QUESTION: When a baby is a new addition to a rented property, is there a legal requirement to notify the owner or property manager?

Also is there a legal “duty of care” in a rental property for any party involved with the rental property including EC, tenant, owner, realty manager or strata manager.

The draft policy for installing child proof window locks is an example of a potential legal obligation.– Maxd12, via Flat Chat Forum.

ANSWER:  According to our resident StrataGuru Whale, all occupants need to be shown on the tenancy agreement.

“Whilst there’s no pressing need to have your Rental Agent update the details to include a newborn, you should put that on your to-do list,” he says.

“Parental responsibilities aside, all the parties you mention have statutory responsibilities with regard to health and safety,” says Whale. “The proposed policy covering locking devices on some windows and the existing one for swimming pools are examples of those.”

These apply to all buildings, but where it gets tricky is when, say, balcony balustrade heights in an old building are not compliant with current standards.

But it’s a lot easier for a tenant to find a safer apartment than try to force an old building to become child-proof.

By the way, the official tenancy agreement in Queensland requires you to state the number of people who will be living in the house or unit but the equivalent in Victoria doesn’t mention this (although it does invite you to list the names of all co-tenants and how much of the bond they have paid).

You’ll find the original question and answers HERE.