Real Estate Agent Kept Your Deposit? How to Get Your Money Back (Australia 2026)

Last updated 27 October 2026 · Reviewed by the Claim Done team · Not legal advice

Can you get your money back from a real estate agent?

Agents handle other people’s money every day: holding deposits, bonds, rent, sale deposits and their own fees. The law that applies depends on who you are and what the money was for.

• If you are a renter, state tenancy law controls holding deposits and bans many of the fees agents used to charge applicants. A holding deposit that the law says must be refunded can be claimed back.
• If you are selling, your agency agreement and your state’s agent law decide what commission and fees the agent can charge. In New South Wales, an agency agreement that you cancel correctly in the cooling-off period means the agent cannot charge you any fees or costs and must refund anything you paid.
• If an agent held your money in trust (a deposit, rent or a bond) and did not pass it on or account for it, the state compensation fund may pay you where the agent cannot.
• If an agent misled you, the Australian Consumer Law says a person must not, in trade or commerce, engage in conduct that is misleading or deceptive (s 18). You can claim the loss it caused you within 6 years (s 236).

What an agent cannot do:

• keep a holding deposit when the law says it must be refunded, for example in Victoria where no agreement is signed within 14 days;
• charge renters banned fees, such as application or background-check fees in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland;
• take more up front than the law allows (in South Australia, nothing beyond the bond and 2 weeks’ rent at the start);
• hold on to trust money that belongs to you.

The most common problems with real estate agents

1. Holding deposit not refunded. You were not offered the lease, or you withdrew within the allowed time, and the agent kept the money. Claim the full deposit.
2. Holding deposit kept after the agent misled you. In New South Wales the landlord cannot keep the holding fee if they failed to tell you certain material facts or misrepresented the property. Claim it back.
3. Application or background-check fees. Banned in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland. Claim back what you paid.
4. Fees for paying rent. In New South Wales the agent must offer at least one way to pay rent without extra costs beyond normal bank fees. Claim back fees charged in breach.
5. WA option fee kept. If your application was refused, the option fee must be returned within seven days.
6. Commission when the agent did not earn it. For example, under a sole agency agreement you found a buyer the agent did not introduce, or the agency agreement was cancelled in the cooling-off period. Claim the commission or fees back.
7. Marketing costs you did not agree to. In New South Wales the agent can ask you to pay for advertising, an auctioneer, cleaning, decorating or landscaping only if it is set out in the agency agreement. Dispute charges that are not.
8. Rent collected but not paid to the landlord. For landlords whose managing agent kept the rent, the state compensation fund may cover it.
9. Deposit not paid to the seller after settlement. A classic trust money failure. Claim from the agent and, if needed, the compensation fund.
10. Misleading statements that cost you money. A false claim about the property that made you pay for something you would not otherwise have paid for. Claim your loss under the Australian Consumer Law.

The rules agents must follow, by state

Holding deposits and banned renter fees

New South Wales. A holding fee can only be asked for once the landlord has approved your application, and it cannot be more than one week’s rent. It goes towards rent if you sign. For the first 7 days after you pay it, the landlord or agent cannot sign a lease with anyone else. The landlord may keep it if you do not sign, unless they failed to tell you certain material facts or misrepresented the property. You must not be charged for a background check, showing the property, preparing the agreement, initial keys, or a pet bond.

Victoria. The money must be refunded once both parties sign the agreement, and if an agreement is not signed within 14 days, it must be refunded by the next business day. Rental providers, agents and online rental platforms cannot charge any fee for your application, including identity verification or background checks, and agents cannot charge a fee to show you a property.

Queensland. Only one holding deposit can be taken for a property at a time, and you must be given the proposed agreement before any money is taken. The holding period is agreed, or 48 hours if none is agreed. If you tell the agent within the holding period that you will not rent the property, the deposit must be refunded within 3 days. If you do not tell them in time, or say you will proceed but then do not sign, you lose it. Application fees are banned.

Western Australia. Instead of a holding deposit, a landlord can charge an option fee: up to $50 where the rent is $500 a week or less, and up to $100 above that (with a higher cap north of the 26th parallel for rents of $1,200 or more). If the application succeeds, it comes off the first rent or is paid back; if it is refused, it must be returned within seven days.

South Australia. Besides the bond and the first 2 weeks’ rent, the landlord cannot ask for any other money at the start of the tenancy.

Compensation funds for trust money

• NSW: Property Services Compensation Fund. For people out of pocket because an agent or conveyancer failed to account for money held in trust. Claim in writing within 12 months of becoming aware of the failure, or within 2 years of when it happened, whichever ends first.
• Victoria: Victorian Property Fund. For misuse or misappropriation of trust money by an agent or conveyancer, such as not paying a deposit to the seller after settlement or not paying rent to the landlord. It does not cover unprofessional conduct, bad advice or misrepresenting a property. Rejected claims can be appealed to VCAT within three months.
• Queensland: claim fund. Claims for financial loss against property and letting agents, lodged free with the Office of Fair Trading, within 1 year of becoming aware of your loss and no more than 3 years after the event. Try the agent’s complaint process first.
• South Australia: Agents Indemnity Fund. A last resort where there is no reasonable way to recover the money from the agent, for example because the agent is bankrupt. Decisions can be appealed to SACAT.
• Northern Territory: Agents Licensing Fidelity Guarantee Fund, for eligible claims.

Agency agreements and commission (sellers)

In New South Wales an agency agreement must state the fees and commission, when the agent is entitled to be paid, how and when payment is made, and warnings, for example about paying commission to two agents or commission payable even if the sale does not complete. Under an exclusive agency agreement the agent may be entitled to commission if the property sells in the term, even if you sell it yourself; under a sole agency agreement, no commission is payable if you find a buyer the agent did not introduce. There is a cooling-off period of one business day, ending at 5pm on the next business day or Saturday. If you rescind correctly, the agent cannot charge you any fees or costs and must refund anything you paid. NCAT lists “agent commissions and fees” among the matters it hears.

What you can claim

• The deposit or fee. The full holding deposit, option fee, or banned fee.
• Commission or fees not owed. The amount charged beyond what the agency agreement and the law allowed.
• Trust money. The money the agent held for you and did not pay or account for.
• Loss caused by misleading conduct. The money you lost because you relied on what the agent said, for example costs you would not have paid.

Work out each item with the date, the amount and the document that proves it: the receipt, the agency agreement, the trust account statement or the message where the agent made the statement.

Worked example (round numbers, for illustration only). A renter in Melbourne pays a $600 holding deposit on 1 March. The agent then rents the home to someone else and no agreement is ever signed with the renter. Under Victorian rules, if an agreement is not signed within 14 days, the money must be refunded by the next business day, so it was due by 16 March. The agent also charged a $40 “application processing” fee, which is banned. The renter claims $640.

Evidence to gather

1. Receipts or bank records for every amount you paid the agent.
2. The application, any holding deposit receipt (with the holding period, in Queensland), and the emails about it.
3. For sellers: the signed agency agreement, the date it was given to you, and any notice of rescission.
4. The agent’s invoices, marketing schedule and settlement statement.
5. Trust account statements or rental statements showing what was received and paid out.
6. Screenshots of the listing, texts and emails where the agent made statements you relied on.
7. Names of the agency (its legal name and licence number if you can find it) and the agent you dealt with.
8. A short timeline of what happened and when.

How to get your money back: 5 steps

Step 1: Write to the agency

Email the agency’s principal or licensee, not only the agent you dealt with. Say what happened, what you want back and the rule that requires it, and give a deadline of a few business days. Keep a copy. Queensland’s Office of Fair Trading says to try settling with the agent first and to go through their complaint process.

Step 2: Send a formal complaint to the agency

If the agency refuses, stalls or does not reply, send our Real Estate Agent Complaint and Holding Deposit Refund. You get a formal complaint to the agency that sets out the law and the amount and gives a 14-day deadline, plus a complaint statement ready for the agent regulator in your state if the agency does not fix it.

Send the agent complaint – $49

If the money is a rental bond the agent is claiming against, use our bond dispute letter; for any other money an agent owes you, a general letter of demand also works.

Step 3: Complain to your state’s agent regulator

Attach your complaint and evidence. These bodies license agents and take complaints. Some cannot order a refund themselves, so treat them as pressure and a record, not the end of the road.

• NSW: NSW Fair Trading, 13 32 20.
• Victoria: Consumer Affairs Victoria, 1300 55 81 81.
• Queensland: the Office of Fair Trading (also runs the claim fund).
• Western Australia: Consumer Protection, 1300 30 40 54. It cannot order a trader to give a refund or compensation.
• South Australia: Consumer and Business Services, 131 882.
• Tasmania: the Property Agents Board.
• ACT: the ACT agent regulator (check Access Canberra for the current complaint route).
• Northern Territory: the Agents Licensing Board. A complaint is an application for disciplinary action; it cannot award compensation, so money claims go to NTCAT or the fidelity fund.

If the agent mishandled trust money, also lodge a claim on the compensation fund within its time limit.

Step 4: Send the final demand

Still not paid? Send a final demand that quotes your complaint, the agency’s response and any regulator reference, and gives the date you will file at the tribunal.

Send the final demand – $49

Step 5: Claim at the tribunal or court

A holding deposit or other tenancy money goes to the state tenancy forum: NCAT, VCAT (after Rental Dispute Resolution Victoria), QCAT (after the RTA’s dispute service), SACAT, ACAT or NTCAT, or the Magistrates Court in Western Australia and Tasmania. Commission, fees and misleading conduct claims go to the consumer or civil claims list in the state where the agency is. We prepare the application from your answers, with a witness statement (in Western Australia, South Australia and Tasmania, the court claim where the Magistrates Court is the forum).

Prepare your tribunal application – $97

Our Hearing Bundle ($97) organises your evidence for the hearing.

Organise your evidence – $97

Where your claim goes in each state

Claims go to the tribunal or court in the state where the agency is (for a rental, the state where the property is).

Interstate rule. For NCAT and VCAT, if the person you are claiming against is an individual or sole trader who lives in another state, the tribunal cannot decide it and the claim goes to a court instead (Burns v Corbett [2018] HCA 15). An agency run by a company is not affected. QCAT in Queensland currently hears these claims, because the Queensland Court of Appeal has held it is a court (Owen v Menzies [2012] QCA 170), although two appeals challenging that are pending.

After you win: getting paid

If the agency still does not pay after a tribunal or court order, the order can be enforced. In most states it is registered or filed with the court and enforced as a judgment: a garnishee order on the agency’s bank account, seizure and sale of property, or an examination of the agency about its finances. Where the agent is insolvent and the money was trust money, the state compensation fund may be the better route.

Tribunals do not collect the money for you. In NSW, Victoria, Queensland, the ACT and the NT, an unpaid tribunal money order is first registered, recorded or filed with a court. In WA, SA and Tasmania the Magistrates Court decides the claim, so you already have a court judgment. Then you apply for the court’s enforcement tools.

Enforce your order – $97

Enforce your order – $97

Questions people ask

Do I get my holding deposit back if I am not offered the lease?

It depends on your state’s rule. In Victoria, if no agreement is signed within 14 days, the money must be refunded by the next business day. In Western Australia a refused applicant’s option fee must be returned within seven days. In New South Wales a holding fee can only be taken after your application is approved. Our Real Estate Agent Complaint and Holding Deposit Refund demands it back.

How much can an agent charge as a holding deposit?

In New South Wales, no more than one week’s rent, and only after the landlord has approved your application. In Western Australia the option fee is capped at $50 for rents of $500 a week or less and $100 above that, with a higher cap in some northern areas. Queensland allows only one holding deposit at a time per property.

Can I get my holding deposit back if I change my mind?

Sometimes. In Queensland, if you tell the agent within the agreed holding period (48 hours if none was agreed) that you will not rent the property, the deposit must be refunded within 3 days. In New South Wales the landlord may keep the holding fee if you do not sign, unless they failed to tell you material facts or misrepresented the property.

Can a real estate agent charge an application fee?

Not in New South Wales, Victoria or Queensland. New South Wales bans charges for background checks, showing a property and preparing the agreement. Victoria bans fees for processing applications and for identity or background checks, including by online rental platforms. Queensland bans application fees. If you paid one, ask for it back in writing.

Who do I complain to about a real estate agent?

The agent regulator in the agency’s state: NSW Fair Trading, Consumer Affairs Victoria, Queensland’s Office of Fair Trading, Consumer Protection WA, Consumer and Business Services in South Australia, the Property Agents Board in Tasmania, or the Agents Licensing Board in the Northern Territory. Write to the agency first and attach that letter to your complaint.

Can the regulator make the agent refund me?

Often not directly. Consumer Protection WA says it cannot order a trader to give a refund or compensation, and the NT Agents Licensing Board says its disciplinary process cannot award compensation. A complaint still puts pressure on the agency. To get an order for the money, claim at the tribunal or court, or on the compensation fund for trust money.

What if my agent stole or lost money held in trust?

Claim on the state compensation fund. In New South Wales, claim within 12 months of becoming aware or 2 years of the failure, whichever ends first. In Queensland, within 1 year of becoming aware and no more than 3 years after the event. Victoria’s Victorian Property Fund covers misuse of trust money, and South Australia’s Agents Indemnity Fund is a last resort.

Can I get commission back from my selling agent?

If the agent was not entitled to it, yes. In New South Wales, if you cancel an agency agreement within the one business day cooling-off period, the agent cannot charge any fees or costs and must refund what you paid. Under a sole agency agreement, no commission is payable if you find a buyer the agent did not introduce. NCAT hears disputes about agent commissions and fees.

Is it misleading conduct if an agent lied about a property?

It can be. The Australian Consumer Law says a person must not, in trade or commerce, engage in misleading or deceptive conduct. If you lost money because you relied on what the agent said, you can claim that loss within 6 years. Keep the listing, messages and emails that show what was said.

How long do I have to claim against a real estate agent?

It depends on the claim. Compensation fund claims have short limits (in New South Wales, 12 months from becoming aware, at most 2 years). A claim for loss caused by misleading conduct under the Australian Consumer Law can be brought within 6 years. Tenancy forums expect you to act promptly. Start with a written complaint now.

What should a complaint to a real estate agency say?

It should name the agency and the agent, say what happened with dates, quote the rule the agency broke, state the exact amount you want back and give a deadline. Attach receipts. Our agent complaint is written in that format; see also how to write a letter of demand.

Sources

• NSW Government, Costs at the start of a residential tenancy, Agency agreements for the sale of property; NSW Fair Trading, Property Services Compensation Fund
• NCAT, Fees and Charges Schedule as at 1 July 2026
• Consumer Affairs Victoria, Applying for a property, Compensation claims (Victorian Property Fund)
• Residential Tenancies Authority (Qld), Choosing a rental property; Queensland Government, Make a claim for financial loss
• Consumer Protection WA, Rent bidding, applications and option fees, What Consumer Protection does
• Consumer and Business Services SA, Tenant Information Guide (January 2026); SA Government, Claims against a real estate agent or conveyancer
• Tasmanian Government, Advice when buying or selling property
• NT Government, Complain about a real estate professional
• Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth), Schedule 2 (Australian Consumer Law) ss 18, 236: legislation.gov.au
• High Court of Australia, Burns v Corbett [2018] HCA 15

All sources checked 19 October 2026.

Claim Done is not a law firm and does not give legal advice. This page is general information. For a complex or high-value matter, speak to a lawyer or a free community legal centre.