How do rental contracts and deposits work in South Africa in 2026?

Write the landlord and tenant names, South African addresses for formal notices, a clear dwelling description, rent amount and any escalation, payment frequency, deposit amount, lease period or notice rules, and who pays prepaid electricity, water, fibre, and estate levies. Attach house rules and a defect list from the joint entry inspection as annexures when they exist: How to rent a home.

You are entitled to a dated written receipt for every payment that states whether the money is rent, deposit, or arrears and which period it covers. Subletting without landlord consent is restricted; consent may not be unreasonably withheld under the Act’s tenant-rights framework. Confirm furnishing, parking, pets, and load-shedding backups in writing before you treat marketing photos as contract: Utilities, internet, and transport.

The Act lets a landlord require a deposit before move-in at the amount agreed in the lease. That deposit must be invested in an interest-bearing account with a financial institution; interest accrues to you at no less than the savings rate on that account, and you may request written proof during the lease. Registered estate agents handle deposits under estate-agency trust rules instead of a private landlord savings pot. Market practice commonly sits around one to two months’ rent, sometimes more for weaker credit profiles; the Act does not freeze one national figure, so negotiate and write it down.

Jointly inspect before you move in and again within the Act’s outgoing window near lease end. Photograph meters, walls, appliances, and keys. On expiry, the landlord may apply deposit and interest only to amounts you owe under the lease, including reasonable damage repairs and lost keys, then refund the balance on the Act’s timelines (commonly within seven days when nothing is owed, with longer windows when restoration and inspection disputes apply). Keep every receipt for Tribunal filings. Provincial Rental Housing Tribunals handle many unfair-practice disputes without starting in high court.

Never wire a deposit before a viewing and a signed agreement: Avoid rental scams. Prefer debit orders from a local account once temporary residence allows: Open a bank account. Price the rent band honestly for your suburb: Rent in South Africa, Cape Town cost of living, Johannesburg cost of living.