Hi all,
I recieved my property inspection report yesterday from my PM which had a note stating that the tenant said it is too hot in summer. It just wondering what options I have to tackle this:
1) Install evaporative cooling throughout the house (most expensive option) and charge extra rent for it. $20pw extra perhaps? Is this too much? Can this be done in the middle of a rental agreement. The lease is not up till November.
2) Install a unit in just the main lounge area (not as expensive) and charge extra rent for it. $10pw extra perhaps? Again, can this be done in the middle of a rental agreement. The lease is not up till November.
3) Put up a sun sail over the paved area where most of the heat would be coming in from
4) Put up some external bamboo blinds on the main windows where the arvo sun is coming in from
5) Do nothing as technically the tenant hasnt directly complained to the PM. It was jsut a comment on the quarterly inspection report.
6) Any other suggestions?What would you all do in this situation?
Hi,
The options you point out are all reasonable, the weekly rent increase would depend on where the property is located and what the current rent is, remember just putting aircon is not in some cases a market driven reason to increase the rent (i.e is it a standard feature in the area and how does it reflect to your current rent).
With regards to increasing the rent during a tenancy, strictly speaking you need to give 60 days notice (in writing) and then the tenant has the right to say no, or unless there is a rent review clause in the tenancy (a most in todays market) which can only be agreed upon amount once again by both parties or the right to end the tenancy at no loss or fault to both parties subject to normal ending of lease requirements (i.e leaving the property in good order that sort of thing).
Remember by putting aircon in to the property the tenant will incur a increase in power and you will also need to review your landlords insurance to make sure you are covered for motor burn out (fusion section) in the event they run it 24/7 during summer.
You may wish to look at a deal of an extra $20 per week until the unit is paid off then return the rent to the fixed rate before the unit went in. This can be done via a payment arrangement with the tenant.
Hope this helps.Hi, I once had the same issue. My PM didn't suggest I paid for the tenant's comfort. If he wants air con, he pays.
What we had before the tenant moved in was an evaporative air cooler [the water ones] that we placed at the open window & it'd draw the cool air throughtout the house. Was very effective. only needed it for 2 weeks a year anyway. Cost around $300.
If I were you, my comment would be 'it's hot in summer everywhere'. But of course, we wish to make it easier for good tenants to stay on. Why not spread the cost of the evaporative cooler over the term of the lease?
If the property is an expensive one, then install r/c air con may be an option. You might be able to write off the cost or depreciate it in time. My house was around $250K in 1999 & the rent was $300 p.w. Never did air con right up to the day I sold.
Hope this helps. [PMs always want us to spend more to make their job easier]
KY
Has anyone asked what the tenant thinks would be an acceptable solution? You are thinking A/C. A couple of electric fans might be what he expecting.
I would go back to the PM and get more feedback from the tenantI live in a house I do not own and I just had ducted evaporative cooling installed by the owner and it works really well except if very humid conditions.
I originally asked for some outside blinds over the windows to cut the heat but the owner put in the cooler.Find out what rooms he wants cool it may be just the bedrooms and an inverter air conditioner is cheaper if only one or two rooms are needed to be cooled and you may be able to split the system to do two rooms at once. Some of the reverse cycle air conditioners can be used to heat as well. My investment property I dropped the rent $20 a week from the market proce of rent because it doesn't have ducted heating or cooling.
Thanks for the suggestions guys. Much appreciated.
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