Air Con - Is it again a landlord's responsibility?

In addition to my initial pest control query, I have another one for clarification. BTW, I am getting the pest control done.

There was a faulty (no gas) air con in the main room of the IP. I was told my the REA that it does not work when I bought it. They REA company also became by PM. The rookie leasing manager told me that he has been advising prospective tenants that the air con will not be a part of the lease. They were offered the house for lesser rent due to that.

He finalised a tenant for me (who was aware of the air con issues and agreed to it as well) and after 2 weeks the tenant calls the repair manager at the PM office and asks to regas(fix) the air con. I called up the leasing manager and told what happened, and he said not to worry about it "if the tenant wants they can regas it".

After 2 months now, the repair manager calls me and tells that it is by law required for me to fix the aircon. I am not sure what to do here?

- Can I just get the unit removed?
- Can I take a stand that it is leasing manager's fault?
- If I have to legally fix it, is there a time-frame for me to get it fixed?

Any other options that you guys can think of.
 
In addition to my initial pest control query, I have another one for clarification. BTW, I am getting the pest control done.

There was a faulty (no gas) air con in the main room of the IP. I was told my the REA that it does not work when I bought it. They REA company also became by PM. The rookie leasing manager told me that he has been advising prospective tenants that the air con will not be a part of the lease. They were offered the house for lesser rent due to that.

He finalised a tenant for me (who was aware of the air con issues and agreed to it as well) and after 2 weeks the tenant calls the repair manager at the PM office and asks to regas(fix) the air con. I called up the leasing manager and told what happened, and he said not to worry about it "if the tenant wants they can regas it".

After 2 months now, the repair manager calls me and tells that it is by law required for me to fix the aircon. I am not sure what to do here?

- Can I just get the unit removed?
- Can I take a stand that it is leasing manager's fault?
- If I have to legally fix it, is there a time-frame for me to get it fixed?

Any other options that you guys can think of.

What does the lease say? Does it specifically exclude the aircon?
 
In addition to my initial pest control query, I have another one for clarification. BTW, I am getting the pest control done.

There was a faulty (no gas) air con in the main room of the IP. I was told my the REA that it does not work when I bought it. They REA company also became by PM. The rookie leasing manager told me that he has been advising prospective tenants that the air con will not be a part of the lease. They were offered the house for lesser rent due to that.

He finalised a tenant for me (who was aware of the air con issues and agreed to it as well) and after 2 weeks the tenant calls the repair manager at the PM office and asks to regas(fix) the air con. I called up the leasing manager and told what happened, and he said not to worry about it "if the tenant wants they can regas it".

After 2 months now, the repair manager calls me and tells that it is by law required for me to fix the aircon. I am not sure what to do here?

- Can I just get the unit removed?
- Can I take a stand that it is leasing manager's fault?
- If I have to legally fix it, is there a time-frame for me to get it fixed?

Any other options that you guys can think of.

If it's there then it's included. You should have removed it before leasing if you didn't want pay for it.

This tenant knows the rules - expect this to be the least of your worries...
 
What does the lease say? Does it specifically exclude the aircon?

This. Unless the lease document says "property leased without air conditioning" and the tenant has understood and acknowledged this, the presence of the AC system may require it to be functional.
 
If it's there then it's included. You should have removed it before leasing if you didn't want pay for it.

This tenant knows the rules - expect this to be the least of your worries...

Can I not remove the appliance now? Its just that (being considerate) I got a new fan installed for them recently :(
 
IThere was a faulty (no gas) air con in the main room of the IP. I was told my the REA that it does not work when I bought it. They REA company also became by PM. The rookie leasing manager told me that he has been advising prospective tenants that the air con will not be a part of the lease. They were offered the house for lesser rent due to that.

You have an action against your PM for not putting into the lease that the A/C was not included. (but you are going to need some sort of evidence other than your say-so, that your PM was aware of this).

You may get your PM to fix at their cost.

In future, don't leave stuff in the property that is not to be included in the lease. Tenants have a reasonable expectation that what they see is what they get.

Even when we lease IP's with working Clothes Dryers - we say in the lease "Clothes Dryer does not work and is not included in the lease". Tenants have no come-back then.
 
You have an action against your PM for not putting into the lease that the A/C was not included. (but you are going to need some sort of evidence other than your say-so, that your PM was aware of this).

You may get your PM to fix at their cost.

In future, don't leave stuff in the property that is not to be included in the lease. Tenants have a reasonable expectation that what they see is what they get.

Even when we lease IP's with working Clothes Dryers - we say in the lease "Clothes Dryer does not work and is not included in the lease". Tenants have no come-back then.

Thanks Propertunity. This is my first IP and I am learning the traits. I will keep that in mind for the next time.

The leasing manager would definitely agree to what he told me. They should also have a recording, if they record the phone calls.
 
I would of thought it would cost more to remove than regas? If i is just as simple as a regas that is.

Why not gas it and get them to agree on a higher rent, as you say its already discounted because of this?

Cheers
 
I would of thought it would cost more to remove than regas? If i is just as simple as a regas that is.

Why not gas it and get them to agree on a higher rent, as you say its already discounted because of this?

Cheers

Regas is what the prev owners mentioned. The system being old and not used for a long time, a simple regas might just open a can of worms leading to further (frequent) repairs .
 
dont mean to hijack, but just yesterday I had a funny aircon incident

when one of my tenants signed up I agreed to get them an aircon within a few months,

my usual tradie in the area, I asked him to get me a quote for an aircon,

fast forward a few months I got him to do some work in another property near by,

I finally ordered an aircon, had it delivered to tradies house, he sent me a msg saying "all done"

tenant calls PM up and says where is the aircon!!!

turns out the tradie thought it was the 2nd property to be installed which I said I may do down the track

so a massive misdunerstanding, I had to purchase a nother aircon, and got him to install the other one in the correct premises,

so other tenants have got a new aircon for free and I cant raise the rent since it was never discussed!

moral of the story, lesson learned, confirm everything!
 
It sure it does, but I dont have the funds to repair it, forget replacing it.

Technically you're probably up for the cost to repair/replace the AC, or allow tenants to break the lease. It sounds like a joint oversight.

We have one owner who insists on leaving their broken air conditioner on the wall, rather than removing it. This owner has lost a court case in the past, as the tenants were reasonably expecting it to function, as they could see it in the photos and at the inspection. We also had in the advertising that the property does NOT include air conditioning, and it was a special term on the lease. Go figure - we thought we had covered ourselves there. The owner had to pack pay a $20p/w rent reduction for 3 months, and repair or continue at reduced rent. The tribunal woman was obviously a tenant-lover.

What I would try as a PM - is to tell the tenants that they were informed at the inspection that it was not working - and therefore it is not the owner's responsibility to fix it. I would then suggest that the price was indicative of the A/C not working, and that the owner was prepared to consider fixing it if the tenant agreed to pay $10p/w extra from that point forward.

This tactic frequently works, if your PM sounds like they have the upper hand (even though they really don't - as it's not in the lease or advertising material) - then they can get the tenants on-side and reach a compromise.

In the end - it really is worth having air-conditioning in an IP these days. Most tenants expect it in every property.

Matt
 
It sure it does, but I dont have the funds to repair it, forget replacing it.

Unfortunately "I dont have the money" isnt going to cut it in the R&M side of property investment... If the funds are that tight how will you account for vacancies or tenants stopping paying rent etc? Not a criticism, its a valid point to consider.

Trouble is that without it being excluded on the lease, you have to pay for it to be repaired. You may then take some of the recourse against the agent for their failure to act as instructed but you would need to have documented evidence of asking them to exclude the AC, but that argy bargy shouldnt stop the repair.

Note also that in the RTA2010, aircon breakdown is now included in emergency repairs so tenants are within their rights to get someone out and claim the cost. Emergency repair may not apply in this case since the fault has been logged and is being discussed.
 
Unfortunately "I dont have the money" isnt going to cut it in the R&M side of property investment... If the funds are that tight how will you account for vacancies or tenants stopping paying rent etc? Not a criticism, its a valid point to consider.

Trouble is that without it being excluded on the lease, you have to pay for it to be repaired. You may then take some of the recourse against the agent for their failure to act as instructed but you would need to have documented evidence of asking them to exclude the AC, but that argy bargy shouldnt stop the repair.

Note also that in the RTA2010, aircon breakdown is now included in emergency repairs so tenants are within their rights to get someone out and claim the cost. Emergency repair may not apply in this case since the fault has been logged and is being discussed.

Points noted. There has been certain unfortunate incidents because of which the "I do not have the money" issues.
 
Technically you're probably up for the cost to repair/replace the AC, or allow tenants to break the lease. It sounds like a joint oversight.

We have one owner who insists on leaving their broken air conditioner on the wall, rather than removing it. This owner has lost a court case in the past, as the tenants were reasonably expecting it to function, as they could see it in the photos and at the inspection. We also had in the advertising that the property does NOT include air conditioning, and it was a special term on the lease. Go figure - we thought we had covered ourselves there. The owner had to pack pay a $20p/w rent reduction for 3 months, and repair or continue at reduced rent. The tribunal woman was obviously a tenant-lover.

What I would try as a PM - is to tell the tenants that they were informed at the inspection that it was not working - and therefore it is not the owner's responsibility to fix it. I would then suggest that the price was indicative of the A/C not working, and that the owner was prepared to consider fixing it if the tenant agreed to pay $10p/w extra from that point forward.

This tactic frequently works, if your PM sounds like they have the upper hand (even though they really don't - as it's not in the lease or advertising material) - then they can get the tenants on-side and reach a compromise.

In the end - it really is worth having air-conditioning in an IP these days. Most tenants expect it in every property.

Matt

I may try to use the 'increase in rent tactic'. I was going to install the aircon in the future anyways, but I am pissed because the REA and leasing manager did not provide me a good understanding of the rules at that time.
The consensus is that I should repair/replace the aircon asap. So, I will get start getting some quotes soon.
 
Points noted. There has been certain unfortunate incidents because of which the "I do not have the money" issues.

:( Sorry to hear.. like I said it wasnt a personal dig at you...

What you may want to do is get the agent to get their trusted AC guy out (ie who isnt just out to sell new systems and say "nah its stuffed") to appraise the system and advise on repair vs replace, if he can fix it on the spot then even better, but being out of gas means there is a leak, could be a dodgy flare or something more serious.

Depending on the cost you can then discuss the bill with the agent eg they wear it or you pay half each etc. For cashflow they can probably deduct it from the rental disbursement.
 
:( Sorry to hear.. like I said it wasnt a personal dig at you...

What you may want to do is get the agent to get their trusted AC guy out (ie who isnt just out to sell new systems and say "nah its stuffed") to appraise the system and advise on repair vs replace, if he can fix it on the spot then even better, but being out of gas means there is a leak, could be a dodgy flare or something more serious.

Depending on the cost you can then discuss the bill with the agent eg they wear it or you pay half each etc. For cashflow they can probably deduct it from the rental disbursement.

Good ideas there David. And, no offence taken :D
 
Rajnhets do you have fusion cover on your insurance policy?

If yes, I suggest that you get a quote to repair and see if it is covered.

This could help you out enormously.

Sunshine
 
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