Stanmore renter Toni Wynne believes she is the ideal tenant, paying her rent on time and achieving perfect inspection reports.

But when she decided to vacate her rental after what she says was months of waiting for repairs and maintenance, the property manager slugged her $2800 – her entire bond.

The costs were described as a “break fee”, which she claims was unfair given the condition of the property and the six weeks notice she provided.

When the agent refused to “be reasonable enough to have a discussion”, she took them to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal.

The fee was reduced to almost half the amount initially requested.

Once things get into tribunal it’s almost the case the landlord will get some of the tenants bond money.Ned Cuther, Tenants Union NSW

She’s one of 50 per cent of renters who didn’t have their full bond refunded in the last financial year.

But this could change under a statutory review, with a discussion paper promising changes to tenancy laws.

In the last financial year, 9 per cent of tenants lost their whole bond and a further 38 per cent lost a portion, according to NSW Rental Bond Board statistics noted in the Residential Tenancies Act discussion paper.

The paper asks whether the “process for refunding bonds and resolving bond disputes” works well.

Ms Wynne works a professional job and as a former-landlord herself was “so surprised there was no negotiation and I had to go through the time-consuming process [of going to NCAT]”.

Yet the proportion of tenants losing some of their bond has been about half from 2010 to 2015.

In the past five years there has been minimal improvement in full bond refunds – increasing about 1 per cent annually, Rental Bond Board annual reports show.

The majority of these claims never make it to tribunal – with three quarters of all refunds “agreed by the parties” and a further 23.5 per cent seeing a notice of claim issued but no formal hearing afterwards.

Tenants Union of NSW policy officer Ned Cutcher said there would be a some tenants who did agree with the landlord taking bond money, usually when there has been obvious damage and rental arrears.

But even when it’s not black and white, sometimes tenants decide not to argue it further.

If a tenant argues a bond claim formally they’ll have to pay the application fee to tribunal to challenge the claim, he said. They’ll also need to be confident they have evidence and can prepare their case.

“Once things get into tribunal it’s almost always the case the landlord will get some of the tenant’s bond money,” Mr Cutcher said.

But a trip to tribunal might stop a landlord getting as much as they’re asking.

In a ruling published in tribunal records, a landlord was awarded no compensation for damaged curtains as they had passed their depreciable life of six years.

Often landlords claim for the full cost of replacement for damaged items, or substantiate an excessive claim with high quotes, said Just Think Real Estate managing partner Edwin Almeida.

These claims are often revised down by tribunal, who factor in depreciation, fair wear and tear and legitimacy of quotes.

However, tenants should aim to avoid any bond claims from the start of their tenancy, Mr Almeida warned.

Losing a bond isn’t just a monetary disadvantage – it can also affect a tenant’s rental history and ability to be competitive in a tight market.

“One of the most critical ways tenants can protect themselves is by keeping detailed reports, dated photos of the home’s condition and correspondence with the agent,” he said.

Top five reasons tenants don’t get their bond back

1. Using cheap cleaning services or not cleaning thoroughly themselves. About 80 per cent of outgoing inspections fail on this and it costs tenants dearly. Use your property manager’s recommended cleaning company.

2. Failing to attend the final inspection and not leaving enough time before the end of the tenancy to come back and fix any issues addressed by the property manager.

3. Not carrying out a thorough inspection of the property when beginning the tenancy and reporting back to agency, within the prescribed seven days.

4. Accepting the agent’s condition report on face value. Most of the time agents provide vague reports.

5. Forgetting to take your own digital photos (date stamped) and not keeping correspondence in writing. Even phone conversations should be followed up with an email to the agent to confirm what was said. This now becomes evidence you can use at NCAT.Source: Edwin Almeida, Just Think Real Estate