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Rental minimum standards checklist (Victoria)
A printable checklist of Victoria’s 15 rental minimum standards, with the evidence to keep for each. From 13 October 2026, rental providers must keep records showing a property met the standards before it was advertised, offered or the renter moved in, and give them to Consumer Affairs Victoria (CAV) if asked. For rental providers, agents and inspectors in Victoria, Australia.
Last reviewed by ProSurvey Apps Limited
Minimum standard: mould and damp
“All rooms must be free from mould and damp caused by or related to the building structure.”
Consumer Affairs Victoria, summarising Schedule 4, clause 8 of the Residential Tenancies Regulations 2021.
- It is one of the 15 standards, so the property must meet it when advertised or offered to let, and on or before the day the renter moves in.
- The Residential Tenancies Act 1997 counts any failure to meet a minimum standard as an urgent repair, and names mould or damp caused by or related to the building structure among the faults that make a home unsafe.
- Before an agreement is signed, the rental provider must tell the renter whether the property meets the minimum standards, and whether they have had a repair notice about mould or damp caused by or related to the building structure in the last 3 years.
At a glance
- Who it is for
- Rental providers (landlords), property managers and agents in Victoria, and the inspectors and damp surveyors they instruct.
- When to use it
- Before the property is advertised or offered to let, and again on or before the day the renter moves in. Also after repairs and when a renter reports a problem.
- What changes on 13 October 2026
- Rental providers and agents must keep records showing the standards were met, and give them to CAV if the Director asks.
- What to bring
- A camera or phone, torch and moisture meter, the heater and shower head details, the latest gas and electrical safety check records, and the date of the advertisement.
Key dates
The standards have been in place since 2021 and have grown in stages. These are the dates that decide what a property needs today and what is coming, from CAV’s summary of the rental law changes.
| Date | What applies |
|---|---|
| 29 March 2021 | The rental minimum standards apply to agreements that started on or after this date, and to earlier agreements that became periodic (month to month) on or after it. |
| 25 November 2025 | A property must meet the standards when it is advertised or offered to let, not only before the renter moves in. Smoke alarm safety checks every year for all agreements. |
| 1 December 2025 | Anchors on corded internal window coverings become a minimum standard. |
| 13 October 2026 | Keep records showing the standards were met, and give them to CAV on request. Gas and electrical safety checks every 2 years for all agreements. |
| 1 March 2027 | Energy efficiency standards begin: heating and hot water when the old system fails; cooling, shower heads and ceiling insulation for new agreements and agreements that become month to month. |
| 1 July 2027 | Draughtproofing, for new agreements and agreements that become month to month. |
| 1 July 2030 | The cooling standard applies to all rental properties. |
The rental minimum standards checklist
Sections 1 to 6 are the 15 minimum standards, with the clause of Schedule 4 each one comes from. Tick a line when the property meets it, and note the evidence you kept. Sections 7 and 8 are the safety checks and records that sit alongside the standards, and section 9 lists the energy efficiency standards that start in 2027.
Prints just the checklist, with the key dates, an evidence column and a sign-off. Anything you tick here prints ticked; nothing is saved.
Property address:
Date of inspection:
Inspected by:
Date advertised or offered:
1.Mould, damp and the building
2.Heating and electrical safety
3.Bathroom and toilet
4.Kitchen, laundry and bins
5.Locks and windows
6.Light and window coverings
7.Safety checks (separate duties, not minimum standards)
8.Records (duty from 13 October 2026)
9.Energy efficiency standards (from 1 March 2027, not yet in force)
Standards summarised from Rental properties: minimum standards (Consumer Affairs Victoria, updated 14 May 2026) and Schedule 4 of the Residential Tenancies Regulations 2021; records and safety checks from New changes to the rental laws (CAV, updated 27 September 2026); energy standards from New minimum energy efficiency standards (CAV, updated 17 August 2026). Adapted from material © State of Victoria (Consumer Affairs Victoria), licensed under CC BY 4.0: we have shortened and regrouped it and added the evidence notes, which are our suggestions, not CAV guidance.
The records duty from 13 October 2026
Two duties already apply. Since 25 November 2025 a rental provider or agent must not advertise or offer a property to let unless they reasonably believe, at that time, that it meets the rental minimum standards (section 65B of the Residential Tenancies Act 1997). And the rental provider must make sure it meets them on or before the day the renter moves in (section 65A).
The Consumer Legislation Amendment Act 2025 adds sections 65C to 65F, which CAV lists as starting on 13 October 2026. They add a duty to keep the evidence for both moments:
- Move-in (sections 65C and 65D). The rental provider keeps records sufficient to show the property met the standards on or before the day the renter moved in.
- Advertising (sections 65E and 65F). Whoever advertises or offers the property, rental provider or agent, keeps records sufficient to show they reasonably believed it met the standards at that time.
- Producing them. When the Director of Consumer Affairs Victoria asks, the records must be produced as soon as practicable, in the manner the Director specifies. Not doing so carries a maximum penalty of 150 penalty units for an individual or 750 for a company.
The Act does not list the records. It lets the Director publish guidance on what is sufficient, in the Government Gazette and on CAV’s website, so check CAV for that guidance. Until then, a dated photo of each standard, a note of what was tested, and the invoices and trade certificates behind them give a clear answer to the two questions the law asks: did the property meet the standards when it was advertised, and when the renter moved in? The “Keep” notes in the checklist are our suggestions on that basis.
The same date brings gas and electrical safety checks every 2 years for all rental agreements, by a licensed or registered gasfitter or electrician. The regulations already say each check record must be kept until the next one is done.
Recording mould and damp
Mould and damp is the standard most likely to need a specialist. The regulations do not define “caused by or related to the building structure”, so the record should let someone else see what was found and why. For each room, note:
- where any mould, staining or damp is, with a wide photo and a close-up;
- moisture readings and air and surface temperatures, taken the same way at each visit;
- the likely source found, such as a roof, gutter or plumbing leak, or water getting into a wall or floor;
- the ventilation in that room and whether its fans work, since ventilation is its own standard;
- what was done about it and when, with the invoice.
Keep that history. Before a new agreement, the rental provider must tell the renter whether they have had a repair notice about mould or damp caused by or related to the building structure in the last 3 years (section 30D of the Act and regulation 16 of the regulations). For a fuller investigation method, see our damp and mould inspection checklist, written for UK surveys but built on the same readings and evidence.
Energy efficiency standards from 1 March 2027
The Residential Tenancies Amendment (Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards) Regulations 2025 amend Schedule 4 with standards in six areas: heating, cooling, hot water, shower heads, ceiling insulation and draughtproofing. They are made but not yet in force, and each has its own start date and trigger, set out in section 9 of the checklist. Exceptions apply to each, for example where owners corporation rules or heritage laws prevent the work.
CAV advises keeping proof of installation and appliance information for any upgrade, and proof that an exemption applies where a property does not otherwise meet a standard. Those papers become part of the same minimum standards records.
Recording the check in PropertySurvey Pro
PropertySurvey Pro records inspections room by room with photos and notes, offline, and produces the PDF on site. Choose Australia under Region & Language in Settings and the app uses Australian spelling, AUD and degrees Celsius. Where mould or damp needs investigating, DampApp Pro records readings, surface temperatures and photographs room by room and calculates dew point on the device. The apps keep the record; the rental provider decides whether the property meets each standard.
Official sources
- Rental properties: minimum standards (Consumer Affairs Victoria, last updated 14 May 2026)
- New changes to the rental laws (Consumer Affairs Victoria, last updated 27 September 2026)
- New minimum energy efficiency standards (Consumer Affairs Victoria, last updated 17 August 2026)
- Rental minimum standards checklist for rental providers (Consumer Affairs Victoria, PDF)
- Residential Tenancies Regulations 2021 (S.R. No. 3/2021), Schedule 4: Rental minimum standards (legislation.vic.gov.au, version 009, incorporating amendments as at 30 June 2026)
- Residential Tenancies Act 1997, sections 3, 30D, 65A and 65B (legislation.vic.gov.au, version 114, incorporating amendments as at 9 September 2026)
- Consumer Legislation Amendment Act 2025 (No. 46/2025), section 16: sections 65C to 65F (legislation.vic.gov.au, assented to 25 November 2025; in force by 13 October 2026)
- Residential Tenancies Amendment (Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards) Regulations 2025 (S.R. No. 63/2025) (legislation.vic.gov.au)
CAV material © State of Victoria (Consumer Affairs Victoria), used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence as its copyright page allows; we have adapted it. Legislation is paraphrased; read the authorised versions for the exact wording. Rooming houses have their own minimum standards. For Victoria and the other states, see our Australia survey software guide.
Rental minimum standards in Victoria: FAQs
What are the rental minimum standards in Victoria?
They are the basic standards every residential rental property in Victoria must meet, set out in Schedule 4 of the Residential Tenancies Regulations 2021. Consumer Affairs Victoria groups them into 15 categories: bathrooms, electrical safety, heating, kitchen, laundry, lighting, locks, mould and damp, structural soundness, toilets, ventilation, vermin proof bins, windows, window coverings and window covering anchors. They apply to agreements that started on or after 29 March 2021, and to earlier agreements that became periodic on or after that date.
What records do rental providers need to keep from 13 October 2026?
From 13 October 2026, sections 65C to 65F of the Residential Tenancies Act 1997 require a rental provider to keep records sufficient to show the property met the minimum standards on or before the day the renter moved in. A rental provider or agent who advertises or offers a property to let must keep records sufficient to show they reasonably believed it met the standards at that time. The Director of Consumer Affairs Victoria can ask for the records, and not producing them carries a maximum penalty of 150 penalty units for an individual or 750 for a company. The Act lets the Director publish guidance on what records are sufficient, in the Government Gazette and online.
What does the mould and damp standard require?
All rooms must be free from mould and damp caused by or related to the building structure. The regulations do not define that phrase, so record where the mould or damp is, the readings you took and the likely cause you found, so the rental provider, CAV or VCAT can judge it. The Residential Tenancies Act 1997 lists mould or damp caused by or related to the building structure among the faults that count as urgent repairs.
Is there an official CAV rental minimum standards checklist?
Yes. Consumer Affairs Victoria publishes a rental minimum standards checklist for rental providers, and one for renters, as PDFs on its minimum standards page. This page covers the same 15 standards and adds the evidence to keep for each, the records duty from 13 October 2026 and the energy efficiency standards from 1 March 2027. Where anything differs, CAV and the regulations take priority.
When do the new energy efficiency standards start?
In phases from 1 March 2027. The heating and hot water standards apply when an existing system fails and cannot be repaired. The cooling, shower head and ceiling insulation standards apply to new agreements, and agreements that become month to month, from 1 March 2027, and draughtproofing from 1 July 2027. The cooling standard applies to all rental properties from 1 July 2030. They were made by the Residential Tenancies Amendment (Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards) Regulations 2025 and are not yet in force.
Does this checklist apply outside Victoria, or to rooming houses?
No. It covers residential rental agreements in Victoria, Australia. Rooming houses have their own minimum standards, and community housing and specialised housing programs have a separate schedule in the same regulations. Other states and territories set their own rental standards.
Does a completed checklist prove a property complies?
No. It is a dated record of what was checked, which can form part of the records the law asks for. It does not certify compliance and is not legal advice; the rental provider stays responsible for meeting the standards.
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