Residential Landlord & Tenancy
12. Early Termination - Tenancy
Authors: Staff Legal Eagle
Firm / Chambers:
Last updated: 15 Sep 2015
- When a tenant and landlord sign a tenancy agreement they are bound to the terms of that agreement for the stated time period.
- For a fixed term tenancy agreement this will usually be 6 or 12 months or more.
- Where a tenancy agreement comes to an end because the tenancy period has expired a landlord and tenant will no longer be bound by the terms of that agreement unless they opt to renew the lease or sign a new agreement.
- There is nothing stopping the tenant from vacating the premises at the end of the tenancy period without incurring any costs or penalties.
- However there are many situations where a tenant or landlord may wish to end the tenancy agreement early.
- These reasons can be personal, financial or have to do with the tenancy agreement itself including conflicts between the landlord and tenant in relation to the non-fulfilment of their obligations under the tenancy agreement.
- In many cases you may wish to investigate your options for resolving conflicts with the landlord or tenant before taking it the next step further and terminating outside of the agreed period.
- If no resolution can be reached or other personal circumstances require you to terminate a tenancy early you must do so in compliance with the relevant legislation in your state or territory.
- If you think you may need legal advice our free Find a Lawyer directory may help you get in touch with an experienced residential tenancies lawyer near you.
- In Victoria a tenancy agreement can be ended where:
- all the parties agree to end the tenancy;
- the landlord or their agent gives a ‘notice to vacate’ to the tenant; or
- the tenant gives a ‘notice of intention to vacate’ to the landlord.
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