how much warning your landlord must give you, how often they can raise the rent, and what you can do if something seems wrong. Here is exactly what the law says.
The core rule — 60 days written notice
Under section 41 of the Residential Tenancies Act 2010 (the Act), your landlord must give you written notice at least 60 days before the increased rent becomes payable. That is 60 calendar days, not working days.
The notice must do two things (s41(1)(a)). It must state the new rent amount (not just the amount of the increase). It must also specify the date from which the higher rent applies.
If the notice is missing either of these things, it may not be valid. You would not have to pay the increased amount until a valid notice is served.
The once-per-year cap
Since 31 October 2024, the law has been even clearer about how often rent can go up.
Under s41(1A)(b), your rent cannot be increased more than once in any 12-month period. This rule applies to both fixed-term and periodic (rolling) agreements.
There is also a protection for new tenants. Under s41(1A)(a), rent cannot be increased within the first 12 months of a tenancy. So if you just moved in, your landlord must wait at least a year before they can start the process.
These two rules work together. First, no increase for the first 12 months. After that, only once every 12 months — with 60 days notice each time.
A narrow transitional carve-out
Under Schedule 2 clause 34 of the Act, fixed-term agreements of less than 2 years that were signed before the amendments commenced (13 December 2024) are treated as existing agreements under the transitional provisions — the old rules in the now-repealed section 42 continue to apply to them, so a rent-increase clause written into that fixed-term agreement can still operate even if it would produce more than one increase in 12 months. Two important limits: (1) this only lasts until that fixed term ends — any new or replacement agreement after that is governed by the current once-per-12-months rule in s41; and (2) the transitional agreement is not treated as continuous with a later agreement for s41 purposes, so the clock on the 12-month rule resets when you move onto a new (post-amendment) agreement.
What if your landlord offers you a new lease at higher rent?
If your landlord tries to end your current lease and put you on a new agreement at a higher rent, the law may still treat this as the same tenancy for rent-increase purposes. Under section 41(2) of the Residential Tenancies Act 2010, a new agreement is treated as a continuation of the earlier one if all of the following apply: the new agreement is a renewal or replacement (even if it’s a different type of tenancy, such as periodic replacing a fixed term); the landlord is the same; at least one of the tenants is the same; and you occupy the premises immediately before and immediately after the change.
If that is your situation, the landlord still must give at least 60 days’ written notice of the higher rent, and the once-per-12-months rule still applies — the increase is measured from the last increase under the earlier agreement, not from the start date of the new one.
How the notice must be given
The notice must be in writing. Under section 223 of the Act, a rent-increase notice can be given in person, left in your mailbox at the premises, posted to an address you’ve given for service, or emailed — but email is only valid if it goes to an email address you have specifically nominated for receiving notices of that kind (this is often set out in your tenancy agreement, but the Act only requires that you have nominated the address, not that you signed a separate consent form).
The 60-day period is 60 calendar days (not working days), counted back from the date the higher rent starts. If the notice is sent by post, you should allow additional days for delivery when counting the 60 days; the exact allowance is not set in the Act itself, so if timing is tight, check current guidance from NSW Fair Trading or a tenants’ advice service.
What to do if the notice is invalid
If your landlord did not give you enough notice, skipped the required information, or tried to raise your rent twice in a year, the increase is not payable.
You do not have to simply pay it and hope for the best. Under s41(10), you can apply to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) — the Tribunal — for an order that the non-compliant increase is not payable.
There is a time limit: you must apply within 12 months of the date the purported increase took effect. After 12 months, the increase is taken to have complied with the Act, even if it did not. So act promptly if something looks wrong.
If you think the increase is excessive
A procedural problem (bad notice) is different from an excessive rent problem (the amount itself is too high).
Under section 44 of the Act, you can apply to NCAT to have a rent increase reduced if it is excessive. The Tribunal weighs several factors under s44(5), with the general market level of rents for comparable premises in the same locality being central. Other factors include the condition of the property, when the last increase took place, any work you have done on the premises, and outgoings the landlord has to pay.
You have 30 days after the notice of the increase is given to lodge this application, under clause 39(1) of the Residential Tenancies Regulation 2019. Do not wait. If you miss that window, you lose the right to challenge the amount under s44.
The Tribunal cannot take your personal income or your ability to afford the rent into account — the Act expressly excludes those from the factors it may weigh (s44(5)(h)). If comparable rentals in your suburb are lower than what your landlord is asking for, that is exactly what the Tribunal is designed to look at.
If you cannot afford the increase
Sometimes the notice is perfectly valid and the rent is not excessive — but you still cannot afford to pay more. Your practical options depend on what kind of agreement you’re on.
First, you can negotiate. Landlords are not always expecting you to simply accept. If you have been a reliable tenant, it is worth asking in writing whether the increase can be reduced or phased in.
If you’re on a periodic (month-to-month) agreement, you can give a termination notice under section 97 with a termination date at least 21 days after you give the notice — no reason required.
If you’re at the end of a fixed-term agreement, section 96 lets you give a termination notice with a date on or after the last day of the fixed term and at least 14 days after you give notice. This is the standard “don’t renew” pathway.
If you’re still inside a fixed term and the rent increase is unaffordable, there’s a special early-exit right under section 99 — but it only applies if your fixed term is 2 years or longer. On a shorter fixed term you would generally need to negotiate a mutual termination with the landlord or exit as a break-lease and pay the applicable compensation. For the full break-lease framework, see How do I break my lease early in NSW?
If s99 does apply to you (fixed term 2 years or more), you must give your termination notice before the rent increase takes effect, and the termination date in your notice must be at least 21 days after you give the notice. The termination date itself can fall after the increase takes effect. No compensation for early termination is payable (s99(5)).
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