Regulated SDU tenancies: rent, receipts, utility apportionment and the second term

Check eligibility and establish term records

Part IVA eligibility depends on RVD's conditions, including the relevant commencement date, subdivided premises, an individual tenant's residential use and excluded categories. Check the actual building and letting arrangement instead of automatically including village houses, industrial rooms or every shared home. For an eligible tenancy, mandatory terms prevail over inconsistent contractual wording. Keep the eligibility questions with the agreement so a later dispute is not reduced to the advertising label.

The landlord must lodge AR2 within sixty days after each term begins; retain the endorsed copy and use AR3 to enquire if it is missing. RVD's 2026 special arrangements for certain discovered late submissions involve discretionary follow-up and do not remove the reporting duty. Rent receipts must be provided within seven days of receipt. Keep the parties, premises, payment date and rental period visible alongside the transfer record.

Require utility bills and an intelligible allocation

Where the landlord separately charges for utilities, the relevant bill copy and written apportionment are required, and total apportioned charges cannot exceed the bill. Check billing period, total and your readings or allocation basis, including how fixed components and other rooms are accounted for. A verbal unit price alone is not the supporting paperwork. Ask for an explanation that can be reconciled to the actual supplier bill.

Keep payments against the billing periods and separate rent, water, electricity and other items. For a suspected excess or missing paperwork, state the discrepancy and documents requested in writing and ask RVD about follow-up. Do not dismantle meters or wiring to test readings. An unexplained deduction from rent can create another dispute, so obtain advice on rights and procedure rather than combining all charges into a self-made adjustment.

Use AR1 for the second term and check BHU transition separately

A regulated cycle ordinarily comprises two consecutive two-year terms. The AR1 offer period is the second calendar month before the month the second term starts. To accept a valid served offer, sign that same AR1 and serve it on the landlord before the first term expires, retaining a copy and service evidence. Check the official index change and ten-percent ceiling; negative changes require the corresponding reduction, not an automatic increase.

If the landlord fails to serve a valid offer within the offer period, the legislation has separate deemed-offer and acceptance arrangements. Missing paperwork does not by itself mean the renewal right is lost. For late service, missing signatures or a proposed rent above the permitted maximum, seek timely RVD guidance on the applicable process and rent and preserve the original documents and contacts.

BHU registration arrangements began on 1 March 2026, with registration running to 28 February 2027. Valid registration and recognition are different, and transition and countdown provisions can affect tenancy termination. Do not promise every tenant an unconditional four-year stay. Check the premises' status and applicable dates with the relevant official guidance. RVD's AR2 tenancy record is neither a Housing Bureau registration nor recognition of the premises.

Example: preparing a Sham Shui Po second term in 2027

Kan's first term ends in late 2026 and the proposed second term starts in January 2027. He marks November 2026 as the AR1 offer month and checks the official calculation rather than accepting a blanket ten-percent increase. He reads the amount and acceptance procedure and preserves service and return evidence instead of assuming a WhatsApp message saying he will renew completes the statutory steps.

That month's electricity charge is only a handwritten figure, so he requests the supplier bill and allocation separately from the renewal. When told that a BHU application was made, he checks valid registration, recognition and transition dates. These enquiries run alongside one another: registration is not proof that charges comply, and a utility dispute does not justify ignoring the AR1 acceptance deadline.