Hi,
We haven't been keeping a close eye on one of our props & trusted the prop manager when he said the rent had been increased from $275 to $300 per week. That was 12 weeks ago… Today when I called the agent about something else he came clean & sqaid the tenants had just faxed him saying they would not be signing a lease until all problems with the prop had been fixed. The problems are minor & we have already fixed such inane things like an oven clock that wouldn't ring & have replaced some vertical blinds. Mind you, the house is only 2 years old & these are the first tenants. It seems to me the tenants are trying to not pay the increased rent for as long a spossible. The prop is in QLD. Considering they don't have a lease, how much notice do I need to give them to vacate my prop? I am also looking to give the prop manager the flick as well as their service has been less than good. They said we would need to give them 8 weeks notice !?!Any advice or similar tales of woe?
I think you may have to give 60 day notice.
The best place to look in these sorts of situations is the tenancy union in your state. These are set up to protect tenant's right's and usually have things clearly spelled out on their websites. Check out QLD's here:
http://www.tuq.org.au/ff_eviction.aspTerryw | Structuring Lawyers Pty Ltd / Loan Structuring Pty Ltd
http://www.Structuring.com.au
Email MeLawyer, Mortgage Broker and Tax Advisor (Sydney based but advising Aust wide) http://www.Structuring.com.au
Thanks Terry. That website was exactly what I was looking for. Looks like I'll have to put up with them for 60 days & hope they don't apply to small claims tribunal.
Here is an email we received from the prop manager today. What are our rights as owners in terms of getting a lease with increased rent signed? If we fix these things then the renters will come up with more problems. Surely there must be some recourse for owners?
Following our discussion on the telephone 19/12/2007 we wish to confirm the following:
– Any maintenance previously advised by the tenant/s has been rectified
– Maintenance pointed out when you attended the inspection at the property has been rectified with exception to the ceiling in the kitchen requiring a professional to paint the entire ceiling of that room
We note that the tenant has now advised the following items require attention:
– Broken/Brittle door handle in bathroom
– Front door handle cracked and broken
– Rangehood requires new bracket
They have also now advised that the wood around the gravel under the clothes line is warped/twisted from being expose to the weather. Tenants have said that it is twisted out of place.
We note that you do not want these items attended to at this stage. Please be aware the tenants can breach you/our office for items not repaired and if they are aware of their rights may with hold rent until maintenance is complete.
The tenants have indicated they do not intend to sign the lease until ALL maintenance has been completed.
We would suggest from conversations with the tenant that they are unsure if they want to stay at the property or have other intentions of maybe purchasing a property of their own and are also trying to avoid a rent increase by not signing the lease agreement.
We have discussed this situation at length – the following are your options
1) have maintenance completed, the tenants will then consider signing the lease and the rent increase will take effect.
2) Give your tenants appropriate notice (two months) to vacate the property without grounds – then have maintenance completed and re-let the property.
3) Not to complete the maintenance, not to evict tenants – the tenants then may choose to give you two weeks notice of their intention to vacate the property.
4) Complete maintenance at the property and then give the tenants notice to vacate the property without grounds – this avoiding tenants disputing the Notice we serve on them to vacate.
Our recommendations would be the 4th option. We believe that this option will avoid a dispute between the tenants and yourselves. Any damage to the property that is not considered wear and tear can then be repaired using the tenants bond.
Please notify our office of your instructions at your earliest convenience so we may proceed accordingly.
RegardsYes I was going to suggest putting the ball in the tennants court. They broke the bracket for the rangehood….they have to fix it. How the hell could that get broken through wear and tear in two years? They have broken the door handle so they should fix it.
Get rid of the property manager. bloody hopeless.I don't believe it is 60 days i am sure you need to give 4 weeks notice if you don't have a lease in place and they have to give you 2 weeks. i would take the letter you recieved to a new property (whom has been recommended) manager explain what has happened and ask for their opinion they can usually take over the property fairly quickly. what area are they in?
It is definately 60 days notice to evict in QLD as I have just done this.
Get rid of your property manager, quick smart – give them notice as soon as they have given the tenants notice. You will need to check your original lease agreement with your property manager to see how much notice you need to give them.
I have just been through this situation myself and am so happy with the new property manager! There is such a huge difference between the good and bad.
Might be a good idea to run another post asking the forumites if anyone can recommend a PM in your properties area?
TracyMilly wrote:Yes I was going to suggest putting the ball in the tennants court. They broke the bracket for the rangehood….they have to fix it. How the hell could that get broken through wear and tear in two years? They have broken the door handle so they should fix it.
Get rid of the property manager. bloody hopeless.Hi Milly,
Thanks for your reply. I actually hadn't thought of pushing it back to the tenants. The prop managers have been quite happy for me to bear all maintainence costs so far. Any idea as to the legal guidelines in ascertaining who should pay for a specific repair?Hello jambv
If the property is only 2 years old and these are the first tenants than my questions are:-
Why does the ceiling in the kitchen need painting already.
Why is the front door handle broken.
Why is the bathroom door handle broken.
Why is the rangehood bracket broken.
Why did you need to replace some vertical blinds so soon.
If the oven clock wasn't ringing did you check the appliance warranty to see if you were still covered.
It seems to me that with such a new house than some of the things that you have fixing or that still need fixing could either be covered by warranties (builders or appliance) or the tenants have done more damage than would be called "normal wear and tear".
Naturally the PM has been happy for you to pay all the maintenance costs to date. No work for them to do. You need a more interested / more competent PM. Check your contract. You certainly don't need these tenants out before you change PM's. The new PM can help you solve your problems with the tenants. They are just playing this one.
Also don't naively believe your PMs statement
Any damage to the property that is not considered wear and tear can then be repaired using the tenants bond.While it is strictly speaking true what they have failed to mention is that the tenants will have to agree to this otherwise you ( or usually your PM) will have to go to a tribunal first and prove that the damages that you are wanting to have paid for out of the bond are in fact above normal wear and tear.
BTW I don't know the laws in Qld but in Vict. it's not necessary to sign a new lease to change the rent. I assume their original lease has expired. The PM just needs to send them a letter giving them 60 day notice of your intention to increase the rent. They can then either agree or move out.
Hope this helps
Elka
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