Came across a horror story article recently so will relay them..
An owner seeking a court order to enforce a lease agreement and recover lost funds lost his case because one of the clauses had not been initialed by one tenant
A lease document did not state who was responsible for the payment of water consumption, the tenant left the property with a $1700 water account in the owners name
Tenants had a domestic disturbance resulting in a stabbing, the carpets and drapes were ruined and the house was abandoned soon afterwards, but with no property condition report there was no compensation for the owner
In another case two car bodies were left in the front yard, no property condition report, no claim
Tenant did not note or report repairs at the time of inspection and an ongoing roof leak caused the roof to collapse.Slight water damage to a wall behind the bathroom went unoticed and and caused hunders of dollars worth of damage and the shower area needed regrouting
A tenant was behind in rent and due to appear in court, then paid the full amount by cheque on the eve of the court case, the owner cancelled the hearing and then the tenant cancelled the cheque, the whole process had to begin againA tenant advised an owner that the balcony needed repair and was cracking, the owner ignored the message and one day the tenant had friends over, the balcony collapsed and people were hurt, the owner was successfully sued for negligence
A friends cousin was telling me he had just finished cleaning a house for his business partners mum, she owned a couple of IP’s and managed herself, she however rented to a young family who turned out to be junkies and owed 10weeks rent, he had to go over and evict them, he then set about cleaning the place which had rubbish piled knee high along the walls and passgeways, he took 3 trailer loads of rubbish out and then used a pressure cleaner to clean the house..
REMEMBER-
Every week a property is left vacant you lose 2% of your total annual rental income, after 5 weeks you’ve lost 10%Weekly rental $200
Annual rental $10’400
1 week vacant $200 (2%)
5 weeks vacant $1’000 (10%)REDWING[8]
“Money is a currency, like electricity and it requires momentum to make it Effective”
Dear Redwing
Of your 8 scenarios:
a. 4 are basic errors by the landlord or the PM in failing to cross the t’s and dot the i’s. If they are PM errors the landlord would have a claim against the PM. However, obviously the better solution is to look at what steps the landlord can take to prevent these. These could include as standard procedure getting the PM to send a copy of the signed lease and condition report to the landlord as soon as they are done. A PM could also have this as a step in their system which might be a point of differentiation for them.
b. The 5th scenario might be misfortune. However, during the periodic inspections the landlord or PM has conducted has the tenant ever been asked is there anything that you’ve noticed. As an aside has the landlord/PM been proactive in responding to tenant’s issues. I once rented a house where paint was peeling on two ceilings from a roof leak that had been repaired. Before I rented the agent said the landlord would get the ceilings repainted. Two years later when the landlord sold this was raised with the new landlord. Leaking caused by inadequate guttering had also been raised with the agent and both landlords. No action taken. Why would a tenant raise anything with a landlord/agent whose attitude was like that? If the landlord/agent in the 5th scenario was not as inactive as those I’ve experienced, who is to say that the tenant’s experience hasn’t been shaped by other landlords’ attitudes. I was staggered last year when my PM rang me and said the tenant had asked whether we could fix some taps which the tenant said hadn’t worked for a considerable time. This was the first time it had been raised. Why? Another story might illustrate. I have a friend with an IP. His attitude is if the tenant asks for anything get the PM to terminate the lease at its end.
c. Scenario 6. An easy mistake to make – trusting others to act honourably. Maybe the landlord should have seen the police. Cancelling a cheque can be a criminal offence.
d. A landlord who has been put on notice of potential danger ignores it.
e. Finally, the risk of do it yourself. What background checks were done on the tenants? If you’re going to do something it needs to be done properly.crj
Thanks for the response CRJ
Agree with you re: having a PM, gives you a ‘comeback’ on many issues. I prefer to have IP’s managed by the PM, a friend has just come across to my way of thinking as he has tenants who ring him at all hrs, and he’s a shift worker also..[xx(] he’d finally had enough and decided the cost was worth it..
As for your friend, as they say in marketing, it’s easier to retain a customer than to source a new one, and a great tenants worth thier weight in gold.. you gotta love trhe tenant who treats the place as thier own and put’s plant’s in, keeps the place and grounds immaculate..we have one, who keeps the property in *pristine* condition.[:X]
REDWING
“Money is a currency, like electricity and it requires momentum to make it Effective”
thank you for sharing. it’s quite a good read
Warm Regards
Chan Dollars
[The bridge between where you are right now & where you want to be tomorrow is knowledge]
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