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Varying a bond

Information on how to vary the security bond

During the course of a tenancy you may find you need to vary the security bond because:

  • the amount of bond money permitted to be charged may change (this usually means that the amount being held by the bond holder may be increased because the rent has been increased);
  • one or more of the tenants in a shared household may decide to move out;
  • the ownership of a property may change; or
  • an owner may employ a different managing agent.

If the Bond Administrator holds the bond, a Form 9 Notice of Variation of Security Bond (PDF 39kb) must be filled out - listing whatever changes have taken place - and given to the bond holder. If a financial institution holds the bond, the financial institution may have their own version of this form.

A bond account is similar to a joint bank account where all parties to the account must sign to make withdrawals. If a tenant or owner has changed without any notification of the variation (a Form 9 if lodged with the Bond Administrator) being lodged and is no longer available to sign a disposal form at the end of the tenancy, then the bond holder will not be able to refund the bond.

In a residential tenancy matter, no matter how many of the original signatories are available, if just one original signatory is missing you will have to go to the Magistrate's Court and ask for a court order to get the bond released.

If any signatories are missing in a residential parks long-stay tenancy you will have to make an application to the State Administrative Tribunal for a determination on how the security bond is to be disposed.

In situations where joint tenants are named on the lease agreement and one or more decide to leave or is replaced (with the consent of the owner/agent) by new joint tenants, all parties can elect to change the lease agreement and have the bond paid out, then replaced by a new bond. Alternatively Form 9 can be used to notify the bondholder of the change of tenants, so that at the end of the tenancy the bond can be paid out to the current tenants. The incoming tenant can pay the departing tenant their share of the bond.