Landlord Services

It’s too simple to say that maintenance is handled in line with your instructions but that’s exactly where it all starts. When a tenant reports a maintenance issue the first thing our property managers see on the computer screen besides the problem is your instructions. And every owners instructions are different. Some want us to talk to them about every issue, others want us to look after issues without bothering them, some prefer their own tradesmen and so. Our system easily handles those variations.

A lot of complaints we hear from owners is that their agent gets work done, when in fact the problem or; more to the point the responsibility wasn’t the owner’s in the first place. We always review each item check initially as to who’s responsible.. With our experience we have forced strata managers to do work on behalf of our clients, ensured tenants have covered their full responsibilities and chased insurance companies for payment.

All our tradesmen are checked each year to ensure they carry full licensing and insurance. They must guarantee their work and must be able and willing to go back at our, or the clients request.

Yes we can and what’s more, we don’t charge for the service! The reason many owners have us attend to the payments of rates, strata levies and insurance premiums is that it’s easier for them, it is summarised in their annual statement which makes tax time much easier.

Furthermore it allows us to send water usage claims to the tenants and recover the expense. Water usage claims have some rules relating to water saving devices etc. and because we use direct debit, the money owing is deducted from the tenants bank account and paid to our clients without issue or unnecessary delay. The system is so good that we have had owners transfer the management of their properties to us because of our ability and speed to collect water usage.

‘Payment of rent is not discretionary!’ Many agents set up systems of rent collection that allow tenants to choose when and how they pay rent.

Just as the banks deduct your mortgage payment out of your bank account on the day due, so do we deduct the rent from our tenants bank accounts when it’s due. We also collect water usage and any other tenant payments by Direct Debit. Based on industry statistics and agency comparisons, agents that collect rent using only Direct Debit have 1/10th the rent arrears of other agents. That means you are 10 times less likely to have cash flow problems with your investment property. And because we have 1/10th of the arrears of our competitors, our property managers are able to put more time in working to resolve any payment issues with tenants; less problems for you and better resolutions.

Payment to you is the important question and we pay our clients monthly or twice monthly as they prefer. Our money is banked into your nominated bank account as cleared funds so you can draw on it instantly. And we offer the facility of emailed statements or access to your own password protected client portal which allows you to access your past statements, annual financial reports etc.

Simple answer, Absolutely!

Not only do you get to decide, but your choice is exactly that, you choose and we respect that. We will always provide guidance on:

• Looking after and maintaining the property
• Meeting tenant obligations, paying rent on time and coping with rent increases
• Behaviour during their tenancy (people who are unfriendly, demanding or arrogant rarely make good tenants)
• Likelihood that they will be long term tenants rather than short term (our average length of tenancy is over 4 years)
• The important thing is that it’s not just us that should be comfortable and confident about the tenant, it’s you the owner. And that’s what guides us and that’s why when it comes to selecting tenants, and if you choose, the answer to any tenants application is never a Yes until you tell us so.

Our experience and expertise allows us to manage property throughout Sydney. In fact we manage property from Penrith to the City. Our clients like the idea that all their Sydney investment property is handled by one highly trained property manager who knows what they expect. Our tenants talk to us by phone and email as do our owners, we inspect property when due and we source tenants from the internet just the same as a local agent.

Let’s refine the question, how long does it take to find a good tenant, you really don’t want the other kind!

We are statistic nuts and track everything in our business so we know rather than guess what’s happening. Vacancy periods vary depending on times of the year. Just prior to Christmas when school years end and people move out of the area can take more time as compared to February when the universities and school start back. Our experience is that across a full financial year we average between 14 and 21 days vacancy between tenants moving out and new tenants moving in.

We are one of the more ‘selective’ agents when it comes to recommending new tenants to our clients. Our experience is that we will often reject 3 out of 4 applications we receive on a property. This can be because references can’t be checked, tenants history is patchy or people were less than easy to deal with. Its always a case that its better to reject a bad tenant than it is to take a bad tenant and then try and get them out of your property.

Important to note; we are not insurance advisors and our opinions are purely that.

In our opinion, landlord insurance should cover accidental as well as malicious damage done by a tenant, visitor or event this will ensure you are covered if anything unexpected happens. It should also include Owners Liability, which will protect you against claims made by a tenant against a landlord as a result of a personal injury. These claims are rare, but if they happen and you aren’t covered, you can risk losing everything.

Here are some things you should look for:

• Are you covered for personal injury to the occupant
• Are you covered for loss of rent
• Are you coved for accidental damage

Don’t be afraid to ask, it’s your future!

The good news is that we can take care of everything. The first step is to get in writing, your instructions as to how you want your property. You will then sign a letter of termination for your old agent which and we notify the agent. Usually agents will require a notice period so they can get paperwork organised – we will negotiate that through with them so that there aren’t any issues.

We let the tenant know and set up new arrangements for the rent. We also arrange to do an inspection of the property as soon as possible so we know the condition and review issues such as rent levels and outstanding maintenance. In our experience, changeover of managing agents can happen seamlessly at time of the tenant vacating, when the tenant is under lease or when the lease has expired.

Rather then being in a position where you are unhappy with your current agent and unable to resolve any service issues, give us a call.