How to have an Inspection, what if there’s damage?

Hi Psychiatrist

It’s geat that you “want to learn” this a great foru to learn from.

May I suggest one of the things I have learned from successful proeprty investors:

Don’t expect to do everything yourself.

Sure you may savea few (tax deductible) dollars a week managing your own property, but I would strongly recommend you get a proficient property manager to look after your properties.

Find the right PM and they will add value, not cost you.

Michael Yardney
METROPOLE PROPERTIES
Author of Australia’s leading property e-magazine.
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We have been private landlords for over 25 years with very few problems. We have never done any regular inspections. I know this is perhaps unusual but I would hate someone to walk through my house and unless we perceive that there are problems, we never do this. If we think there are problems, we arrange to call in to, say, collect overdue rent, or discuss the issues or whatever, and get an idea of how they keep the house, without being too obvious.

However, if you want to do an inspection, the RTA website (in Qld) has forms for just about everything you need, and I’m sure there are forms giving tenants notice of an impending inspection.

One couple renting from us decided to install shelves in the freshly painted walls without asking. They drilled 1cm holes in the VJ walls to do so. They also removed the clothes line. They were very reasonable when we explained we would deduct the cost of a new clothesline and have a painter patch the wall. The money was taken from their bond and they probably learned a good lesson, but there was no bad blood between us. Very lucky, but perhaps because we didn’t come over all heavy with them.

If a tenant replaced a broken window glass with a badly mismatched one, we would probably get a quote for the right glass to be replaced. We would request that amount be deducted from the bond.

We have always relied on “gut feeling” in selecting tenants and have only been burnt a couple of times, never badly. We always treat our tenants with courtesy and respect and nearly always get that in return.

We have just rented a house we have bought and renovated. As a precaution, as well as filling out the condition report I have taken photos to back up any future disagreements about the condition of the house, should they arise. We did this because last year, we had tenants go into a house in very good condition. When they returned the condition report, they made it sound like a flea pit (which it certainly was when they left, but not when they went in).

Cheers, Wylie.

I’d mention things when you find out about them. For an example, if we had told the tenant they were up for the cost of a replacement clothes line, they may have decided to buy one themselves. As it happened, rather than another hills hoist in the middle of the yard, we chose a fold up type and attached it to the side of the house, which is a much better look for this house (and most houses, I’d suggest).

Use your gut instincts here as well though. If we had said the wall had to be patched, the tenant may well have tried to patch and paint, using the same (lack of) expertise he used in putting up the shelving in the first place. AARGHH!!!!

I’m fairly laid back, try not to ruffle anyone’s feathers, so I would wait and see what life (and your tenant) throws at you and take each problem as it comes.

Best of luck, Wylie.