Maximum electricity prices in land lease communities for customers in an embedded network 

In residential land lease communities, a community operator will own the land that a resident’s home sits on. Many land lease communities are supplied their electricity through an embedded network, which means that the operator also owns the network infrastructure like the wires within the community. In these cases, most customers will be unable to choose their electricity supplier and so there are rules about how much their operator can charge them for their electricity. 

On 24 June 2024, legislative amendments were passed which have changed the rules for how much customers in residential land lease communities can be charged for their electricity. 

Under the new laws, community operators must charge less than or equal to the rates for the median market offer in your area. The new laws require IPART to determine what the median market offer is and advise the Commissioner of Fair Trading. 

You can find IPART’s determination of maximum prices here. These prices apply from 25 September 2024. To find out more about how we determine what the median price is, we have published a methodology paper.

These arrangements are likely to be an interim measure while the NSW Government finalises its Embedded network action plan. 

If you have any concerns relating to the way the prices are set by the Residential (Land Lease) Communities Act, please contact NSW Fair Trading on 13 32 20.

IPART has conducted a broader review of how prices for all embedded network customers should be set

As part of the NSW Government’s Embedded network action plan, IPART made recommendations on how maximum prices should be set for all customers living in embedded networks. This includes people living in land lease communities, and also other customers such as those living in a new development. 

We recommended that IPART would determine maximum prices based on the median of the lowest market offer from each retailer in that area. This is a different methodology to that set out in the new laws relating to residential land lease communities.

The NSW Government is currently considering IPART’s recommendations. If IPART’s recommendations are implemented, we expect that this would result in maximum prices that are on average 5% lower than the maximum price under the new laws for residential land lease communities.

 

How do I know if I am living in a land lease community where these maximum prices apply?

If you are not sure whether you are living in a residential land lease community, you can use the Government’s Residential land lease communities register. 

The Energy and Water Ombudsman NSW (EWON) also provides information to help you understand whether you are living in an embedded network.

For more information, please see:

Residential Community Electricity FAQs

Residential land lease communities

Why has the NSW Government changed the rules?

The changes to how maximum prices are set were recommended by the NSW Department of Customer Service in 2021, and these changes were accepted by the NSW Government and enacted by Parliament. You can read about the reasons for the changes in the Department’s final report. The second reading speech also provides the Government’s reasons for the amendments.

What were the previous rules for maximum charges?

The previous maximum electricity prices in residential land lease communities depended on who was sending you your bills:

  • If your operator is billing you directly for your electricity, then they could not charge you more than the operator has been charged by the electricity retailer for the supply or use of the electricity consumed at your site. For more information please see the NSW Government’s Residential Community Electricity FAQs.
  • If the operator is outsourcing the billing to a third-party retailer, then there were no limits to how much residents can be charged.

Under the new amendments these rules have changed so that the same maximum prices apply to all residential land lease customers. 

Am I entitled to a discount if my site is supplied with less than 60 amps?

Yes. If your site is supplied with: 

  • between 30 amps and 60 amps - you will receive a 30% discount to your daily supply charge. 
  • less than 30 amps - you will receive a 60% discount to your daily supply charge. 

Discounts are not applied to your consumption charge.

Who can I call if I have an issue with my operator or billing?

Always talk to the operator of your land lease community first. 

If you still consider the community operator is charging a higher amount than the maximum supply charge or the maximum usage charge, contact Fair Trading on 13 32 20. 

For other issues, you can contact the Energy & Water Ombudsman NSW (EWON), which is the government approved dispute resolution scheme for New South Wales electricity and gas customers. You can complain to EWON if: 

  • you think your electricity usage charges have not been correctly calculated or you believe they are based on incorrect usage
  • you think the discount to your daily supply charge based on the amps supplied to your home is incorrect
  • you have concerns about your ability to pay your invoice or you believe you might be at risk of disconnection.

For more information about EWON, please visit their website.

Key documents on this page
IPART 2024 price determination
IPART Methodology paper