How to ask your landlord
You don't have to own your home to host — you need your landlord's written consent. Here's what NSW law actually says, and an email you can copy, fill in and forward to your property manager in about two minutes.
Most renters never ask, because composing the email is the hard part — it feels like drawing attention to yourself mid-lease. So we've written it for you. Asking is normal, it's a question property managers field regularly, and the worst realistic outcome is that they say no and nothing changes.
What the law says in NSW
You need it in writing, and it has to be asked for first
Sub-letting without your landlord's written consent is a breach of your lease, and it's the kind that ends a tenancy. This isn't a rule anyone bends for a good tenant — get the yes before you list, not after you've taken a booking.
For the whole place, they can simply say no
This is the part worth knowing before you ask. Under NSW law, if you're sub-letting part of the premises and still living there, consent can't be unreasonably refused. But if you're going away and letting the whole place — which is what hosting while you travel means — your landlord can refuse for any reason, and doesn't have to give one.
Which is why how you ask does most of the work
There's no right to appeal to, so the ask has to stand on its own: a specific period, a named arrangement, your rent still arriving, and you still on the hook for everything. An agent who can see all four in one email has very little left to worry about. A vague question gets a reflexive no.
The email
Copy this, fill in anything in square brackets, and send it to whoever you normally deal with. Send it by email rather than phone so the answer arrives in writing — a verbal yes from a property manager is not consent you can rely on later.
Subject
Request for written consent to sub-let — [property address]
Body
Dear [property manager / landlord name], I'm the tenant at [property address]. I'm writing to ask for your written consent to sub-let the premises for a fixed period while I'm away. The details: • Dates: [check-in date] to [check-out date] ([number] weeks) • Occupants: [number] adult(s), no additional people beyond those named • Rent: I will continue paying my rent in full, on the same dates, directly to you as usual • The lease: I remain the tenant and remain responsible for the property, the rent and any damage for the whole period. Nothing about my obligations under the lease changes. The person staying is a member of Renthropic, an invitation-only network where every member is vouched for by someone already in the community. I've spoken with them directly and I'm happy to provide their name and details, and to put the arrangement in writing between us. I'm also happy to agree to any conditions you'd like attached — for example a written sub-letting agreement, confirmation of contents insurance, or a condition report with photographs taken before and after. If it would help to discuss this by phone, I'm on [your phone number]. Could you let me know either way in writing? If there's a form you'd prefer I complete, please send it through and I'll return it promptly. Many thanks, [your name] [your phone number] Tenant, [property address]
Why it says what it says
Exact dates, not “a couple of months”
A fixed period with a start and an end reads as a plan. An open-ended request reads as the beginning of something they'll have to manage.
How many people, and who they are
Name the guest count. Say the person came through an invitation-only network and was vouched for by an existing member — it's a materially different answer from “someone off a website”.
That you stay responsible under the lease
The single most reassuring sentence in the email. You remain the tenant, the rent keeps arriving on the same dates from you, and any damage is still yours to answer for.
That you'll put it in writing and accept conditions
Offering a written sub-letting agreement, a condition report and photographs before you're asked turns the request from a favour into a proposal.
If the answer is no
Ask what would change the answer
Sometimes the objection is narrow and fixable — they want the sub-tenant named, or a shorter period, or a clause about the garden. A no to this request isn't always a no to every version of it.
Ask about part of the place instead
If you'd be staying — a spare room while you're working from home, say — you're in the other half of the law, where consent can't be unreasonably refused. It's a different question with a different answer, and worth asking separately.
Take the no, and don't do it anyway
Hosting without consent risks your tenancy and your rental history to earn a few weeks' rent. It isn't worth it, and it isn't what this community is. Wait for the next lease, or come back when you're renting somewhere that says yes.
Once you have the yes
Keep the email — that reply is the document that matters, so file it somewhere you can find it. Then the rest of hosting is the same whether you own or rent: the twelve checks before you hand over the keys covers insurance, what to put in writing, and getting the place ready.
This page is general information about asking for consent — it isn't legal advice, and it can't take account of your lease or your circumstances. Your agreement may contain terms of its own, and rules differ by state. Check your lease, NSW Fair Trading, or a solicitor or your local Tenants' Advice service if anything material turns on it.
Send the email, then claim your spot.
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