Selling a Tenanted Property in Australia: A Property Manager's Guide (2026)

When a landlord decides to sell a managed rental property, the property manager is suddenly managing two parallel obligations: the sale process and the ongoing tenancy. These obligations intersect in ways that can create friction — buyer inspections disrupt tenants, marketing timelines conflict with tenancy rights, and the sale settlement triggers a chain of administrative steps that the property manager must complete correctly.

Getting it wrong has consequences in both directions. A tenant who is not given the legally required notice of intention to sell, or who is pressured into allowing access outside the rules, has grounds for a formal complaint and potential compensation. A buyer who takes settlement without the bond being properly transferred inherits an administrative headache that will trace back to the agent.

This guide covers the key obligations for Australian property managers when a managed property is sold: what notice must be given, how buyer inspections must be managed, what happens to the condition report and bond, how the tenancy can be ended in connection with a sale, and how to manage tenant relations during what is typically a disruptive period. Requirements vary by state — the state-by-state breakdown follows each general principle.

The most important principle to understand — and to communicate clearly to the selling landlord — is that the tenancy does not end when the property is sold. In every Australian state and territory, the incoming owner takes possession of the property subject to the existing tenancy. The new owner steps into the previous landlord's shoes: the same lease terms apply, the same rent amount applies, and the new owner has the same obligations as the previous one.

This means:

A tenant on a fixed-term lease cannot be asked to vacate simply because the property has been sold. The fixed term runs to its natural expiry regardless of who owns the property. A new owner who wants vacant possession must either wait for the fixed term to end or negotiate with the tenant — they cannot compel the tenant to leave early.

A tenant on a periodic (month-to-month) tenancy has more limited protection: the new owner can give notice to end the tenancy after settlement, but must comply with the state-specific notice periods. These vary significantly, as outlined in the section on terminating tenancies below.

Landlords who are planning a sale and wanting vacant possession at settlement need to understand this framework well in advance. If the property is under a long fixed-term lease, vacant possession at settlement may not be achievable without the tenant's agreement. The property manager should raise this with the landlord at the time the sale decision is made, not after the property is listed.

All Australian states require the landlord to give the tenant advance written notice of the intention to sell, before the property is listed or shown to prospective buyers. The required lead times and specific forms differ by state.

New South Wales: Section 53 of the Residential Tenancies Act 2010 (NSW) requires the landlord to give the tenant written notice of the intention to sell not later than 14 days before the premises are first made available for inspection by prospective purchasers.

Queensland: The landlord must give the tenant a Notice of lessor's intention to sell premises (Form 10) before, or at the same time as, an Entry notice (Form 9) is first served for buyer inspections. Form 10 must describe how the property is to be marketed, including whether an on-site auction or open inspections are planned. Landlords must also obtain the tenant's written consent before conducting any open inspection or on-site auction, and before using any photos of the interior of the property in their possession.

Victoria: The Residential Tenancies Act 1997 (Vic) requires the rental provider to give the renter notice of intention to sell at least 14 days before giving any notice of entry for buyer inspections.

Western Australia: The landlord must give the tenant a written Notice of Intention to Sell (Form 30) and cannot advertise or show the property to prospective buyers until 14 days after that notice has been served.

South Australia, Tasmania, ACT and Northern Territory: Each jurisdiction requires advance written notice of the sale, with the specific requirements set out in their respective residential tenancy legislation. Property managers should confirm the current requirements with the relevant state authority — Consumer and Business Services SA, Consumer, Building and Occupational Services Tasmania, the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal, and the NT Consumer Affairs — before a sale process begins.

Once the notice of intention to sell has been served and the required lead time has passed, buyer inspections can proceed. Each inspection visit still requires a separate, properly served entry notice — the notice of intention to sell is not a blanket authority to enter at any time.

New South Wales: At least 24 hours written notice must be given before each inspection. The landlord must make all reasonable efforts to agree with the tenant on the days and times when the property will be made available for inspection.

Queensland: A Form 9 (Entry Notice) must be served at least 24 hours before each buyer inspection. Entry is permitted between 8am and 6pm Monday to Saturday. Entry outside those hours requires the tenant's agreement. General tenancy entry for routine inspections (as opposed to buyer inspections) is separately limited to four times per year — buyer inspections have their own grounds and are not counted against this limit.

Victoria: 24 hours written notice must be given before each buyer inspection. Inspections are limited to two per week, with each visit limited to one hour, unless the tenant agrees to a longer period. Under Victoria's Residential Tenancies Act 1997, the rental provider must pay the renter compensation for each sales inspection — the amount is set by regulation and should be confirmed with Consumer Affairs Victoria. Entry is permitted between 8am and 6pm on any day except public holidays.

Western Australia: At least 24 hours written notice is required before each buyer inspection. Entry is permitted between 8am and 6pm Monday to Friday and between 9am and 5pm on Saturdays, or any other time agreed to by the tenant.

South Australia: Written notice of at least 7 days must be given for inspection by prospective buyers. Entry is permitted between 8am and 8pm Monday to Saturday.

Tasmania, ACT and NT: 24 hours notice is generally required. Property managers should verify current requirements with their state's residential tenancy authority.

Open inspections — where multiple prospective buyers walk through the property simultaneously — require particular care in some jurisdictions and are simply not available without the tenant's agreement in others.

Queensland has the clearest rule: the landlord must obtain the tenant's written consent before holding any open inspection. Without that consent, the landlord may only show the property to individual prospective purchasers on a one-at-a-time basis, with a Form 9 served for each visit. Property managers managing a QLD sale should have an early conversation with the tenant about whether they are willing to consent to open inspections. Many tenants will agree, particularly if they are treated respectfully throughout the process. Trying to hold an open inspection without consent is a breach of the tenancy legislation.

In New South Wales and Victoria, open inspections are not specifically prohibited, but the notice requirements still apply and the landlord must make reasonable efforts to agree on times with the tenant. In practice, this means that organising an open inspection without the tenant's prior agreement on timing can lead to a dispute if the tenant objects.

The practical approach in all states: give the tenant as much advance notice as possible, communicate the schedule clearly, and ask for their cooperation rather than simply serving the minimum notice. Tenants who feel they are being kept informed are far more likely to make reasonable access available — and are far less likely to lodge a formal complaint. A tenant who feels like they are being steamrolled into access they haven't agreed to can slow a sale significantly.

Marketing a tenanted property requires care about what photographs can be used and how the property is presented to buyers. The core principle across all states is that the tenant's possessions are their property and cannot be photographed or publicly used without their consent.

In Queensland, this is explicitly legislated: the landlord must obtain the tenant's written consent before displaying any photos of the interior of the property that show the tenant's belongings or furnishings. This is separate from the consent required for open inspections and applies to marketing photographs and video walkthroughs, whether published online or in print.

In other states, the legal requirement is less specific but the practical principle is the same. Photographing the inside of a tenanted property without the tenant's knowledge or consent — for use in commercial marketing — exposes the landlord to a formal complaint and potential claim under privacy legislation. Property managers should treat interior photography as requiring the tenant's cooperation, not as an automatic right.

In practice, the most effective approach is to ask the tenant in advance of any photography session and allow them to tidy the property beforehand. A property that has been photographed cooperatively with the tenant looks better, creates fewer disputes, and produces marketing material that can be used without legal complication.

The entry condition report completed at the start of the tenancy does not become irrelevant when the property is sold. It remains the authoritative record of the property's condition when the tenant moved in, and it transfers with the property to the new owner.

The new owner inherits all the landlord's obligations under the tenancy — including the obligation to use the original entry condition report as the comparison benchmark at the exit inspection. The entry report is, in effect, a contract: it records what was agreed at entry and sets the baseline against which fair wear and tear and damage are assessed when the tenant vacates.

As the outgoing property manager, ensure that:

The original signed entry condition report (both the landlord/agent copy and the tenant's returned copy) is transferred to the new owner or their managing agent at settlement.

All photographs taken at entry are preserved with their original metadata (timestamps, geotags) and transferred as part of the property file.

Any routine inspection reports completed during the tenancy are also transferred, as they document the progressive condition of the property and can be relevant to bond disputes.

If the property changes managing agents at settlement, the outgoing agent should provide the complete inspection file to the incoming agent as part of the management transfer. A new property manager who does not have the original entry report is in a weak position when the exit inspection comes around. See our guide on property management handover checklists for the full transfer documentation process.

The rental bond is held by the relevant state bond authority — the Residential Tenancies Authority (QLD), NSW Fair Trading (NSW), the Residential Tenancies Bond Authority (VIC), the Bond Administrator (WA), Consumer and Business Services (SA), and their equivalents in other states. The bond does not belong to the selling landlord; it is held in trust for the tenant.

When a rental property is sold, the bond does not automatically transfer to the new owner. In most states, both the outgoing landlord and the incoming landlord must notify the bond authority of the change of ownership. The exact procedure varies by state:

In Queensland, the new owner must notify the RTA that they have become the property owner and provide the tenancy details. In New South Wales and Victoria, similar notification requirements apply. In Western Australia, the bond authority must be formally notified of the change.

Property managers handling the management transfer should include bond transfer notifications in their settlement checklist. A bond that has not been formally transferred means the outgoing landlord remains the named party on the bond record — which can create complications if the tenant later disputes a bond deduction claim and the current landlord is not the named party.

The tenant's bond amount does not change as a result of the sale. Any interest accrued on the bond (in states that apply interest) stays with the bond and is ultimately returned to the tenant, or applied against a legitimate claim, at the end of the tenancy.

If the incoming buyer wants vacant possession, there are limited circumstances under which a tenancy can be ended because of a sale. The rules differ depending on whether the tenant is on a fixed term or a periodic agreement, and by state.

Fixed-term tenants cannot be compelled to vacate before their fixed term expires, regardless of the sale. The new owner's only options are to wait for the fixed term to end and not renew, or to negotiate a mutual termination agreement with the tenant — which typically involves some form of compensation.

Periodic tenants are in a more vulnerable position. In most states, the new owner (after settlement) can give a notice to vacate to a periodic tenant without needing to provide a specific reason. Notice periods vary by state, so property managers should confirm current requirements with their state tenancy authority. In New South Wales under the Residential Tenancies Act 2010, there are specific notice provisions that apply after a sale. In Queensland, Victoria, and Western Australia, similar provisions exist, but the required notice periods and conditions differ.

It is important to note that the new owner cannot issue a notice to vacate before settlement — only after they have taken ownership. The outgoing owner has no authority to end a tenancy on the new owner's behalf, and serving a notice to vacate in anticipation of a sale being made, without confirmation that settlement has occurred, is not legally effective.

Property managers handling both the outgoing and incoming management should track settlement dates carefully and ensure notices are issued by the correct party at the correct time.

The tenant's experience of a property sale can be significantly better or worse depending on how the property manager communicates throughout the process. Legally, the minimum obligation is to give the required notices in the prescribed form. In practice, property managers who treat communication as a minimum box-ticking exercise typically encounter more disruption — objections to inspections, delays in granting access, and formal complaints — than those who manage the tenant relationship proactively.

A practical communication approach from the moment the landlord confirms the decision to sell:

Let the tenant know as soon as possible — before the statutory notice, not with it. A brief call or message explaining what is happening and what to expect costs nothing and significantly reduces the adversarial dynamic that can develop when tenants feel they are the last to know.

Explain their rights. A tenant who understands that their lease is protected, that they will receive the required notice before any inspection, and that their consent is required for open inspections is far less likely to become a problem. Most tenants are reasonable; most conflict arises from misunderstanding.

Give them flexibility where you can. If their preferred inspection window is between 10am and noon on Saturdays, work to accommodate that. A tenant who feels respected is far more likely to cooperate with the access requirements — and a cooperative tenant presenting a well-kept property assists the sale.

Document everything. Keep a record of every notice served, every conversation about inspection access, and every piece of consent given. In the event of a dispute, the documentation is your protection.

A property sale involving a managed tenancy requires careful coordination between the property management and sales functions. Whether the sale is through the same agency or a different agent, the property management obligations remain with the managing agent until management is transferred.

When the landlord confirms the sale decision: Check whether the property is on a fixed term or periodic tenancy, and when the fixed term ends if applicable. Advise the landlord of their obligations to the tenant, including notice requirements, access limits, and what they can and cannot ask the tenant to do. If vacant possession is required and the tenant is on a fixed term, be honest about the timeline.

Before listing: Serve the state-specific notice of intention to sell in the prescribed form and with the required lead time. In QLD, obtain the tenant's written consent if open inspections or use of interior photographs are planned.

During the sale campaign: Coordinate the inspection schedule with the selling agent and the tenant, serving the required entry notices for each visit. Keep records of all notices served and all consents obtained. In VIC, track the number of inspections and ensure the compensation obligation is met.

At settlement: Notify the relevant bond authority of the change of ownership. Transfer the complete inspection file — entry condition report, all routine inspection reports, all photographs — to the new owner or their managing agent. If you are also managing for the new owner, update your systems with the new ownership details. If management transfers to a new agent, provide a comprehensive handover file.

After settlement: If the new owner gives a notice to vacate to a periodic tenant, ensure the notice is served in the correct form and with the correct period for your state. Track the exit inspection date and manage the exit condition report in the usual way against the original entry report.