A good share of the end of lease jobs I book get moved at least once. Usually the notice date turned out to be a different date than the renter thought. Someone counts 28 days from the day they told the agent verbally. Someone else puts a date on the form that lands three days before the lease actually ends. Both of those cost money, and neither is about cleaning.
So before you book anything, get the date right.
The 28 days, and the date it can never fall before
Consumer Affairs Victoria puts it in one line:
“Renters must give 28 days’ notice if they want to leave at the end of a rental agreement (lease).”
That is the default, and it applies whether you are on a fixed term or rolling month to month. The document you give them is called a notice of intention to vacate.
Now the part that catches people on a fixed term:
“For fixed term agreements, the end date on the notice of intention to vacate cannot be before the end date of the rental agreement.”
Read that twice if you are trying to leave early. You cannot use a notice of intention to vacate to shorten a fixed term. If the lease runs to 14 November and you want out on 30 October, that is not a notice, that is a lease break, and it is priced completely differently. The second half of this guide covers what that costs.
Working backwards is the safe way to do it. Pick the vacate date first, count 28 days back from it, and that is the last day the notice can be in their hands. If the vacate date is the last day of a fixed term, the notice has to go out 28 days before that day.
When 14 days is enough
CAV lists a set of situations where a shorter notice is allowed. Most of them are triggered by something the rental provider has done.
| Situation | Notice |
|---|---|
| The rental provider breaches a duty for the third time | 14 days |
| They refuse to allow a disability related modification | 14 days |
| They have given you notice to end a fixed term agreement | 14 days |
| They have given you a notice to vacate for sale, major repairs, demolition, business use, owner occupancy or public acquisition | 14 days |
| The property becomes unfit for human habitation, or is destroyed to the extent it becomes unsafe | No minimum |
That fourth row is worth knowing about. If they have already served you a notice to vacate with a long end date and you find somewhere sooner, you do not have to sit there paying rent until their date arrives. You can give 14 days and go.
How the notice has to reach them
In writing, and CAV names the three ways it counts as delivered:
“post, electronic communication (such as email), hand (giving the notice personally to the rental provider)”
A phone call to the agent is not notice. A comment at an inspection is not notice. I have watched a renter lose most of a month’s rent over exactly that, because the agent’s version of when the conversation happened differed from theirs and there was nothing on paper.
Consumer Affairs Victoria publishes an official form, “Notice of intention to vacate rented premises”, and it already asks for everything required, so use it instead of writing your own. Email it, keep the sent copy, and if you can, ask for a one line acknowledgement. That reply is your proof of the date.
Allow for post if you are posting it. The clock runs from when it is served, not from when you dropped it in the box.
Leaving before the fixed term ends: what it actually costs
This is where the numbers get large, and where a lot of renters pay more than they owe because the agent’s first email sounds final.
Tenants Victoria sets out what a rental provider can claim:
- Rent. Compensation equal to the rent from the time you move out until a new renter moves in, or until the end of the fixed term, whichever happens first.
- A re-letting fee, limited to the fee originally paid for preparing your lease. Not the new renter’s lease.
- Advertising costs, again limited to what was paid to find you.
Three limits sit on top of that, and each one is worth checking.
Apportionment. The costs relate only to the share of the fixed term you are no longer living there for. Tenants Victoria’s method is to divide the annual cost by 12 and multiply by the months remaining. If you leave a 12 month lease with 3 months to run, you are looking at a quarter of those costs, not all of them.
The first fixed term rule. If you are past your first fixed term lease on that property, the rental provider cannot claim advertising costs or a re-letting fee at all. Renters who have re-signed a couple of times get billed for these anyway, and it is worth asking which fixed term you are actually in.
The duty to keep losses down. The provider has to take “all reasonable steps to keep any losses as low as possible”, which means advertising the place promptly and not hiking the rent while it sits empty. A property that stayed vacant for two months because nobody listed it is not a bill you have to wear.
If you disagree with the figure, do not pay it and then argue. Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria is free, and if it is still stuck after that, the provider has to prove the amount to VCAT, whose decision binds everyone.
What the date does to the rest of your move
Once the vacate date is locked, everything else hangs off it. Cleaning wants to be the last thing that happens in an empty property, not something squeezed around furniture on removal day. Book it for the day after the truck leaves and before the final inspection, and give yourself a day of slack in between in case something needs a second go.
Two things to line up in the same week:
- Read back your condition report before the exit inspection, because the entry column is what settles arguments about marks that were already there.
- Work through the Victorian end of lease cleaning checklist so nothing gets found on the day.
Rent runs to the vacate date on your notice, so a date you cannot actually meet is money out of your pocket. And handing back the keys is only step one of getting your money back, which is covered in how to get your bond back in Victoria.
The short version 28 days is the default notice, in writing, delivered by post, email or by hand. A verbal heads up to the agent is not notice. On a fixed term, the vacate date on the notice can never fall before the lease end date. Wanting out earlier than that is a lease break, priced separately. Lease break costs are capped and apportioned. Past your first fixed term they cannot charge advertising or a re-letting fee at all, and RDRV is free if you disagree.
Frequently asked questions
How much notice do I have to give in Victoria?
Consumer Affairs Victoria says "Renters must give 28 days' notice if they want to leave at the end of a rental agreement (lease)." A shorter 14 day notice is allowed in a set list of situations, and no minimum notice applies if the property becomes unfit for human habitation or is destroyed to the extent that it becomes unsafe.
Can my notice date fall before my lease end date?
No. CAV is explicit that "For fixed term agreements, the end date on the notice of intention to vacate cannot be before the end date of the rental agreement." If you want to go earlier than that, it counts as breaking the lease, and different rules and costs apply.
Does the notice have to be on the official form?
It has to be in writing, and Consumer Affairs Victoria publishes an official form called "Notice of intention to vacate rented premises" that covers everything required. CAV says the notice must be delivered to the rental provider by post, by electronic communication such as email, or by hand.
What can they charge me for breaking a lease early?
Tenants Victoria's guidance is that a rental provider may claim rent from when you move out until a new renter moves in or the fixed term ends, whichever happens first, plus a re-letting fee and advertising costs. Those last two are limited to what was paid to find you, apportioned to the part of the fixed term you are not staying for, and after the first fixed term the provider cannot claim them at all.
What if I think the lease break costs are too high?
Do not just pay them. The rental provider has a duty to take all reasonable steps to keep losses as low as possible, so a property left empty for months without being advertised properly is their problem, not yours. Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria is free, and if that does not settle it, the provider has to prove the amount at VCAT.
This guide is general information based on official sources current at the date shown above. Tenancy law differs by state and by agreement. For decisions about your own bond, check the official body linked above or get advice for your situation.
Keep reading
In Victoria a rental provider or agent can only list you on a tenant database after the lease has ended, and only if a breach left you owing more than the bond or led to a VCAT possession order. They have to warn you in writing and give you 14 days to object first. A listing is gone after three years at most, and sooner if you pay what you owe within three months.
In Victoria your bond has to sit with the RTBA, not in your landlord's account. If you paid the agent, they must lodge it within 14 days, the RTBA sends every renter a receipt with a bond number, and you can look the bond up online. Check it before you move out, because you need that bond number to claim it back.
A rental provider in Victoria can only end your tenancy for a reason on Consumer Affairs Victoria's list, and most of the end-of-lease reasons need 90 days' notice and paperwork attached. If the evidence is missing the notice is invalid, you have 30 days to challenge it at VCAT, and you can leave sooner on 14 days' notice of your own.