Repairs and Maintenance VIC: A Landlord's Guide

This article is general information for Victorian rental providers, not legal advice. The facts below come from Consumer Affairs Victoria's guidance on repairs, so check the current caps and timeframes with them directly before relying on anything here in a specific situation.

Repairs and maintenance VIC obligations sit at the centre of a lot of landlord-tenant disputes. Handle the process properly and most issues get sorted quickly with no drama. Get it wrong and you can end up with a VCAT application, an unhappy tenant, or a reimbursement claim you never saw coming.

Urgent vs non-urgent repairs: why the split matters

Victoria's Residential Tenancies Act splits repairs into two categories, urgent and non-urgent. The category determines how fast you need to respond, what happens if you don't, and what options your tenant has if the property isn't fixed. As the rental provider, you're required to keep the property in good repair and meet the rental minimum standards no matter which category a repair falls into.

Urgent repairs

When something urgent comes up, the renter's first step is to contact you or your agent immediately. That's what's supposed to trigger action on your end. If you can't be reached, or you simply don't respond, the renter is allowed to arrange the repair themselves and then seek reimbursement from you, up to a capped amount. If that process breaks down, either side can apply to VCAT to resolve it.

What this means for you day-to-day:

• Make sure your tenant has a working, current contact number or email for urgent issues, and that someone actually checks it.
• If a tenant calls about something urgent, respond and act quickly. Ignoring it usually costs more than fixing it would have.
• Keep a list of trusted tradespeople you can call on short notice, so you're not scrambling when something goes wrong on a weekend.

Non-urgent repairs

For anything that isn't urgent, the process is more structured. The renter gives you written notice of the issue, and from there you have 14 days to act on it. If nothing happens in that window, the renter can ask Consumer Affairs Victoria to inspect the property, or apply to VCAT directly.

The written notice requirement works in your favour too. It gives you a clear record of when an issue was raised, what was reported, and when your 14 days started ticking. Don't rely on verbal reports alone, ask tenants to put non-urgent requests in writing, even if it's just a text or email.

Your obligations as a rental provider

Beyond responding to specific repair requests, you're expected to keep the property in good repair generally and meet the rental minimum standards that apply in Victoria. That's a baseline obligation, not something that only kicks in once a tenant complains. Regular, proactive maintenance rather than just reactive fixes is the easiest way to stay on the right side of this.

Practically, that looks like:

• Routine checks on things that commonly fail: hot water systems, heating, locks, smoke alarms, plumbing.
• Acting on maintenance issues before they turn into urgent repairs. A small leak ignored for months becomes a bigger, more expensive, more disruptive job.
• Keeping records of work done, so you can show you've met your obligations if a dispute ever ends up at VCAT.

A practical process for handling repair requests

Most landlords aren't managing agents, which is exactly why a simple, repeatable process matters. A workable approach looks like this:

• Set up a clear way for tenants to report repairs, ideally in writing, with photos where relevant.
• Triage every request as urgent or non-urgent as soon as it comes in, and act accordingly.
• Log the date the request was received. For non-urgent repairs, this is your 14-day clock.
• Confirm with the tenant once work is scheduled, and again once it's completed.
• Keep invoices and job notes for every repair, both for your own records and in case of a future dispute.

Things get messy when requests are spread across text messages, phone calls, and emails in different apps, with no single record of what was said or when. That's usually how 14-day deadlines get missed, not because anyone meant to dodge their obligations.

FAQ: repairs and maintenance VIC

Can a tenant withhold rent if repairs aren't done?

Victorian law doesn't give tenants a general right to withhold rent over unfixed repairs. The repair process (urgent reimbursement, non-urgent notice periods, VCAT applications) is the mechanism for resolving these issues, not rent withholding. If you're facing this situation, get specific advice from Consumer Affairs Victoria or VCAT rather than assuming either way.

What counts as an urgent repair?

This is defined in the Residential Tenancies Act, and you should check the current definition with Consumer Affairs Victoria rather than guessing. As a rough guide, urgent repairs are generally things that affect safety, security, or the basic liveability of the property.

What happens if I ignore a non-urgent repair request?

Once the 14-day window passes without action, the tenant can escalate: either by asking Consumer Affairs Victoria to inspect, or by applying to VCAT. Both options take more time and are more public than simply getting the repair done within the timeframe.

Do I need to use a licensed tradesperson?

For most repairs, yes, particularly anything involving electrical or gas work, where licensing is a legal requirement regardless of the tenancy rules. It also protects you if a repair is ever questioned at VCAT.

Staying on top of repairs and maintenance VIC rules gets a lot easier when every request, response, and invoice lives in one place instead of scattered across texts and emails. EZRENT's maintenance tracking keeps a timestamped record of what was reported, when, and what you did about it, which is exactly the kind of documentation that helps if a dispute ever reaches VCAT. If you're setting up how you'll manage repairs for a new tenancy, it's worth looking at what EZRENT does for landlords managing their own properties, or signing up to get your maintenance process organised from day one.

This article is general information only and is not financial, legal or professional advice. Rules, thresholds and requirements vary by state or territory and change over time - always check the current rules with your local tenancy authority or a qualified professional before acting on anything above.