Landlord/Tenant Rights - Bushfire Damage (and other natural disasters)

A bit of general info for investors/tenants who have been impacted by the spate of recent bushfires around NSW/QLD/Vic/WA/Tas.

Linky

Work with your property manager to decide upon your best course of action:

• If the house is totally destructed, notify the tenant/owner that the lease is terminated under the relevant clause of the lease
• If the house is partially destructed, notify the tenant/owner that the lease is terminated under the relevant clause of the lease. There will be safety issues to consider so arranging engineer's reports & remediation will take time (even if the house isn't damaged but will require recarpeting/repainting/cleaning).
  
• If the house is untouched - when will services to the area be restored? When is it going to be safe to return to the area?

You will also need to deal with your insurer - whether it is purely buildings, buildings & contents or landlord's insurance.

Note that either party may terminate the lease but it is better to be on the front foot to get things moving sooner rather than later.

There are links at the bottom of the article providing state-specific guidance.