Help protect against renovictions!

On Friday 20th June, only five weeks after the new rental laws came into effect ending no-grounds evictions, the NSW government significantly weakened the rules surrounding evictions for renovations/repairs. This puts renters at greater risk of falling victim to a practice referred to as "renovictions" – unfair evictions hidden behind a smokescreen of renovations or repairs.

The rules introduced on 19th May 2025 required landlords who wanted to evict a tenant for significant renovations/repairs to provide both a written statement and a choice of one of 5 pieces of evidence. The additional evidence could be a quote from a licensed builder or tradesperson, development consent, or receipts for purchased building materials. These evidence rules were established to ensure that claims to repossess a property for renovation or repair were genuine, not merely a tactic to unfairly evict tenants. 

On 20th June the NSW government removed those additional evidence requirements, leaving only a written statement as the evidence required when seeking termination to renovate the premises. 

​This sudden change occurred without consultation, published evidence of the need for the amendment, or a warning to those affected – leading tenants’ rights advocates to raise serious concerns about the integrity of the entire reform process.

There is still time to reverse this sudden decision, return to the original set of evidence requirements and recommit to community consultation-guided decision making.

'Renovictions' in other jurisdictions

If we look at other jurisdictions, such as some provinces and territories in Canada, we can see a similar ground to end a tenancy due to repairs or renovation being exploited by landlords where there is insufficient evidence requirements. 

‘Renovictions’ is the term that has been coined to refer to the practice of a landlord evicting a tenant from their home under the guise of needing to perform renovations or repairs when the real motive is to remove existing tenants and bring in new tenants at significantly higher rents. 

In some jurisdictions, legal changes are being made to better protect tenants. Read more in this article by Tenants' Union Advocacy & Policy Manager Eloise Parrab.

➤ Blog: Renovictions – what can we learn from the Canadian experience?

Joint statement from civil society

Civil society organisations have come together to call on the NSW Government to:

1. Amend the Residential Tenancies Regulation to reinstate all the evidence requirements for landlords seeking to issue a notice of termination due to significant repairs or renovations
2. Monitor complaints and investigate any misuse of the significant repair or renovations termination grounds
3. Commit to following a transparent consultative process for any future changes to rental laws in NSW

➤ See signatories and read the joint statement.

Take action