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Know your credit rating

Wed, 23 Jun 2021 16:57:40 GMT

One of the hardest parts of my job is turning people down for a rental. The rental market is very competitive at the moment and finding your next home can be hard work. Often we are turning down potentially great tenants.

One of the main gauges a Property Manager will use is your credit rating. Credit ratings are numerically scored up to 1000. They can vary slightly from company to company, but basically anything above 500 is a good start. The best rating I have seen is 840.

Many people have told me they have been turned down for houses they have applied for and do not know why – I then go on to look at their their credit rating and see they have a low score. When we get this report we can see a history of outstanding accounts, credit applications, debt collection etc.

There are other factors such as age and the number of times you have been credit checked which can affect your score.

I recently had a young couple with a low credit rating – but no infringements, late accounts or the likes. When I looked into it further he had applied to around 6 different companies for debt consolidation on their vehicles, trying to get a better interest rate – but did not realise that each application made his score lower.

If you are applying for rentals, know your credit score. If it is on the lower end know why, so you can discuss this with the person you applying for a house with.

There are free aps available and many tenants have told me they use one called Credit Simple – the good thing with this is that you can see what affects your score – I have had quite a few people not realise they have had an outstanding debt lowering their score, once they start paying it off they can see the score increase.

If your score is good put that forward also – a Property Manager likes to know that you are a person who understands their finances.

Credit Score is only one part of the picture when applying for a rental – but it is a major part – so understanding it can only be a good thing.

Understand Your Waterworks

Wed, 19 May 2021 16:56:26 GMT

I found myself saying this week “I hate water!” I immediately felt bad for saying it! I know that it is the lifeforce around which we all revolve. I understand we need it to live – but honestly…this week….this month…this quarter! I am over it! And I rest easy knowing I am not alone.

There are some events we have no control over – the horrendous flooding and unprecedented downpours. We need to band together, help our fellow man and inevitably as heart wrenching as these events are, they do bring out the best in most of us, as we rally around those affected and lend a hand.

However – the day to day plumbing or lack of, is a different story. We want and need our plumbing to be up and running, to this point I think our go to plumber is the main tradie to receive the “sorry its night time but….”call.

In this past month when resources have been stretched, I have learnt more about plumbing, drainage and leaks than ever before in my life.

I think I would be right in concluding that for all the fears landlords have about problem tenants, pets etc (Thank you Renters!) far more money will be spent on leaks and the damage caused. Both from pipes and from the roof and guttering.

What I have learnt is valuable for all people to have a basic understanding of – landlords, tenants and homeowners –

In our area most of our waste goes through our septic tank and then the general water such as bath, shower etc goes out to a soaker pit. But what happens when the pit becomes full? Is that even possible? We are surrounded by riverbeds and such, and the idea of the ground being full did not even occur to me. So in the event of a massive rain we need to be careful and send out only what we have to – or our septic will be put under pressure and the waste water will come back up the drain.

Speaking of septics – they are a precious concoction of good bacteria and as such we need to look after them. No harsh chemicals or detergents and toilet paper (but not too much) is the only thing other than the obvious which should head down there.

Clean your gutters (or employ a professional to do so) the build up of debris in your gutter will cause rain water to back flow into your eaves and inevitably make its way into your roof cavity.

Last – but certainly not least – carry out a regular check of your pipes – under your sinks and your hot water cylinder if you have one. Those small leaks add up pretty quickly and if caught in time can save a whole lot of time and money, and goodness knows we all need more of both!

Insurance on your rental

Tue, 02 Mar 2021 15:59:13 GMT

Insurance is one of those things we wonder why we are spending so much money on it, but then when we need it we are pleased that we do! And if we don’t at some stage we will wish we did.

I really encourage landlords and tenants to not only have insurance but understand what they are covered for.

Many landlords have previously lived in their rental property and need to discuss any changes with their insurance company. A rental policy and a personal policy are quite different.

All companies and policies are not created equally and having a good conversation with your insurance company about what you are covered for is a must. Does your policy cover rental arrears, do you need to meth test between tenancies, how often do inspections need to be carried out etc.

Landlords also need to provide insurance information on any new tenancies, to the tenants, including what the excess is. They also need to provide the policy details if required to the tenants.

In August 2019 the insurance laws relating to rentals changed and state that if a tenant or their guests cause damage to a rental they are liable for the damage. They can draw on the landlords insurance policy to repair the damage and must pay up to four weeks rent or the landlords insurance excess, whichever is lower.

This leads on to tenants and understanding what your insurance covers. In my experience many tenants do not have contents cover, which means that if something were to happen like the house burning down, you will have no compensation. Not only will you lose everything you own in the house (Landlords insurance only covers the house and what they own in it such as curtains, oven etc) you may also face interrogation from the landlords insurance company who will be looking for someone to claim the money back from. When you set up your contents insurance I recommend asking specifically if the policy covers liability as well as insurance. If you cause damage to your rental – your excess may be lower than your landlords.

Now is as good a time as any to consider insurance if you haven’t already or to talk to your insurance company and be sure you are properly covered.