Victims of domestic violence will soon have greater power to leave unsafe homes and protect their privacy under new rental reforms introduced to the NSW Parliament this week.

About half of strata properties are occupied by renters so these measures could have a major impact on apartment residents, as well as their landlords.

The Residential Tenancies Amendment (Domestic Violence Reform) Bill 2025 introduces changes intended to make it easier for victims to leave a tenancy due to domestic violence and to provide better support when they do.

The reforms will make it easier for DV victims to leave a tenancy by removing the need for them to notify an alleged perpetrator that they have left their shared lease due to domestic abuse.

They will also expand the list of approved people who can declare a renter is experiencing domestic violence, allowing them to break a lease without penalty.

The expanded list is intended to help vulnerable groups more easily access protections under the Act. These groups include tenants with a disability, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander renters, and people from non-English speaking backgrounds.

Privacy and security

The changes to the law are intended to strengthen privacy and security protections by:

• Allowing locks to be changed without landlord approval if there is a court order or bail or parole conditions that exclude the alleged perpetrator from the property.
• Requiring permission from renters for images or videos of the exterior of the property that show their belongings to be published in advertising in order to reduce the risk of victim-survivors being tracked down by perpetrators.
• Improve a ban on listing victims on residential tenancy databases by allowing Fair Trading to order a listing be removed if the victim-survivor can provide evidence of domestic abuse.
• Make it clear victim-survivors are not liable for property damage caused by a perpetrator by allowing NCAT to decide whether the damage was likely to have been caused during an incident of domestic abuse.
• Support victim-survivors to recover their share of the rental bond by giving NCAT the power to split the bond and order partial repayments to a co-tenant.

“These reforms are about making common-sense changes so women and families can get out of unsafe situations quickly, without unnecessary red tape,” NSW Premier Chris Minns said.

“We’ve listened to victim-survivors and frontline services. The message was clear: the law needed to work better in real-life situations. That’s exactly what these changes deliver.”

Minister for Better Regulation and Fair Trading Anoulack Chanthivong said the reforms were practical and compassionate changes which made it easier for victims to leave unsafe situations.

“Access to safe and affordable housing is a critical issue for victim-survivors of domestic violence. Many victim-survivors are unable to leave abusive relationships because they have nowhere else to live,” he said.

“For those victim-survivors who manage to leave, the negative consequences of the abusive relationship often reverberate through their lives and increase financial hardship for many years.

“These critical reforms … will make a real difference to the safety and security of people experiencing domestic violence in NSW.

“At the heart of these reforms are safety, dignity and fairness and a desire to ensure rental laws work for those who need them most.”

Pathways to safety

Jodie Harrison, Minister for Women and Prevention of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, said no one should have to choose between their safety and their home.

“These changes make it easier for victim survivors to leave their rental home quickly and reduce risk of further financial harm,” she added.

“We’re continuing to work hard to address domestic and family violence in our state and these changes ensure victim-survivors have clear, practical pathways to safety.”

A NSW government press release says the changes follow extensive consultation with more than 400 individuals and 40 organisations, including frontline services.

“These reforms build on our work to expand the Rentstart Bond Loan scheme, which allows victim-survivors of domestic violence to access a loan of up to 100 per cent of their rental bond to secure accommodation,” a spokesperson added.

The changes still have to make their way through the parliamentary process before becoming law.