A landlord of a residential premises is permitted to sell their property even while it is currently being occupied by a tenant. However, the landlord must comply with certain requirements of the Residential Tenancies Act 2010 (NSW) to prevent interfering with the tenant’s right of occupation of the property.
The landlord is required to provided notice of the sale of the property to the tenant. The notice must be given by the landlord, or their real estate agent, to the tenant at least 14 days before any potential purchasers are allowed to inspect the property. If this preliminary notice is not given to the tenant, the landlord has no right to access the property for the purposes of conducting an open house or allowing potential purchasers to inspect the property.
If the notice is provided to the tenant, then both the landlord and tenant must come to an agreement as to the days and times that the property will be available for inspection by potential purchasers. The tenant must not unreasonably refuse to make the property available for inspections; but, they are also not required to agree to allow more that two inspections a week. As long as proposed inspection times are reasonable, i.e. during daylight hours and not schedule for an excessive period of time, then there are no further requirements that the landlord must observe. It is up to both the tenant and landlord to reach an agreement that works for both parties.
If you require further assistance regarding any tenancy issues or advice in relation to the sale of your property, then contact a solicitor at Everingham Solomons because Helping You is Our Business.
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