Water Efficiency Measures For Rental Properties In NSW

You may be aware that if a landlord wishes to charge a tenant for water usage, NSW rental laws require a rented property to meet certain requirements.

Landlords may only charge a tenant for their water usage if the property is separately metered and:

The charges are not more than the amount the landlord must pay for the renter’s water usage,
The renter has been given a copy of the bill setting out the charges, or other evidence of the renter’s water usage, and
The property meets the water efficiency measures (see below).

Visit NSW Fair Trading for more information on water efficiency measures relating to shower heads, taps in the kitchen and bathroom hand basins, and toilets.

A landlord will not be able to pass on water usage charges to
the tenant unless the property meets all the water efficiency
measures from 23 March 2025.

Water efficiency requirements

A property must meet the following water efficiency measures:

• Shower heads have a maximum flow rate of 9 litres a minute,
• Internal cold water taps and single mixer taps for kitchen sinks and bathroom basins have a maximum flow rate of 9 litres a minute,
• There are no leaking taps or toilets anywhere on the property at the start of the tenancy and whenever the other water efficiency measures are installed, repaired, or upgraded,
• From 23 March 2025, toilets are dual-flush and have a minimum 3-star WELS rating.

The requirement for dual flush toilets was introduced on 23 March 2020 with a five-year implementation period. All water efficiency measures have been included in the standard form tenancy agreement, the condition report, and the Landlord Information Statement since March 2020.

Water efficiency measures apply to existing and new tenancy agreements where a landlord wishes to charge the tenant for water usage.

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