How do you know you're getting a good tenant??

[Ahurani]

Well, DP and I are considering moving to Cairns to be closer to his family.

We dont want to sell our house here in Melbourne because if we wanted to move back we couldnt afford to live here again.

DP is VERY hesitant to rent out the house and i dont blame him. How do you know you are getting a good tenant? Whether they will look after the place and not trash it?

What role do RE agents play in this? Can you get monthly inspections? So much to think about..

[Indadhanu]

We rent, and have quarterly inspections.

When we apply we give LOTS of info, the RE can check up on previous rent ledgers (so, how regularly we pay rent, if we get behind and etc), and I think they can also get a credit check? They ask heaps of questions, like rental history, if we've ever been evicted, and criminal record too! (actually I'm not sure if that last one is legal LOL!).
Then I think they pass the details onto the owners, and the owners choose the one they like the best. So I'm pretty sure you ultimately get the final say.

HTH

[PinkPalace]

Hi there!

i think the most important thing to remember when you become a landlord is not to get emotional.
it is just walls and a roof now,

Get the right insurance and unfortunately even if everything looks sparkly on paper - it doesnt necessarily mean they will be perfect tenants.

We bought our home in 2005 - within 12 months we had to move and rent out the house, it was hard for us as it was our home - it had all the mod cons of a home not a rental ie expensive landscaping, tinted windows, plush carpets etc.

But we learnt it is all replacable and detached ourselves. We have sinced moved back into it between tenants (again moved out) and it wasnt the home we loved anymore - it became dated for tenancy (even in just 2 years) . but we coped.

I hope you find good tenants. we only go for long term tenants as i find that frequent tenancy changes causes damage and they dont seem to care for it as much

HTH

xx

[Curly]

You need a good property manager. We have moved to the Sunshine Coast and have rented out our house in Melbourne...and we did this previously when we moved to Sydney and then changed our minds and moved back.

A good property manager will have an eye for a good tenant and will check all business and personal references and previous letting agent references too. Ultimately the choice is up to you but they will give you their impressions when passing on the applications to you. When they hold an inspection for prospective tenants they will even note things like if people put out a cigarette before coming inside and how people come across generally. If you don't want pets say that pets will be considered on application...people will then own up about having pets rather than lying if you declare "no pets".

By law you can only have an inspection of the premises once every 6 months because the tenant is protected by law to have "quiet enjoyment" of the property. Our property manager takes photos of absolutely everything before the tenant moves in and because we are interstate takes photos of the house during the inspection and forwards them on to us so we can see how the place is being maintained. If you want the carpets professionally cleaned when the tenant vacates you have to have the carpets cleaned prior to them moving in and have the receipt for proof. You need to leave the gardens in the exact state you would wish them to be maintained.

Once the tenants have signed the lease, provided they are maintaining the property and not causing trouble, you cannot kick them out until their lease has expired unless under mutual agreement and even then I'm pretty sure you can't do it "just because" or to get in a new tenant, you need to be moving back into the property yourself or have a close family member move in for whom you would reasonably be expected to provide accommodation. Just check that one...but I'm pretty sure I have that right.

In our case, when we decided we were changing our minds and moving back to Melbourne, we had our property manager let the tenants know of our situation (we were hoping they'd be willing to move out early and we figured if they weren't at least they had plenty of notice that we weren't going to renew the lease) and this worked out ideally because they were in the process of buying a house and were going to have to break the lease. So we still had to wait until they were ready to move out but we got our house back quicker and the tenants didn't have to pay rent on an empty house while they were waiting for a new tenant to be approved.

If you are south/southeast Melbourne let me know. I can highly recommend our property manager. She is absolutely fabulous and I have every confidence in her that our house is being looked after and have total peace of mind.

ETA: Bear in mind a tenant will never love the place quite as much as you do but they aren't necessarily going to wreck the joint either. Most people are decent and it will be their home too.

[Spring Angel]

There is now way to guarantee it IMO. We moved out of our house (which we had just finished building just the way we wanted) because DH got transfered with work. The tenants we got looked perfect on paper and turned out to be the biggest pains in the bottom. Complained about everything possible. At least each fortnight we would get a maintenance request and it was a almost new home and they even took us to the rental commission because we terminated the lease at the end of the rental period because we wanted to move back in (grrrr).

What I'm getting at is that the best thing you can do is get really good insurance and a good agent who you can trust.

Spring x

[Ahurani]

Thanks for all your quick replies

Curly, we live in Heatherton (next to Cheltenham/Moorabbin) where is your manager based?

6 months is a long time for an inspection :S I think I watch too much Today Tonight

[Curly]

LOL so am I!!! Are you in The Heath???

I highly recommend Carolyn Wright from Your Property Manager. She lives in the estate too so I don't think you would find another manager with a better knowledge of the estate.

ETA: She's in Cheltenham, Park Road.

ETA2: Ask her about monthly inspections - she will let you know exactly what your rights and obligations are.

[Ahurani]

Haha! No lol We live in one of the 2 roads up from the petrol station :P

Near "Mt Heatherton" :P

Thanks so much for your info, Im going to pass it onto DP

[Indadhanu]

We get inspections every 3 months, which is what the RTA in Qld legislate.

[PinkPalace]

We get inspections every 3 months, which is what the RTA in Qld legislate.

Ditto

[Mother Goose]

when are you moving out NK? Our current rental is up for sale so are looking for a new one. We're brilliant tennents - keep it in top condition because it is our home. The question for us is always "how do we know we have a good landlord?"

[HotI]

We own our place now, but both of us rented for many years previously. We always left the houses in better condition than when we moved in, so there are lots of good tenants around too.

good luck

[Ahurani]

when are you moving out NK? Our current rental is up for sale so are looking for a new one. We're brilliant tennents - keep it in top condition because it is our home. The question for us is always "how do we know we have a good landlord?"

I dont know MG. DP is still unsure. He doesnt know what he wants to do. I'd love a tennant like you though

[Mother Goose]

hang in the NK. It's a hard decision to make. We hate having to decide to move. We love where we are - such a shame they're selling (and the landlord's an ass)