What is a temporary tenant relocation agreement?
Sometimes a rental can't be repaired with people living in it: a floor coming up after a leak, mould remediation, rewiring, asbestos removal or a full kitchen replacement. Moving the tenant out for a few weeks is the practical answer, but a tenant who hands back the keys without paperwork is right to worry about getting them back.
This agreement records the works and the move-out and expected return dates, then sets the arrangements: temporary housing the landlord provides, or an allowance per day, week, month or in one sum. It covers what rent is payable for the unit meanwhile, how moving costs are handled, and whether belongings go into insured storage, stay locked in the unit or move with the tenant. Most importantly, it says the lease continues and the tenant has the right to return on the same terms, with progress updates, notice before the return, a joint walk-through, and a reminder that local relocation rules apply where they give the tenant more.
- Best for
- Major repairs or renovations that need a rental home empty for days, weeks or months
- Signed by
- Landlord and tenant, initialled on every page
- Tenant protection
- The lease continues and the tenant has a written right to return
- Length
- 2 pages
When to use a temporary tenant relocation agreement
- Moving a family to a furnished apartment while water damage is repaired
- Paying a tenant a daily allowance to stay elsewhere during mould remediation
- Relocating a tenant for a week while the building is fumigated or rewired
- Planned renovations in a small apartment building, unit by unit
- Recording the arrangements an insurer is paying for after a fire or flood
What you fill in
23 blanks, then the name and email of each person who signs: landlord, tenant.
1 The tenancy
- Date of this agreement*
- Landlord*
- Landlord's contact during the works*
- Tenant(s)*
- Household members relocating (optional)
- Rental home (the Unit)*
- Date of the lease
2 The works
- Works being done*
- Tenant moves out on*
- Expected return date*
3 Temporary housing
- Where the Tenant stays* The Landlord will provide temporary housing. · The Landlord will pay a relocation allowance and the Tenant will arrange their own housing.
- Temporary housing address
- Description of the temporary housing
4 Money
- Currency*
- Relocation allowance (if the Tenant arranges housing)
- Allowance paid* per day · per week · per month · as a single amount for the whole period
- Rent for the Unit during the relocation* No rent is payable for the Unit for the days the Tenant is relocated, and any rent already paid for those days will be credited. · The Tenant keeps paying the normal rent for the Unit, and pays nothing for the temporary housing. · Rent for the Unit is reduced to the amount below for the relocation period.
- Reduced monthly rent (if chosen)
- Moving costs* The Landlord will arrange and pay for professional movers both ways. · The Landlord will repay the Tenant's reasonable receipted moving costs both ways, up to the limit below. · The Landlord will pay the Tenant the fixed moving payment below, for both moves.
- Moving cost limit or fixed payment (if chosen)
5 Belongings
- Belongings* Belongings the Tenant does not take will be packed and stored by the Landlord's movers in insured storage, at the Landlord's cost. · Belongings the Tenant does not take may stay in a locked room or area of the Unit, protected from the works. · The Tenant will take or store all their belongings themselves, covered by the moving costs above.
- Other arrangements (optional)
- Governing law*
6 Who signs
- Landlord signature and date, job title, initials on every page · The landlord or the managing agent signing for them.
- Tenant signature and date, initials on every page · The tenant named on the lease. All adult tenants should sign.
What the temporary tenant relocation agreement covers
- Why the Tenant is moving out
- Where the Tenant stays
- Rent during the relocation
- Moving costs
- Belongings
- The Lease continues
- During the Works, delays and the return
- Local law and general
Using the temporary tenant relocation agreement, step by step
1 Describe the tenancy and the works
Enter the landlord, tenants and household, the unit and lease date, what work is being done, the move-out date and the expected return date.
2 Choose housing or an allowance
Either give the temporary housing's address and description, or set an allowance and how often it is paid.
3 Settle rent and moving
Choose whether rent stops, continues or is reduced, how moving costs are covered, and what happens to belongings left behind.
4 Add extras and send
Note anything else agreed, such as pet boarding or commuting costs, add a contact for the works and send it to the tenant to sign.
Tips before you send it
- Check local law before you agree the terms. Some places set minimum relocation payments, notice periods or time limits.
- If insurance is paying for the temporary housing, confirm what the policy covers before you choose an option.
- Take dated photos of the unit and of any belongings being stored before the move.
- Save the agreement in FileIt with the expected return date as its expiry date, so both sides get a reminder to check progress.
Sign it online in minutes
- Fill in the blanks. Names, dates and amounts go straight into the agreement — the preview shows exactly where.
- Name who signs. Tick “This is me” for your own part. FileIt builds the PDF with every signature, date and initials box on the right line, and you can check or move anything before sending.
- Send it. Each signer gets a secure link and signs from any device — no account needed. The signed PDF, with an audit trail and a Certificate of Completion, is filed in your vault and emailed to everyone.
Temporary tenant relocation agreement: frequently asked questions
Does moving out end the lease?
No. The agreement says the lease continues, that it is not a surrender, and that the tenant has the right to return to the same unit on the same terms when the works are done.
What if the repairs take longer than expected?
The landlord must tell the tenant in writing as soon as the date slips, with a new expected date, and the housing or allowance, rent and storage arrangements continue for as long as the relocation lasts.
Does the tenant still pay rent?
You choose: no rent for the days relocated (with a credit for rent already paid), normal rent with free temporary housing, or a reduced rent you set.
Does signing give up the tenant's rights?
No. It says plainly that it does not waive any right under the lease or the law, including any claim about the condition that led to the works.