 Good morning and thank you for watching today's RTA recording about the new web services change of bond contribution process. Today's recording will run for approximately 20 to 25 minutes and we're going to include a step-by-step video on how to complete this process with our online web services. At any time you can pause the recording and watch at your own pace. My name is Lynn Smith and today I'm joined by Leah Brooker from the RTA web services project team. Leah previously worked in our bond management area and she is our subject matter expert today on this topic and all things bonds. So thanks for joining me today Leah. Thanks for having me, Lynn. Today we're going to be going through the difference between the bond contributors and tenancy agreements, paper form and the new web services, myth busting questions where Leah will answer some of the questions you may want to know. The RTA is also introducing an end of tenancy reminder email and I'll step you through what that means. And we'll also be playing a change of bond contributor video which goes through step-by-step instructions on today's topic and where to get more information. So let's look at the bond contributors and tenancy agreements. Hopefully we acknowledge that not all people who are listed on the tenancy agreement are bond contributors. Not all bond contributors listed on the rental bond with the RTA are listed on the tenancy agreement. Every tenancy is different and it can be from a couple of family or people sharing. So from this point of view, the bond contributor may not be listed on the tenancy agreement. It could also be that a parent has paid the bond on behalf of their family member and they are not on the tenancy agreement but they are the person who paid and has ownership of the bond. So it's important that any changes that occur regarding the rental bond, the RTA is informed so that we can amend our records accordingly and ensure who we have listed as contributors to the bond are the same contributors at the end when it comes time to refunding the bond. Any changes with the tenancy or roomy agreement needs to be agreed between all parties including the property manager or owner. Today's recording is only dealing with bond contributor changes and not dealing with the amendments or the approval process for any tenancy or roomy agreements. So let's have a look at our current pay-per-form process. The change of bond contributors is used when there is a change of bond ownership in an ongoing tenancy. The form is completed, agreed and signed by all parties including the tenants who are leaving, the tenants who are staying, the new tenants who are moving in and as an option the property manager or owner. All forms can be downloaded from the RTA's website. Remember to use the latest form versions for the change of bond contributors at the time of this recording, it's version 2. The tenant leaving gets his or her share of the bond they paid from the new tenant moving in or from the remaining tenants. So as an example, if the bond contributors is tenants A, B and C and during the tenancy C moves out and D moves in, tenant D will pay tenants C their contribution direct and everyone signs the form. Another example might be the similar scenario, again tenants A, B and C again residing and C still moves out. However, A and B decides that they will continue on and no one moves in to replace D. So between A and B, they will play out C's portion of the bond and again everyone agrees and signs. Once everyone signs the pay-per-form, either the property manager or the owner or the tenants listed as the contributor on the bond can submit the request to the RTA. It looks fairly simple and straightforward, however we do know that in some shared housing situations it can be really tricky. People swap the money over and don't sign the forms and frustrating for those who are left when it comes time to move out that the contributors don't align with who needs to get the bond at the end of the tenancy. This is a super important process during the tenancy if the contributors change to do it right. Remember this is notifying the RTA, there has been amendments to the rental bond and the contributors amount and who the contributors are moving forward. Now I'm just going to hand over to Leah to go through the new web services change on contributors request. Thanks Lynne. So today I'll take you through the newest addition to the RTA's web service forms. As the RTA progresses through the online platform options, the change of bond contributors request is the latest to be released. When a change of bond contributors request is submitted, only those contributors who are transferring some or all of their share to another party will need to agree to the request. This is similar to your scenarios mentioned before Lynne. When the money changes between tenants they need to ensure the RTA's records are updated to reflect this. The new process is available online through the RTA web services and just like all our other web services it is quick and easy to use. You'll need to log in through your QGov account and if you do not already have a QGov account you can easily register an account online by following the links. Under the new process the manager or owner will no longer need to agree to the change of bond contributors request if it has been submitted by the tenant. This is not only through the web services but through the paper base as well. Once the web services request has been submitted an email notification will be sent to any bond contributors who are transferring some or all of their bond to another party. They'll have 14 days to respond to the request. If the other contributors disagree or they don't respond at all the request will be cancelled and the tenants will be notified that the request has been cancelled. However, if all the contributors agree to the change the request is successfully processed and all parties to the bond including the manager or owner and the tenants. This includes any new tenants will receive written confirmation of the change of contributor. I'd just like to reiterate the paper form will remain available for customers who are unable to use web services. However, the RTA web services is easy to use and makes essential bond and dispute transactions faster, more convenient and more efficient. Additional information about the services are available through the web services can be found on the RTA's website. For example, you can lodge a rental bond, refund a rental bond, update your details and for COVID-19 disputes lodge a dispute resolution request. The website will also have step by step instructions and helpful hints to assist you in navigating these processes. It's easy to use and can result in faster same day processing. Back to you Lynn, we want to make sure our customers understand what the difference is between a tenancy agreement and the bond held at the RTA. Great, thanks Leah. Remember any changes to the tenancy agreement will need to be agreed by all parties and that all the tenants and the property managers and owners. The change of bond contributors does not approve a tenant for a general tenancy agreement or a rooming agreement. And the change of bond contributors is just making amendments to the rental bond that's held at the RTA only. I'm going to ask Leah to join us again and we're going to go through some of the questions that was raised during our testing trial and also from our customers. Leah, so our first question is, my bond is increasing. Can I pay the bond increase at the same time as I'm changing contributors? So, we know they won't be able to do this all in one form. We would suggest that the tenant go online and complete a change of bond contributors request. And once they receive confirmation it has been processed, then go online to complete a bond increase. And again, from a tenant, what do I do if I can't contact the person who left and needs their name removed from the bond? So, and this is probably one of those ones that's really quite common out there in the rental world that this does actually happen from time to time. Yeah, sure and it can be quite tricky to navigate. So, you can still submit the change of bond contributors request through web services as long as you have an email for the tenant leaving. The RTO can then send a request by email to the person who is being removed for them to respond to. However, there may be some other options available to you, so please give our contact centre staff a call on the 1300 number and they can step through some options. Okay, from a managing agent point of view, so the tenants have added people to the bond who are not on the lease, nor are they an approved occupant. Sure, so it's really important to remember here that changing the bond contributors only alters whose name is listed on the bond with the RTA. And it's not the same as getting approval to change the tenants listed on the tenancy agreement. It does not change parties obligations to the lease agreement. We encourage agents to talk to their tenants directly to get a better understanding of the situation if they're unaware of any intended changes. And again, from a tenant point of view, I've already paid the old tenant and they didn't approve the change of bond contributor. What do I do? And I said this is very slim to not able to be able to contact the people and things like that. So what does the old tenant, what does the new tenant do if they haven't been approved? Yes, so look, if the request is not approved, both the old tenant and the new tenant need to talk to each other for a start. The RTA really encourages people to communicate to resolve these matters. If they're unable to resolve the issue, they may need to seek alternative dispute resolution or independent legal advice. But again, please contact our RTA contact centre and they can assist you with your options. And again, from a managing owner or a tenant, I don't use web services. Can I still submit paper form? And I guess we have kind of answered that along the way that that is still an option that the RTA will have available. Yes, sure. If they're unable to use the web services, they may still submit the paper form which should be posted to the RTA. I'll take this opportunity and go in to remind our customers that using the RTA web services is the fastest way to process or essential tenancy transactions. So for example, it takes the RTA an average of 2.5 days to process a paper change of bond contributor's request. Once it's received, of course. So this doesn't include postage time. In contrast, an agreed change of bond contributor's request submitted through web services can be finalised within hours once it's all agreed. And this looks like two parts of questions, Leo. So what happens if they have a Department of Housing bond loan? And also too, what happens if the other person's passed away? Yeah, well, these can be tricky situations too. So I'll cover the bond loan first. If the tenant has a current Department of Housing and Public Work bond loan, they will not be able to use web services in this instance. They will still need to submit an application to the Department for any change to your bond loan agreement. Once approval is received, they can submit a paper change of bond contributor's request. And if someone has passed away, anyone acting on behalf of the deceased estate will not be able to use the RTA's web service either. So the deceased estate can submit a signed paper change of bond contributor's form, along with their photo ID, a death certificate and documentation to confirm that they are legally able to act on behalf of the deceased tenant. So this can either be a grant probate, a letter of administration or a statutory declaration. So look, we understand this is a sensitive situation and we encourage either the executor or the estate's representative to contact the RTA call centre and we can step this through what's required. Great. And just finally, Leah, from a managing agent's side of things, why did you make the change to the bond without my authority? It's really important to note here that successfully submitting a change of bond contributor's request with the RTA does not change the tenants listed on the tenancy agreement. Any changes to the tenancy agreement still requires approval by the property manager or owner and must be agreed by all parties. So the change of bond contributor's process only alters who is on the bond or how the bond contribution amounts are held at the RTA. And again, we really recommend speaking with the tenants about the changes if you aren't aware of them. Again, great communication is the key to resolving a lot of these issues if you're not aware. So on this slide, we've put together a summary of who and what happens on the change of bond contributor requests. Who needs to lodge, who needs to agree and who needs to respond and who receives email notification and when. So this is a slide that you may wish to now pause the recording and view all the information we have available here. Towards the end of the tenancy, the RTA is going to be sending a reminder to tenants listed on our bond records. This is the part of a new education resource to remind tenants of their bond number, which they're going to need when they transact with the RTA. And it's also going to provide links to resources and that's going to include education available on the RTA's website about vacating if they're going to be moving out. And encourage tenants to update their details with the RTA. We're also going to ask tenants to update their end of date tenancy if they're going to renew or extend their agreements. We're just going to play a short video on how to complete the change of bond contributor process through the RTA's web services. This is the great step-by-step resource in understanding this process. So more information is also available on the RTA's website rta.qld.gov.au and I will be back in a moment after the video. Once you have navigated to the change of bond contributors web service from the RTA website, you'll be taken to the web services terms and conditions page. You'll need to understand and agree to these terms. From here, you'll be directed to the QGov login page where you should enter your QGov details or create a QGov account. More information on how to create a QGov account can be found on the RTA website. You'll then arrive on the change of bond contributors web service before we begin page where you'll be asked to provide information about the property and your role in this tenancy. There are helpful hints to guide you to make the right decisions throughout the web service. If you select that you want to fill in the form as a tenant, a message will appear. This message informs tenants if the tenants in the property are changing, they should speak to their owner or the property manager before they submit this change of bond contributors request. If you fill in the form as a managing party or owner, this message will not appear. The change of bond contributor process is generally very similar for all customers. For the purpose of this demonstration, we will fill in the form as a property manager and as we go, we'll talk you through how the process differs for different users. You'll need to confirm your QGov details and provide a contact number. If you are using the service as a tenant or an individual owner, this screen will also include an extra section where you can provide us with your preferred name if this is different from your legal name. Next, you'll need to enter the bond number for your tenancy. If you're a property manager, an agent, a tenant organization or a joint lessor, you'll also need to enter your RTA ID. Tenants and individual property owners do not need to provide an RTA ID. Next, you'll need to confirm the rental premises address of the property for which you wish to submit a change of bond contributors request. You'll then be navigated to a page which lists the current bond contributors. You'll be asked if you want to add or remove any bond contributors. Only the property manager and the tenants listed on the bond by the RTA can change the bond contributors. For the purpose of this demonstration, we will answer yes. You will then be taken to a page which lists the bond contributors. You can use the add and remove buttons to change the contributors. For the purpose of this demonstration, we will say we want to add a new contributor. You must then input the new bond contributors details. They must have a unique email address so you cannot share an email with another tenant. If you remove a tenant who is currently on the bond, their name will appear on a remove contributors list. If you've made a mistake and want to add this tenant back onto the bond contributor list, click the undo button. You will then need to confirm the contribution amounts. You can choose to split the bond amounts equally or delegate different amounts to each tenant. You will then be asked if the end date of the tenancy has changed. If it has, you will need to enter a new end date. At this stage, you will be asked to provide emails for any contributors who don't currently have a consented email with the RTA. Remember that all parties must have a unique email address. After all the contact details are complete, you'll be taken to the summary page which shows you all the information you've entered. Read over this page carefully to check that all details are correct. If you want to make any changes, you can navigate back to the page you want to change using the edit buttons. You will then be taken to the next steps page where you can print a summary of your change of bond contributors request and provide feedback on your web service experience using the thumbs up, thumbs down button on the bottom of the page. Thank you to Leah from our web services project team for joining me today and explaining the new web services process. You can continually connect with us through LinkedIn or subscribe to the RTA's news articles through our website where we provide updates on current, current tenancy and bond topics and trends. Remember the RTA is here to help you. And if you need any tenancy assistance, whether you're the landlord, agent or a tenant, please contact us. For more information, please visit the RTA's website at rta.qld.gov.au If you have any questions, please pick up the phone and speak to one of our friendly contact centre staff on 1300 366 311. Thank you for your time today. Please stay tuned as we deliver more tenancy information through this and other educational channels from the Residential Tenancies Authority. Thank you.