Low Maintenance Gardens for your Rental Property

An attractive garden will invariably make a large contribution to letting a property.  However, whilst tenants are keen on gardens, the prospect of gardening is usually another matter all together.

“I need a low maintenance garden because my tenants just don’t look after it” is a very common request from clients.  Fortunately it is a request that can be fulfilled. The trick is not to make the area look like a ‘prison yard’ - with some paving and one or two small plants lost in a desert of gravel.

If your rental property already has stunning gardens which you want to have maintained to a high standard, you may want to consider giving your tenants 'added value' by paying for a gardener to maintain them and building this in to the rent.

Here are some tips for your low maintenance garden:

Oversupply Not An Issue for Victoria

Despite recording a dramatic upswing in the number of property developments, Victoria shows little signs of succumbing to an oversupply issue.

Speaking at the Business Forecasting Conference last week, BIS Shrapnel managing director Robert Mellor said while some parts of Victoria may run into minor oversupply conditions, over the longer term, oversupply will not be an issue.

“Built on the back of strong underlying demand and solid population growth, the Melbourne market will be able to sustain the boom in development for the next two to three years,” Mr Mellor said.

According to the Mr Mellor, dwelling commencements rose by 30 per cent in 2009/10 to 54,500 starts – Victoria’s highest level of construction to date.

Private and other dwelling commencements also increased in 2009/10, growing 43 per cent.

Relatively low land prices were the driving factor behind Victoria’s recent residential development boom.

However recent price hikes are expected to cool the construction boom by at least 7 per cent over the next 12 months.

Mr Mellor said this adjustment will prevent the market entering oversupply in the future.

Source Data: www.rebonline.com.au 

The Pros and Cons of Using a Property Manager

One of the biggest advantages of having a property manager in place is that we not only do all the actual management for you - selection of tenants, completion of appropriate paperwork, inspections etc. - but also much of the accounting. Most property managers will supply a monthly statement detailing the gross income, the expenses incurred,  commission and the net amount transferred into your bank account. This makes for very easy accounting.

Another advantage of using property managers is that the less pleasant work of evictions, notices of rental increases and notices requiring tenants to remedy shortcomings in keeping the property clean and tidy, no longer need to be handled by you personally.

So how do you choose a property manager?

Just like with the selection of a property to buy, or the selection of a property manager to work with, or the selection of a tradesman to work on your properties, it is somewhat of a numbers game. Go with recommendations from friends or other landlords, interview prospective managers, ask them how they have dealt with particular problems in the past, and then try them out.

To summarise:
On the plus side agents can save you:

• paperwork
• having to deal with courts and eviction notices
• unpleasant issues like informing tenants of rent increases and complaints against them

Melbourne Property Data and Trends

If you are thinking of buying or selling in Melbourne, Victoria, or just wanting to understand how the real estate market is tracking in Melbourne, this informative page comprises valuable information. 

Supply and Demand for Melbourne Properties

What to look for when renting a home or property

The process of home hunting can be fun for renters, but sometimes it's a difficult one as well. When you know what to look for in a rental home, the search will go faster and you will be much more likely to be satisfied with your choice later on down the road. The location of a rental is important for obvious reasons. Proximity to work, school, friends and family is a huge factor to consider. The size and condition of a rental dwelling is also something to look at.  You have to be able to fit everyone in your family and all their stuff and you want to do it comfortably. But you don't want to waste money on a place that's way too big.

The condition and features of a home have to be looked at right alongside its size. If it is in rough shape, that has to be factored into what you are paying for the home as well. And any features you are looking for that are lacking take away from its desirability, given the fact that you will be paying for the right to live there month after month. And all this leads us to probably the biggest factor off all for most renters: the cost of a rental. Finding a home that fits all these specifications but also fits your budget is paramount in importance. If you can accomplish all of these things at the same time, you'll likely end up with a place to live in year after year.

To assist you in your search for a rental property, we have designed a 'rental wish list' form.  Once your form has been submitted, we then match up with properties available and give you a short-list of homes to look at.

Location of a Rental

Renters who search for places to live usually confine their searches to a limited geographical area. While this is often the case, it is still useful to think in terms of location. First of all, two homes situated on opposite ends of the same town can have vastly different locations. One might be located right next to the freeway, while the other requires quite a commute just to get there. One may be right around the corner from your child's school and within its bus route while living in the other would require you to drive your son or daughter in every day.

Location is about more than just proximity, though. Even in a small town, there are certain areas where the homes are more desirable and the neighborhoods friendlier. And in larger cities, crime rates and all sorts of other factors are greatly affected by what part of town you live in as a renter. So while convenience is certainly important when choosing a home based on location, safety and security are equally important. So think about your rental home's location in a wider context, and not just based on its proximity to your work.

The Home's Size and Condition

A growing family might prefer a large apartment or house on a bit of property, while a single renter does not necessarily need all that space. The sizes of the homes you are considering have to be taken into account as a very important factor. If there are several of you in the household, chances are you'll want to try to find the biggest property you can afford for your monthly budget. But large homes that rent cheap usually have some fatal flaw for a lot of renters. One of the most common ones is their condition.

No one wants to live in a home that's falling apart from under their feet. Renting a home with structural issues or one that's been neglected can lead to all sorts of problems. For one thing, you're renting and not buying, so fixing up the house is not your responsibility. Yet you do have to live there, so you don't want to let things go, especially if they present a safety issue.

Features of a Rental Home

Balancing out a peeling paint job on a large house in the country might be a great big front porch with a nice overhang, where your whole family can watch the sunset together. Or maybe there's a shared gym or pool membership. Some rental homes come with features that set them apart from the others. If you're a fishing aficionado, living on a river or close to a beach known for great fishing would sure be a bonus. For those among us who are particularly safety minded, living in a gated community would be great. And renting a home with an extensive security system would make you feel much better at night when you go to sleep. Certain features on a rental home that set it apart from all the others might end up being the tie breaking factor if you have the choice narrowed down to a few places.

For a college student living off campus, if a loft is situated walking distance from all your classes and your job and it still fits your budget, you might want to snap it up as long as it's in good shape and the size works for you. A senior citizen renting a unit would likely want to be near family and friends and maybe his church or local senior center. A young family with the opportunity to rent a house with a huge sandbox and swing set already provided out back, as well as a nice shed to store toys in will likely take advantage of that opportunity. The unique features of a rental home that set it apart from all the others sometimes end up as the basis for our rental decisions.

The Bottom Line

But the bottom line for almost all of us is price. It does not matter how beautiful a home is or how many acres it sits on if you can't afford the rent. Any discussion of the other factors always has to be done in the context of the price point the home hits. The price of a rental home is the first and last consideration for most of us, and for good reason. We all have budgetary restraints dictating the rental decisions we make.

At True you can rest assured we will do our utmost to find you the home you are looking for.

Throughout your tenancy with True Property Management Victoria you can be assured of:

• One point of contact, our team of property management professionals place great importance on you, our tenants.
• Phone calls & correspondence responded to promptly
• The ability to pay your rent by direct debit on your bank account (set and forget)
• Maintenance carried out efficiently and by licensed tradespeople
• The ability to request maintenance online

How to Cope with Property Damage

If you've ever owned something which we all have, you know how important it is to protect it. The same goes for our owned property which includes residential and commercial. It is important to protect property with all necessary precautions. If damage or vandalism to your personal property occurs, it's not just physical damage, but is also is a violation of personal space. Property damage can occur in many various types such as intentional, ones negligence or the act of nature, including fire, water damage or natural disaster.

Intentional property damage is a criminal offense. A charge is most likely laid in vandalism occurrences, road rage or domestic disputes where things become broken. Tampering with another property, defacement, threatening harm to the property and criminal littering are all considered being property damage. Many times, criminal property damage is seen as childish and a minor offense but this is a type of crime and remains on ones permanent criminal record. There are many different terms for this type of property damage, which include: criminal damage, criminal mischief, malicious damage, malicious destruction of property and malicious mischief. Whatever it may be termed in the legal system, it is a crime and should not be tolerated. The most effective and really, the only way to prevent these happenings is to park your car in a well-lit area at all times, have an agreement with neighbours to watch over each others property, be aware of any suspicious behaviours and loitering, and report any distrustful activity while it is occurring by reporting it directly to the emergency line in your area.