Essential information to landlords

Our dedicated and experienced property management team strive to provide the very best service to our landlords with ongoing communication to ensure that you are informed on all aspects of your property. Due to their busy schedules, our property managers are often out at appointments and may not be able to immediately answer your call or email. Our team make every effort to reply to emails and return phone calls by the following business day at the latest, so you never need to worry that your phone call or email won’t be responded to.

 

Preparing Your Property for Lease

Prior to a new tenancy commencing, your property manager may suggest getting a cleaner through and someone to attend to the lawns, weeding etc. Having the property in tiptop condition at the start of tenancy makes it much easier upon the tenant vacating to have the property returned in excellent condition.

 

Landlord Insurance

Even the best tenants can fall on hard times, so it is essential that should this happen, you are properly covered. We recommend looking into Insurers who specialise in Landlord insurance such as EBM or Terri Scheer for full cover including pet damage, accidental & malicious damage and no excess rental default cover. For more information or to discuss how your current insurer compares, contact EBM 1800 661 662/ Terri Scheer: 1800 804 016.

When choosing an insurer please consider & compare excess charges, accidental & deliberate damage, pet damage, periodic or fixed lease etc. 

For more insight & information please feel free to speak with one of our experienced property managers.

Smoke Alarm & Water Compliance

It is a requirement from NSW Fair Trading that all properties are fitted with smoke alarms and issued with a compliance certificate. We have found that the most cost effective solution to ensure you are covered is to arrange a subscription with Smoke Alarms Australia (or similar) who for a single yearly fee will attend whenever needed (new tenancy, faulty alarm, yearly service etc)

A current water compliance certificate is also required to be able to invoice your tenants their water usage. NSW Fair Trading has advised this should be done prior to each new tenancy to ensure the property is compliant.

 

Council & Sydney Water Rates Notices

Our office is able to arrange payments of your rates through your rental income for no additional cost as this service is included in your management fee. Should you wish to arrange payment yourself, please note that you will need to forward a copy of the Sydney Water bill to our office so we can charge the tenant water usage within 3 months or we are unable to pass this onto the tenant

 

Tenant Water Usage

We are legally required to give 21 days' notice to your tenant for the water usage invoice to be paid.  If you have requested our office to arrange payment on your behalf, we will arrange for the full invoice to be paid to Sydney Water and your tenant will reimburse you the usage portion. This will ensure that your rates are paid before the due date however depending on when your disbursement period falls each month, you may not see the tenant reimbursement until the following statement.
Please ensure that you have disconnected your utilities such as gas, electricity, internet etc prior to tenancy

 

Rent Arrears Policy

We have a strict rent arrears policy. If your tenants rent fall more than 14 days behind, they will be issued with a Termination Notice. We make every effort to have our tenants pay rent by Direct Debit and paying 1 week in advance to reduce the risk of late payments and rental arrears.  We will update you every step of the way.

 

Repairs & Maintenance

Setting a high standard of repair and cleanliness encourages your tenants to do the same and reduces the likelihood of future safety problems. Taking a proactive stance on maintenance and repairs encourages your tenants to remain in place. 

Throughout the tenancy, your tenant may advise of some general maintenance issues that are required. Your property manager will contact you to discuss what is required. There may on occasion be an emergency repair that needs urgent action. Should this be outside of office hours, this will be arranged and you will be advised when the office reopens the next business days.

Urgent repairs include:

  • a burst water service or a serious water service leak
  • a blocked or broken toilet
  • a serious roof leak
  • a gas leak
  • an electrical fault
  • flooding or serious flood damage
  • serious storm or fire damage
  • a failure or breakdown of the gas, electricity or water supply to the property
  • a failure or breakdown of the hot water service
  • a failure or breakdown of the stove or oven
  • a failure or breakdown of a heater or air-conditioner
  • a fault or damage which makes the property unsafe or insecure.
  • Smoke alarms must also be repaired urgently to ensure they are working – further information on this is provided below under Smoke alarms.

  

Routine Inspections

NSW Fair Trading allows agents to attend the property up to 4 times per year. The first routine inspection will be approximately 3-4 months after the tenant moves in. At the inspection, photos are taken internally & externally and are sent to you along with our written inspection report. This inspection report is accessed through your Property Me owner portal. You must set this up to access any reports or statements that are sent to you.

Future inspections are generally conducted every 6 months. This allows the property managers to arrange a reinspection, should the property not be up to scratch. While conducting other appointments, our property managers have the opportunity to drive by properties in their portfolio. Should they see that the property appears to require maintenance by the tenant such as weeding & mowing, they will not wait for the next scheduled inspection but contact the tenant to have this rectified straight away.

 

Rental Increases & Lease Break Fees

Due to the change in Legislation, rental increases can only be done once in a 12 month period with the relevant notice period being given to the tenant. 

Changes in legislation have also affected the tenants Lease Break Fee. Should your tenant wish to break their lease and vacate the property prior to the lease expiring the following fees may apply

  • four weeks rent if less than 25 per cent of the agreement has expired
  • three weeks rent if 25 per cent or more but less than 50 per cent of the agreement has expired
  • two weeks rent if 50 per cent or more but less than 75 per cent of the agreement has expired
  • one weeks rent if 75 per cent or more of the agreement has expired.

 

Property Me Owner Portal

You can securely access your property activity and financial information online via here. Click on the blue word ‘here’ to set this up. We will send you an email as soon as we secure your first tenant.

Just follow the above link to create a password and log into your account.

In PropertyMe, you can:

* View a real-time snapshot of your property and rental details

* Track financial activity including monthly activity, expenses breakdown and more

* Monitor the status of any outstanding jobs

* Access into inspections to see comments, images and any follow-up actions

* View and download documents such as statements and bills

Learn more about Owner Access