Public Housing Rent Policy

If you live in public housing

You can also contact your Housing Service Centre to talk about your rent.

The Public Housing Rent Policy details how the department calculates rents for people living in public housing, and includes different types of circumstances which may not apply to all households.

About this policy

Version effective 1 September 2025.

Background

The Department of Housing and Public Works requires all tenants living in public housing (homes which are tenancy managed by the department) to pay rent. Rent is charged each week. There are several rent assessment rules applied when calculating public housing rent. This policy explains how the department determines public housing rents.

Scope

This policy applies to all tenants living in homes owned and managed by the department on behalf of the Queensland Government, including State owned and managed Indigenous housing, and to tenants who signed a State tenancy agreement and live in a head leased property or a home which the department has leased from a remote and discrete Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Council.

Policy

Tenants living in public housing must pay rent. The department’s Public Housing Rent Policy is established by the chief executive under policy and the objectives of the Housing Act 2003. The department is not required to set or manage rents under the Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Act 2008 s91- Rent increases and s93 – Minimum period before rent can be increased.

The department charges an income-based rent, with the property market rent as the maximum rent a household is required to pay. Income-based rent is designed to support public housing being affordable and ensuring equity between households living in public housing that receive similar income.

Tenants and household members living in public housing pay rent as a contribution towards the costs of the social service they are receiving and in recognition of public housing as a form of residential tenancy involving a lessor-lessee relationship with rights and responsibilities for both parties.

Rent is payable at 25% of a household’s assessable income, or the market rent, whichever is less.

Housing is considered affordable when a household pays no more than 30% of income in rent. Rent payable at 25% of assessable household income is considered affordable, reasonable, and fair for people on low incomes.

Market rent

Market rent is the rent that could reasonably be charged each week if the home was rented in the private market at a particular time and is the maximum rent the department will charge. Tenants pay rent calculated at 25% of their household’s assessable income, or the market rent, whichever is less.

Calculating market rent

The department sets public housing market rents using an indexed Residential Tenancies Authority (RTA) median rent factor and applying this to the last recorded market rent for each property. The RTA median weekly rent data reflects new rental bonds lodged across Queensland each quarter. Where a median rent value for a particular property type, size or location is unavailable, an indexation factor is applied using an RTA median rent for the closest property size and type.

Public housing market rents will be reviewed each year to reflect private market conditions. Any changes to a market rent (i.e. increases or decreases) are applied at the tenant’s next rent review. Tenants can request a review of the public housing market rent for the property they live in. The market rent for a property is not a reviewable decision under the Housing Act 2003.

Subsidised rent

Tenants pay 25% of their household’s assessable income as rent or the market rent, whichever is less. The difference between the rent a tenant may pay based on their household income and the market rent for the home is the rent subsidy provided by the Queensland Government. The rent subsidy reduces a household’s contribution towards the rent.

In some circumstances, other rent subsidies may be provided. For more information, see Rent subsidies.

Calculating subsidised rent

Public housing rent is calculated using a household’s current assessable income and applying relevant rent rules described in the Public Housing Rent Policy. The department calculates a household’s rent:

• at the tenancy sign-up
• each year at a rent review
• when a tenant advises of a change, including a change to the legal tenants (for example, a tenant dies), their household’s income, occupants or circumstances and/or the department identifies a change
• when a tenant transfers to another public housing property
• from time to time as prescribed in the Public Housing Rent Policy or following a decision by government.

Rent is reviewed annually but may change more than once per year depending on household changes. Tenants are responsible for advising the department about changes in their household’s occupants, income and circumstances within 28 days. Tenants who notify the department of a change in their income and/or household members or have an annual rent review will have any rent increase capped at $15 per week per household for two years.

The department may request tenants to provided updated household information at any time. Tenants must provide requested information within 28 days, or they will lose their rent subsidy, be charged market rent and be deemed ineligible for ongoing housing assistance. For more information, see Tenants must provide requested information.

Assessing income to calculate subsidised rent

Assessable income

Assessable incomes are incomes that the department includes when calculating public housing rent. An income is considered assessable if it’s received with some regularity or frequency and is not a once-off payment for specific purposes or events. All income is assessable unless it has been determined to be non-assessable. Types of income the department assesses includes:

• most pensions, benefits and some allowances paid by Centrelink and the Department of Veterans' Affairs
• Family Tax Benefit
• wages, salaries and work allowances such as overtime, bonuses, shift allowances and penalty rates
• other income such as regular superannuation, compensation, interest from savings, maintenance payments and lump sum payments.

Non-assessable income

Non-assessable income is income that the department does not include when calculating public housing rent.

Incomes that are non-assessable for calculating rent are:

• a one-off payment, such as payments for natural disasters or bereavement
• earned income (for example wages, casual wages, self-employment income) received by household members aged 24 years or less who are not a tenant or a tenant’s spouse. For more information, go to Youth to work rent policy.
• a reimbursement or partial payment to offset other costs, such as mobility allowance, pension supplement, allowances for telephone, utilities and GST
• discretionary income paid as an earn-and-learn incentive, such as education entry payment.

Tables of assessable and non-assessable incomes (PDF, 223KB)

Assessing working income

Working income is assessed on the gross amount. A tax allowance is applied to the gross amount to effectively remove the amount of tax paid, as required by the Australian Government, and calculate rent on the ‘after tax’ income, i.e. the amount earned after tax has been deducted. For more information, go to tax allowance.

Assessing casual and irregular income

For working income which varies weekly, rent will be calculated based on a four (4) week average of the gross amount of casual / irregular income (including regular and ongoing overtime, assessable work allowances and bonuses). The weekly amount will be added to the household’s assessable income used to calculate rent.

Casual or irregular income, which is paid monthly, quarterly, half yearly or annually will be divided by the number of weeks in the pay period to calculate a weekly amount for calculating rent.

Carer income

A carer is considered as a household member, and their income is included when calculating rent, if the public housing property is their principal home. A carer’s income is not included if the property is not their principal home (i.e. they live somewhere else) or they are a professional carer rostered for regular sleepovers as part of providing care. Evidence confirming a carer’s principal home must be provided.

Self-employed/subcontractors

Operating for less than 12 months

An equivalent Centrelink payment will be attributed to each self-employed person and used to calculate the rent. If the business income is the household’s only income, an equivalent Centrelink payment will be used for each tenant and household and used when calculating rent. Other household incomes that are not business related are assessed together with a self-employed person’s equivalent Centrelink payment.

Operating for more than 12 months

Each self-employed person must provide their Notice of Assessment for the previous financial year and a PAYG payment summary (Group Certificate) issued by Centrelink if the taxable income includes income support payments from Centrelink or DVA. Household income separate to the business is added to the self-employed person/s income when calculating rent. If the Notice of Assessment shows negative earnings, an equivalent Centrelink payment will be calculated for each self-employed person and used to calculate rent.

Ceasing self-employment / subcontracting

Evidence of a person’s new income must be provided within 28 days when a tenant and/or household member ceases self-employment or subcontracting.

Workers’ Compensation / Redundancy

A tenant and/or household member's income may change because of a worker’s compensation or redundancy package being paid.

Lump sum compensation payments are considered as an asset. Each person who receives a lump sum compensation payment will instead be assessed as receiving the Disability Support Pension rate which matches their circumstances (for example, single/married and age). Regular compensation payments are considered as income and included when calculating rent.

Where someone receives a redundancy payment, the previous working income for that person will continue to be assessed for rent until the tenant provides acceptable evidence of another income for that person.

Assessing child support and shared care of children

Shared care arrangements occur when children live with one parent/guardian for part of the week and live with the other parent/guardian for the remainder of the week (for example, 3 days per week with one and 4 days per week with the other).

Assessing Family Tax Benefit for shared care arrangements

If eligible, each parent receives a portion of the full rate of Family Tax Benefit Part A (FBTA) based on the number of days each week the parent has care of the child/children. The amount of Family Tax Benefit Part A received by the parent is used when calculating rent.

Assessing Child Support (maintenance) income

Child support is an amount of money paid between separated parents to help with the cost of raising their children. The department assesses child support income as detailed on a tenant and/or household member’s Income and Assets statement from Centrelink or obtained through the Income Confirmation Service.

As this may be the maintenance amount a person is entitled to but not actually receiving, tenants and/or household members can provide current evidence from Centrelink or Child Support showing the actual maintenance amount they receive. This amount will be used to calculate rent.

Assessing child support (maintenance) payments when both parents live in public housing

When a divorced or separated couple with dependent child/ren live in public housing, the child support amount paid by the non-custodial parent is excluded when calculating rent, by deducting the amount of child support the non-custodial parent pays from their income.

The child support amount received by the custodial parent is included when calculating rent.

International students

Tenants can have international, or homestay students live with them in public housing, provided this does not cause overcrowding and the tenant provides the student’s details to the department. Both the income the tenant receives for providing accommodation to the student and the income of the student are assessable when calculating rent.

Assessment of deemed investment income

An income will be deemed where a tenant and/or household member has an asset/s which is invested but there is no apparent income being generated by the investment. Deeming assumes that financial investments are earning a certain rate of income, regardless of the amount the investment is receiving.

If an investment is earning an income (for example interest from a bank account detailed on a Centrelink Income and Asset Statement or on a bank statement), the department uses the actual amount of earned income when calculating rent.

For each investment that does not earn an income, the department will calculate a deemed income amount at 0.75% of the value of the investment and use this amount when calculating rent.

Tax allowance

A tax allowance is applied to gross working and taxable incomes to effectively remove the amount of tax paid, as required by the Australian Government, from the calculation of rent. Rent is assessed on ‘after tax’ income i.e., the amount earned after tax has been deducted.

The tax allowance does not include the Medicare levy (2%), leave loading or tax rebates or offsets or specific purpose levies that may be charged by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). Superannuation paid by tenants and household members as a component of their income is also not deducted as part of the tax allowance.

Pensions, benefits and allowances paid by Centrelink or the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) do not have a tax allowance applied.

Tenants must provide requested information

Tenants must provide requested information within 28 days.

Where information is not provided, the department will remove the household’s rent subsidy and charge market rent. The household will also be ineligible for ongoing housing assistance and may be asked to vacate the property. Tenants will have four months to vacate. The market rent will continue to be charged as the household rent until either the tenant provides the required information and is deemed eligible under all components of the Ongoing Eligibility Policy or vacates the public housing property.

Tenants can provide the requested information after being deemed ineligible however this is not a guarantee that the tenant will be eligible again. To be eligible:

• the combined gross assessable income of the tenant/s and their spouse/s must not exceed $80,000 per annum; and
• all tenants and household members must not own or part-own property; and
• all requested information must have been provided.
• and/or the tenant must have demonstrated mitigating circumstances for each component they are ineligible for (i.e. high-income and/or property ownership). A tenant will remain ineligible if the above conditions are not satisfied.

How the department assesses certain types of income, reduced income or no income

Fair Rent Contribution Policy

The department expects tenants and household members to receive income support paid by Centrelink. An income will be attributed to a tenant and/or household member who has no income, or a reduced income support payment and this amount will be included when calculating rent. Examples of when an income may be attributed include when a person:

• is eligible for an income support payment but choose not to apply or receive it.
• is serving a waiting period or has breached Centrelink’s rules for receiving income support.
• is not eligible to receive income support from the Australian Government (in some cases a person may not be required to contribute towards the rent).
• receives income that cannot be verified.
• has a very low income, for example, works part-time and chooses not to receive income support payments.
• has been self-employed for less than 12 months
• holds a visa that allows them to work, and the person has no income.

An income is attributed based on the equivalent Centrelink payment that someone in similar circumstances is entitled to (for example based on age, relationship status or number and age of children.

People who hold certain visas will not be attributed an income for example:

• the visa requires that the person’s sponsor pay their living expenses while in Australia.
• the person is not allowed to work in Australia.
• tourist or visitor visas which do not allow the person to work in Australia.

Tenants can request temporary rent relief if they believe they would face hardship from an income/s being attributed when calculating rent.

Temporary rent relief – Fair rent contribution policy

Tenants can apply for temporary rent relief where an income or incomes have been attributed for household members, and they believe this will cause the household severe financial hardship.

If temporary rent relief is approved, an income support payment will not be attributed for the person with no income. The person’s actual assessable income will be used when calculating rent during the relief period. Rent will be reassessed at the end of a temporary rent relief period and will include any required attributed income support payment/s for tenants and/or household members with no income, a very low income or income that cannot be verified or identified.

Assessing severe financial hardship – Fair rent contribution policy

The department may, in some circumstances, provide tenants temporary rent relief where it considers they have demonstrated severe financial hardship from having incomes attributed to people living in the household with no income and would be left unable to adequately cover essential living costs for a period following a family tragedy, financial misfortune, serious illness or other combination of serious or difficult circumstances.

Tenants must apply for temporary rent relief and supply evidence to support their case. The department may request any additional evidence that it considers necessary to decide if rent relief is appropriate and the period of relief (up to two years). Approval is assessed case by case, considering both the tenant’s circumstances and the circumstances of other tenants and people in housing need. Tenants are expected to act or make decisions regarding their financial situation during the rent relief period to ensure they can pay rent.

Rent will be reassessed at the end of an approved temporary rent relief period.

Assessing income where a tenant or household member does not receive an income or receives a reduced income

Short-term cessation of employment

The department will temporarily reduce a household’s rent where a tenant or household member is forced to stop work due to circumstances beyond their control (for example, the employer closes over the Christmas holidays and the tenant or household member is not paid during this time). Evidence from the employer is required. The income attributed to the tenant or household member during this time will be based on the person’s equivalent Centrelink payment and the rent re-calculated using this amount. Immediately upon the ending of the non-paid period for the tenant or household member, the rent will revert to the previous amount before the temporary rent reduction was applied. Rent will not change where a tenant or household member is paid during an employer’s closure period.

Customer voluntarily withdraws labour

Rent will not change where a tenant and/or household member voluntarily withdraws their labour and subsequently does not receive an income, for example takes leave without pay. Rent will be re-assessed if the person who withdrew their labour, or their partner, is paid a new income support payment from Centrelink during the absence from work. The rent will be reassessed using that income only for the duration of the absence.

At the end of the leave without pay, if the person who withdrew their labour:

• returns to work, the rent will immediately revert to the previous amount from the nearest Monday to when the person recommenced working.
• does not return to work but applies for a Centrelink payment and Centrelink impose a waiting period, the rent will be calculated using the person’s equivalent Centrelink payment under the Fair Rent Contribution Policy until Centrelink payment commences.
• does not return to work and is offered a redundancy package, refer to Workers Compensation and Redundancy Packages.

Ceased work for maternity or parental leave

For paid maternity/parental leave, rent will be assessed on the leave payment. If paid in a lump sum, the leave will be divided by the number of paid weeks to calculate the usual weekly earnings. When the leave period expires, or for unpaid maternity/parental leave, the department will attribute an income to the person on maternity/parental leave with this income and any other assessable income the person receives, included when calculating the rent.

Customer voluntarily ceased work and is ineligible for Centrelink payment

If a tenant and/or other household member voluntarily ceases employment and is restricted by Centrelink from claiming a payment for an imposed period, rent will be calculated using an income attributed to the person/s when any termination pay has been exhausted. Evidence that the person is serving a waiting period is required.

When an income will be reduced depends on the amount of termination pay the person received in their final pay. If the person was paid at the normal rate of income for more than one (1) week, their income will not be reduced until the termination pay is exhausted.

If the person recommences work with the same employer within eight (8) weeks of ceasing employment, the rent will be reassessed immediately using the earned income regardless of when the tenant’s next rent review is scheduled.

Evidence of income

Tenants must provide income evidence for themselves and all household members that is acceptable to the department. The Income Confirmation Service (ICS) is the department's preferred method for obtaining evidence of income for tenants and household members.

The department will not accept evidence of income where any alterations have been made to the documents such as blacking out information, withholding pages or where it is suspected or known that the evidence provided has been tampered with or altered in any way. Where it’s suspected that income evidence is incomplete, fraudulent or has been tampered with, the department will ask the tenant to provide updated evidence.

Evidence of income should usually not be more than 28 days old. Statutory Declarations are not an accepted form of evidence for calculating rent.

The following table lists the types of acceptable evidence for different types of income.

Youth to Work Rent Policy

The working income of a young person who is aged 24 years old or less is excluded when calculating public housing rent. Any income support payments or other income the young person receives is included and assessed at 25%. The working income of a young person aged 24 or less who is the tenant and/or their spouse is included in the rent assessment and assessed at 25%, together with any other income the young person receives.

When calculating public housing rent, the working income of a young person who is aged 24 years old or less is:

• assessable when the young person is the tenant and/or the spouse of a tenant; or
• non-assessable if the young person is a household member (i.e., not a tenant or the spouse of a tenant).

Any income support payments or other income the young person receives is assessed at 25% and included when calculating rent.

Rent subsidies

Minimum rent

In some circumstances, the department may charge a minimum rent. The minimum rent is $20.10 per week and is the lowest amount of rent a household can pay. The department reviews the minimum rent each year.

A minimum rent can be charged when:

• a sole tenant is away from the rental property on an approved absence due to:
  • being in a correctional facility (with a release date within five months or less)
  • being remanded in custody awaiting sentencing or a trial
  • living in a shelter due to domestic and family violence
  • hospitalised or undergoing rehabilitation.
  • undertaking vocational training
• a household is assessed by the department as meeting its definition of being in severe financial hardship.
  • minimum rent will be approved at the discretion of the delegated officer.
  • tenants will be requested to provide acceptable evidence that may assist in confirming that the tenant is experiencing severe financial hardship.
  • the minimum rent will be applied on a once-off basis for any single set of circumstances for a maximum period of three months.
• when the calculated rent is lower than the minimum rent.

Tenants must provide acceptable evidence to demonstrate their need for a minimum rent, for example additional accommodation costs incurred during their absence, no income or evidence demonstrating the factors contributing to or causing their severe financial hardship.

Minimum rent is not applied when a tenant and/or a household member:

• is going on holidays; tenants must continue to pay the weekly rent
• has no income or receives a reduced income support payment from Centrelink due to not meeting a condition for payment. (Note - sole tenants must have an independent income to be allocated public housing). The income will be attributed under the Fair Rent Contribution Policy.

A minimum rent period will end and the rent re-calculated when:

• a sole tenant who was on an approved absence returns to the public housing property.
• a sole tenant who was on an approved absence for reasons other than being in a correctional facility and who was incurring additional accommodation costs related to the reason for their approved absence returns to the property.
• the financial circumstances of a tenant who was experiencing severe financial hardship have stabilised and it is no longer fair to apply the minimum rent.

Reduced rent

In some circumstances, the department may charge tenants a reduced rent where the tenant is not the sole income earner for the household, was approved for an absence, and will incur extra accommodation costs related to the reason for the absence or who may not have an income due to being in a correctional facility. Reasons a reduced rent may be charged are when a tenant is:

• in a correctional facility (with a probable release date within five months or less)
• remanded in custody awaiting sentencing or a trial.
• on an approved absence for health reasons including hospitalisation or rehabilitation
• living in a shelter due to domestic, family, or sexual violence
• undertaking vocational training.

Evidence of additional accommodation costs during the approved absence period must be provided.

Reduced rent is not applied when a tenant and/or a household member:

• is going on holidays; tenants must continue to pay the weekly rent
• has no income or receives a reduced income support payment from Centrelink due to not meeting a condition for payment. (Note - sole tenants must have an independent income to be allocated public housing). An income will be attributed to a tenant or household member without an income under the Fair Rent Contribution Policy.

Guaranteed rent periods

Guaranteed Rent is where rent will not increase for a guaranteed period of six months when someone who lives in the home begins working (for example full-time, part-time, casual or seasonal work). If eligible, the household’s rent will not increase for six months due to the new working income. Rent may still increase because of other household changes, for example people moving in or an increase in other income.

A Guaranteed Rent period ends before six months if there is a change in the household's circumstances.

To be eligible for a Guaranteed Rent period:

• the tenant or household member must have been receiving a Centrelink or Department of Veteran’s Affairs (DVA) income support payment immediately prior to starting work
• the employment must be a new job; it cannot be an increase to hours/responsibility or income from an existing job (for example, moving from part-time to full-time)
• the tenant must contact the department within 28 days of the tenant and/or household member starting work.
• A Guaranteed Rent period cannot be active. Only one guaranteed rent period at a time can be applied to the rent. A new Guaranteed Rent period can be provided if another tenant and/or household member starts work after an active Guaranteed Rent period ends and the household is eligible.

There are no minimum hours/income a tenant or household member must work or earn a week to be eligible for a Guaranteed Rent period.

The Guaranteed Rent period applies from the Monday of the week the tenant and/or household member started work.

A Guaranteed Rent period will not be applied where a tenant and/or household member:

• is not starting new employment but has an increase in hours
• is self-employed
• is returning to work after being on a Workcover payment
• has started a second job.

Reviewing the rent a tenant will pay

The department reviews rent annually, when there are changes in the household’s circumstances or as determined by the chief executive of the Housing Act 2003. Rent may change more than once per year depending on household changes. Tenants must advise the department about changes in their household’s occupants, income and circumstances within 28 days.

Annual rent and tenancy reviews occur continuously throughout the year. Tenants are usually selected for a review 12 months after their last review, however this may vary depending on the department’s operational requirements, public holidays and other factors.

Types of rent reviews

Automatic Income Confirmation Service (ICS) rent reviews occur when the department reviews the rent using a household’s information obtained directly from Centrelink. Tenants and household members must consent to using this service before the department can obtain their information.

Contact reviews occur when the department asks tenants for updated income information for their household. This review occurs when, for example, someone in the home doesn’t participate in the ICS, or their income could not be confirmed using ICS, or someone earns wages.

A rent review will occur when a tenant advises of a change in their household’s income, occupants or circumstances or the department identifies a change, or a tenant transfer to another public housing property or a change to the legal tenants is required (for example, a tenant dies).

Tenants must return requested information within 28 days, or they may be charged market rent and asked to vacate the property. For more information, see Tenants must provide requested information.

New household member moves in

Tenants are responsible for advising the department within 28 days of new household members such as a new spouse, partner or child, sibling, a visitor staying in the home or any other person newly living in the property. The new person’s income will not be assessed for four-weeks. If the person has lived in the home before, the rent will change immediately. The department may extend the four-week grace period in some limited circumstances.

Household member moves out

Tenants are responsible for advising the department within 28 days when someone moves out. A rent review will be completed once the tenant provides the advice to the department and has provided evidence of income for all remaining tenants and household members or the department obtains this information using Centrelink’s Income Confirmation Service. The department will review the rent if advised that a person experiencing domestic, family or sexual violence has left the property.

Household members who live in the property part-time

Permanent part-time household members can live in the property for up to three (3) days in any one week before their income is included when calculating rent. If the person lives in the home for four (4) or more days per week, they are considered permanent occupants, and their income will be included when calculating rent. This does not apply to paid professional carers – for more information, go to Carers income.

Non-disclosure of income or household members

Tenants must tell the department about any changes to their household’s occupants, income and assets within 28 days of the change. Failing to do this is a breach of the tenancy agreement and the Housing Act 2003.

If the department receives evidence that a tenant has not declared income or new household members, the household’s details will be corrected and the rent backdated.

For undeclared income (for example, that someone started working), the rent will be recalculated and applied from the nearest date after the undeclared income commenced.

For undeclared household occupants, the rent will be recalculated and applied from the Monday of the week when the undeclared occupant/s moved in.

Backdating rent

The department will backdate a decrease in a household’s rent if advised of the change to occupants and/or income within 28 days of the change. The new rent will be backdated to the Monday of the week that the change occurred.

A rent decrease will not be backdated when evidence about the change is received more than 28 days after the change. The effective date of the new rent will be the Monday of the week the department received evidence about the change.

A rent increase backdate may be applied in exceptional circumstances or where there is serious and deliberate fraud or non-disclosure by tenants and/or household members about changes to occupants and their identity, income and assets.

Rent and transfers

A full household rent review will be completed when tenants transfer from one public housing property into another. Tenants will be given one (1) week to move to the new property where rent will be charged on one property only. After one week, rent will be charged on both properties until the tenant returns vacant possession of the home they are leaving to the department, unless the tenant demonstrates exceptional circumstances.

If a tenant is transferring from public housing into community housing, one (1) week’s rent will be credited to the tenant’s public housing account prior to that tenancy being terminated.

Changes to the legal tenants

A full household rent review will occur when there is a change to the legal tenants. Income evidence must be received for all remaining, and new, tenants and household members before the rent can be calculated.

Rent when vacating

Rent is charged to the date the household returns vacant possession of the property to the department. If a tenant remains in the property after any notice period expires, rent will be charged until the date they vacate. For abandoned properties, rent is charged to the date the department takes possession of the home.

When rent changes take effect

The date that rent may change depends on what the change is, whether the rent will increase or decrease and whether evidence about the change was provided in 28 days or not.

Rounding

The department rounds the final rent amount up or down to the nearest $0.05 (five cents) as per commercial rounding practices.

Sub-letting

Sub-letting is an arrangement where a tenant leases out the entire property or a room/other space to someone who isn’t listed on the tenancy agreement. The department will not approve any sub-letting of a public housing property. Tenants are permitted to have people move into the property to occupy a vacant bedroom/s and to charge the occupants for use of the room, provided that:

• there is no sub-tenancy agreement between the tenant and the new occupant/s, and
• the occupants and their income are declared to the department within 28 days, and
• the tenant provides acceptable evidence of the occupant’s income, and any other resulting income changes, within 28 days to enable the rent to be recalculated.

The occupants will be added to the tenancy record and the rent recalculated.

Tenants who no longer need their public housing property must complete an RTA Form 13 Notice of Intention to leave and return vacant possession to the department.

The tenant remains responsible for paying rent. The department does not become involved with any private arrangements or agreed apportionment of rent payments that are made between the tenant/s and other household members. The department does not accept any responsibility for any failure of these arrangements.

Advising tenants of changes to their rent

Tenants will be advised in writing about changes to their rent and when the change will take effect. The department provides four weeks’ notice of a rent increase. Rent decreases take effect immediately. The department is an exempt lessor under the Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Act 2008 and is not required to wait 12 months between rent increases or to advise tenants when the rent was last increased.

Fraud

The department will investigate and act on suspected false and misleading information (fraud) where it is satisfied on reasonable grounds that the information provided was intentionally misleading or deliberately withheld.

Rent payments

Rent is charged each week. Tenants are expected to pay rent promptly on or before the due date. Tenants experiencing difficulties paying rent must contact the department immediately to arrange suitable repayment arrangements. The department offers multiple ways to pay rent. For more information, go to How to pay rent.

Human rights

The Public Housing Rent Policy has been reviewed for compatibility with human rights under the Human Rights Act 2019 (the Act). The policy does not limit any human rights under the Act and is compatible with human rights. The policy supports the equitable treatment of all public housing tenants and households. Public housing rent is assessed at 25% of the household’s assessable income. Housing costs are generally considered affordable when a household pays no more than 30% of their income in rent. Rent assessed at 25% is therefore considered affordable, reasonable and fair for people on low income and those in receipt of statutory payments.

More information

If you live in public housing:

• How your rent is calculated, how to pay rent, checking your rent balance and more
• Contact your Housing Service Centre to talk about your rent.