Checklist · Residential Tenancies

Bond claim and condition report comparison checklist: claim items, evidence and fair wear and tear (NSW)

Checklist to build or test a NSW bond claim: compare the ingoing and outgoing condition reports room by room, separate damage from fair wear and tear, test each claim item against the permitted heads, cost evidence and timing, and the dispute route.

Kind: Checklist. Steps or checks to work through and tick off.
Where it applies: New South Wales
AI use: Yellow AI can help in set ways. A lawyer checks specific points before use.
Law stated as at: 18 October 2026
Status: Maintained. Checked on 18 October 2026 against the 4 authorities it cites, for New South Wales.
Version: 1
Source: Written for this library

When to use it

Use at the end of a NSW residential tenancy when preparing a landlord’s bond claim or responding to one for a tenant. It assumes an ingoing condition report was completed under s 29. Where there is none, the landlord’s evidence of the starting condition is weaker and the checklist flags it.

Used for these tasks

Each task page says how far AI may help with the task and what the lawyer must review.

How AI may be used

AI may line up the ingoing and outgoing condition reports and photos room by room and total the claim items; the lawyer or agent decides what is damage rather than fair wear and tear and what is reasonable to claim.

AI may

Set the ingoing and outgoing condition report entries and photographs side by side for each room and item
Flag items where the condition changed, where the tenant recorded a dissenting comment, or where no ingoing entry exists
Total the claim items and reconcile any rent or charges claimed against the rent ledger

AI must not

Must not decide whether a change is damage or fair wear and tear
Must not estimate repair or cleaning costs without a quote or invoice
Must not lodge or dispute a bond claim

The lawyer checks

Each claim item fits a permitted head in s 166 and is supported by the condition reports, photographs and a quote or invoice
Allowance has been made for fair wear and tear, the age of the item and the condition at the start of the tenancy
Items the tenant disputed in writing on the ingoing report, or that could not have been found on reasonable inspection, are treated as outside the s 30 presumption
Rent or charges claimed match the ledger, and the claim and any dispute are lodged within the time and in the form required

Method: how the Green, Yellow and Red levels are decided. This is guidance for planning, not legal advice.

Authorities

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All precedents for Residential Tenancies · Tasks and AI use in this area