Little Change for Melbourne Renters

The metropolitan rental market continues to be in a state of imbalance, with vacancies more than outweighed by renters.

The rental vacancy rate for Melbourne in September was 1.4 per cent, a minor reduction compared to June when it was 1.5 per cent.

In the inner city the vacancy rate improved from 1.1 to 1.4 per cent; in the middle suburbs it reduced from two per cent to 1.8 per cent; and the outer suburbs retained the tightest rental market, with a 0.7 per cent rental vacancy rate compared to 0.8 per cent in June.

The lack of available rental homes continues to drive increases in rents. According to the Office of Housing, the rent for a three-bedroom home has, depending on the location, increased by between 3.9 and 11 per cent over the last year. The comparative figure for a two-bedroom unit or apartment is a rise of between 3.1 and 8.3 per cent.

There continues to be no improvement possible in the short- to medium-term.

Conditions in the regional Victoria rental market was very similar to the metropolitan one, with a rental vacancy rate of 0.7 per cent in September compared to one per cent in June.

The Bendigo region continues to have the lowest level of available rental homes, with a vacancy rate of 0.2 per cent compared to 0.4 in June. In the Geelong region it dropped from 1.3 per cent in June to 0.9 per cent in September and in the Ballarat region there was a small improvement from one to 1.2 per cent.

 

Source: http://www.reiv.com.au

Melbourne Property Manager Guarantee Shows True Committment

True Property Management understand that you need to have complete confidence in your Property Manager.  To show our commitment we offer a No Strings Attached, Money Back Guarantee.

If you are not fully satisfied with the service you receive during the first three months of True leasing and managing your property due to any of the following assurances not being realized, all management fees and leasing charges made by True during the period of management will be repaid to you in full.

Our confidence in the quality of service we provide allows us to offer this additional security to all new clients.

The only thing we ask is that if you believe we have not acted in accordance with our assurances, you advise us and allow us the opportunity to remedy the situation.

Visit us for a full list of client assurances established by the True Team as the 'bare minimum' service levels.  Assurances cover the following areas of your Property Management:

• Marketing
• Leasing
• Lease Renewal
• Property Inspections
• Rent Collection
• Rent Processing and Accounting
• Repairs and Maintenance
• Communication

TIP: Victoria tenants can also view information and fact sheets regarding your rights on a wide range of tenancy matters at http://www.tuv.org.au/publications.

Complete Rental Guide

The Consumer Affairs, Victoria have an online version of their Complete Renting Guide available.

This includes tips and information both tenants and landlords need to be familiar with.  The following two excerpts are from this Guide:

Steps you can take to have an urgent item repaired

• Speak with your landlord about whether your repair is urgent. If you request urgent repairs, the landlord or agent must respond without delay.
• If a repair is urgent and you are not getting a prompt response from your landlord or agent, you can authorise the repair for up to $1000.
• You can then give your landlord or agent a notice asking that they pay you back for the cost of the urgent repairs. Your landlord or agent has 14 days to pay from the date they receive the notice.
• If the landlord or agent does not complete the urgent repairs and they are going to cost more than $1000, or you cannot afford to pay for them, you can apply to VCAT, which will hear the application within two business days. VCAT can order the landlord or agent to arrange the repairs.

Agreeing to end a tenancy early

• You and your landlord can agree to end the tenancy early.
• It is important to put the decision in writing.
• This written notice should include any agreed costs, terms and conditions, and the date the tenancy is to end.
• If you have a fixed-term agreement but need to end your lease early, you should give written notice as soon as possible that you are leaving. Breaking a tenancy agreement may require you to pay compensation to your landlord.
• Either party can apply to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) to end a tenancy early on the basis of hardship.

Alternatively, feel free to contact us at True Property if you have any questions or concerns.

Property Management Checklist

If you are shopping around for a property manager for your investment property, it is important that you know what quality and range of services you are paying for.

Not all property managers are the same.

In order that you make an informed decision, ask the following questions of the agency you are considering for the job of managing your property.

Property Leasing

1. On average, how many properties does the agency lease each month?
2. What human resources has the agency allocated to leasing properties?
3. Do the agency staff members personally show prospective tenants through properties?
4. How does the agency market available properties for lease?
5. How much information is obtained from applicants for properties and what information is verified?

Property Management

1. What documented systems are in place for property management?
2. What is your process for dealing with rent arrears?
3. What is your process for dealing with repairs and maintenance?
4. What steps do you take to ensure that all contractors working on my property are properly licensed and insured?
5. What steps do you take to ensure that all maintenance work on my property is competitively priced?
6. How frequently will you inspect my property?
7. What is the experience level of the staff members who will be leasing and managing my property?
8. How much training have they had?
9. How frequently will you account to me for rent monies collected on by behalf?
10. Can you send me rent statements by email and deposit my money in my bank account electronically? Yes/No

Customer Service

1. What references do you have from satisfied clients?
2. Do you provide a service guarantee? Yes/No
3. Does the agency have documented service standards? Yes/No
4. What back up staff are there in the event my property manager is sick or on holidays?
5. How frequently will you communicate with me and what form will it take? 

More tips for investors and owners can be found at True Property Management's (Victoria) website.

Contentious Late Rent Issue under Victoria Legislation

When a tenant signs a Residential Tenancy Agreement they agree to pay the rent in full fortnightly or monthly in advance.  However, in reality, no action can be taken by the property owner or their agent until the rent remains unpaid for more than fourteen day other than constant reminders usually by sms, phone calls, emails and normal mail.

A Notice to Vacate can be served upon the tenant on the fifteenth day allowing them another fourteen days to pay the outstanding rent or vacate the property.  Here lies the trap; should the tenant decide to vacate within this time period and pay rental up to date they vacate, the Fixed Term Agreement is negated and no further action can be taken against the tenant unless the property is left in disrepair.  This long standing loop-hole in the legislation allows savvy tenants to renege on their obligations under a Fixed Term Tenancy Agreement without penalty.

This further emphasizes the need for comprehensive Landlord insurance as a representative from EBM Insurance confirmed that this would be covered as a lease break.  This is subject to the policy being in place prior to the tenant falling into arrears, a current tenancy agreement and a bond held by the Residential Tenancies Bond Authority.