NSW Tenancy Reforms 2025: Why Smart Property Managers Are Turning to Real Estate Outsourcing Solutions

The NSW Government has introduced major updates to the Residential Tenancies Act 2010, effective May 19, 2025. These reforms bring sweeping changes to how landlords and agents manage residential properties — from eviction rules and pet approvals to rent increase limits and lease fees.

For agencies and landlords, understanding these new laws is critical — including those capitalising on property management outsourcing services and real estate virtual assistants.

Here’s a breakdown of the key changes and what they mean for the property industry.

1. No More “No Grounds” Evictions

From May 19, 2025, landlords must provide a valid reason to end a tenancy, ending “no grounds” evictions for both fixed-term and periodic leases.Valid reasons may include breaches, property sale, or the owner moving in.

For property managers and outsourced real estate services, this means stricter documentation and trust accounting accuracy to ensure compliance with every tenancy termination.

2. Easier Pet Approvals

Tenants will find it easier to keep pets under the new reforms.

• Landlords can only refuse a pet on specific and reasonable grounds, such as property damage or health/safety risks.

• Pet bonds remain prohibited in NSW, so it’s vital to include clear pet-related clauses in tenancy agreements and condition reports.

Real estate outsourcing companies can leverage on their property management virtual assistants and support agencies by managing pet requests, updating tenancy records, and ensuring consistent documentation through digital workflows.

3. Rent Increases Capped to Once Per Year

Rent increases are now capped at once every 12 months for most leases.This change promotes affordability and stability for tenants — but it also means landlords need more strategic rent reviews and forecasting.

Real estate outsourcing is one of the powerful tools available to real estate agencies that can help ensure yearly rent adjustments are followed up on, compliant and properly recorded.

4. Ban on Lease Preparation and Application Fees

Landlords and agents can no longer charge tenants for background checks or lease preparation.

This reform reduces upfront rental costs and simplifies leasing — a process that can easily be handled by real estate virtual assistants (real estate VAs) or property management outsourcing teams to save time and maintain compliance for Property Managers.

5. Free and Convenient Rent Payment Options

Tenants must now have at least one free and convenient way to pay rent, such as direct bank transfer.

For agencies using outsourcing real estate services, this is an opportunity to streamline rent collection through experts real estate accounting services and real estate trust accounting.

6. Stricter Water Efficiency Standards

Landlords can only charge tenants for water usage if the property meets new water efficiency requirements — including dual-flush toilets.Routine inspections and compliance reporting can be managed efficiently through property management outsourcing or real estate VA support.

How These Changes Affect Property Managers and Agencies

The new tenancy reforms increase compliance pressure across the industry.

Agencies must update lease templates, inspection checklists, and accounting procedures — especially around trust accounting, rent increases, and tenant communications.

Outsourcing these administrative and compliance tasks to a real estate outsourcing company or property management virtual assistant allows agencies to stay compliant while focusing on growth and client relationships.

Partner with Experts in Real Estate Outsourcing

At National Property Systems (NPS), we specialise in:

• Property management outsourcing services

• Trust accounting for real estate agencies

• Real estate virtual assistants

• Comprehensive real estate accounting services

Whether you need help managing rent rolls, trust accounts, or tenancy compliance, our outsourcing real estate services are designed to help your agency operate efficiently under the new NSW tenancy laws.

Stay Compliant. Stay Efficient.

With the Residential Tenancies Act 2025 introducing significant operational changes, now is the time to streamline your back-end processes.

Partner with NPS to ensure your trust accounting real estate and property management outsourcing systems are fully compliant and future-ready.

Contact National Property Systems (NPS) today to learn how we can help your agency navigate the 2025 tenancy reforms efficiently through our professional real estate outsourcing services.

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