Most bond arguments are won or lost on one piece of paper you sign on the day you move in. Your landlord is legally required to give it to you. Here's what it is, what the law says about the state of the place on day one, and how to use it so it protects you when you leave.
- Your landlord or agent must give you a signed inspection sheet — usually called a condition report — when you move in. Not doing so carries a maximum penalty of $5,000.
- The place has to be reasonably clean when you move in. That's the landlord's obligation, not yours.
- When you leave, the benchmark is the condition you received it in, allowing for reasonable wear and tear — not perfection.
- The sheet is built for both of you to describe the condition. Fill in your side properly. Don't just sign theirs.
That's a common experience, and South Australian law speaks to both halves of it. The obligation to hand over a clean property sits with the landlord. And the standard you're held to when you leave is measured against what you were given. The document that connects the two is the inspection sheet.
Your landlord must give you an inspection sheet
This isn't a courtesy. Regulation 4 of the Residential Tenancies Regulations 2025 requires that, at the time you start occupying the premises, the landlord or their agent completes and gives each tenant one signed copy of an inspection sheet. So it should already carry their signature when it's handed to you. If you're renting with housemates, each of you is entitled to your own copy.
The Regulations set out what the sheet has to do. It must:
- Identify the premises the tenancy covers.
- Give comprehensive details of the fixtures, furniture and other contents.
- Let both the landlord and the tenant describe the condition of the premises and contents — at the start of the tenancy and at the end.
- Be signed by both parties — at the start and again at the end.
- Tell you that you can contact Consumer and Business Services if a disagreement arises about the condition of the premises.
The regulation carries a note that says exactly what the sheet is for: it "should be used for a comparison check when the tenant vacates the premises." The maximum penalty for failing to provide one is $5,000.
Everyone calls it a condition report. The Regulations call it an inspection sheet. They're the same document. If you're writing to your landlord or agent about it, "inspection sheet under regulation 4" is the precise term.
The place has to be clean when you move in
Section 67 of the Residential Tenancies Act makes it a term of every residential tenancy agreement that the landlord will ensure the premises, and any ancillary property, are in a reasonable state of cleanliness when you go into occupation.
"It is a term of a residential tenancy agreement that the landlord will ensure that the premises, and ancillary property, are in a reasonable state of cleanliness when the tenant goes into occupation of the premises."
You don't have to accept a dirty handover as the normal starting point. It's the landlord's obligation, and it's written into your agreement whether or not the paperwork mentions it.
Why this decides your bond when you leave
At the end of your tenancy, section 69(3) requires you to give the premises back in reasonable condition and a reasonable state of cleanliness. Then section 69(4) says how that's judged:
"In deciding whether premises or other property is in reasonable condition, its condition when the tenant took possession of it, and the probable effect of reasonable wear and tear since that time, must be taken into account."
Put those together and the logic is simple. The standard you're held to at the end is measured from the condition you received the place in. If it was dirty on day one, that's part of the benchmark. The inspection sheet is the record of what day one looked like — which is why the one you sign at the start matters more than the one at the end.
At the start — the landlord
- Hands the place over in a reasonable state of cleanliness (s.67)
- Completes the inspection sheet and gives each tenant a signed copy (reg 4)
At the end — you
- Give the place back in reasonable condition and reasonably clean (s.69(3))
- Measured against how it was when you moved in, allowing for reasonable wear and tear (s.69(4))
How to use it properly
Not a legal list, just the items that tend to come up in bond disputes later:
- Door and window locks, and that every key works
- Oven burners, range hood, dishwasher and air conditioning (including the remote)
- Water pressure, drainage in sinks and showers, and hot water
- Carpet stains, wall scuffs, chipped or cracked tiles
Don't just sign theirs — write your own descriptions
The sheet is designed for both of you to describe the condition. If the agent has written "clean" and it isn't, write what you actually see, room by room. Stains, marks, grime in the oven, mould on the shower grout, a dirty range hood — put it down. The official form has its own tenant column for this, with codes like D for dirty and B for broken.
You may have heard you have 14 days to return it. That isn't in South Australian law: neither the Act, the Regulations nor the official form sets a deadline. Don't take that as licence to wait, though. Fill it in during your first few days, while any problems are clearly ones you moved in with.
Photograph and video everything on day one
Take photos of every room, every appliance, inside cupboards and the oven, before you move anything in. A slow video walkthrough of the whole place is worth doing too. Keep the original files rather than edited or compressed copies, because they carry the date and time. Emailing them to yourself, or to the agent, the same day gives you a second dated record. None of this is a legal requirement. It's evidence that backs up what you wrote on the sheet.
If it's dirty, say so in writing
Email the landlord or agent the same week, referring to their obligation under section 67 and attaching your photos. That gives you a dated record beyond the sheet itself.
Keep your signed copy somewhere you'll find it
Tenancies run for years. The sheet you need at the end is the one you signed at the start. Keep it with your lease and the bond receipt.
Use it again when you leave
At the end, the same sheet is completed and signed again for the comparison check. Take photos from the same angles. If a cleaning or damage claim comes, you're comparing like with like.
What if you never got one?
Not giving a tenant a signed inspection sheet is an offence under regulation 4. The penalty is a fine for the offence, not money paid to you.
If you didn't receive one, ask the landlord or agent for it in writing. If a disagreement arises about the condition of the premises, the sheet itself directs you to Consumer and Business Services — you can ring CBS on 131 882.
Either way, start your own record now. Dated photos and a written note of the condition are far better than nothing — particularly if you've only just moved in.
Consumer and Business Services
Disagreements about the condition of the premises
131 882
RentRight SA
Free advice about your own situation
1800 060 462
Our guide Can my landlord keep my bond? covers applying for your bond yourself and what happens if they object.
The bottom line: the inspection sheet isn't paperwork to get through on moving day. It's the document your bond will be judged against — and you're entitled to write on it too.
Sources
This page doesn't ask you to take our word for it. These are the provisions it relies on — look them up yourself.
- s.67
- s.69(3)
- s.69(4)
- reg 4
Residential Tenancies Act 1995 (SA) — authorised version 15.1.2026.
Residential Tenancies Regulations 2025 (SA) — authorised version 1.9.2025. On each page, take the link marked Current.
Inspection Sheet — Consumer and Business Services, July 2024. The official form.
Every rule on LucidLaw is read at the source and recorded with its section. Where something can't be verified against the legislation, we don't state it. Sections on this page last checked 29 September 2026. How we check this.
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