Bonds

[cgw]

If you have a long term tennant, that has been there for a few years and the original bond is now not in line with their rent, do you get them to pay the difference.
EG Rent was $200 Bond was $800. Rent now is $250, Bond should be $1000.Should I get them to pay an extra $200 bond?, can I do it?

 

[willair]

If you have a long term tennant, that has been there for a few years and the original bond is now not in line with their rent, do you get them to pay the difference.
EG Rent was $200 Bond was $800. Rent now is $250, Bond should be $1000.Should I get them to pay an extra $200 bond?, can I do it?

If they are long term and pay on time and don't complain ,then why cause problems over 200 bucks personally i would leave things as they are,if you try this on the tenants they may well tell you to get stuffed and trash the place and leave,stranger things happen everyday in real estate, the way i always look at things like this is to put yourself in their shoes and see how you would feel if the landlord did this to you it's a 2 way street in life..imho..
willair..

 

[Dusta]

Hi can anybody help? have just moved out of my rental and have been picked up on a few items that apparently need addressing, we have disputed some of these items as 1 is not on the bond inspection report, and others are very petty.i.e. plants in hanging baskets do not hang over baskets!since then the real estate says if we dont sort them they will bring up other items picked upon the inspection report that were not originally mentioned to us as requiring attention! can they do this as original communication never mentioned these extra things?any advice would be appreciated!

 

[Burbs]

If you have a long term tennant, that has been there for a few years and the original bond is now not in line with their rent, do you get them to pay the difference.
EG Rent was $200 Bond was $800. Rent now is $250, Bond should be $1000.Should I get them to pay an extra $200 bond?, can I do it?

Hi cgw.

Yes, you should do it!

I always take bond top ups at the earliest possible opportunity. The legislated maximum 4 weeks bond under WA law is totally inadequate, so to let it lag behind rent increases just leaves you exposed.

How to do it:
1. Find out the laws for your State re frequency of top ups eg WA every 12 months.
2. Write a letter to the tenant asking for the money, along with an invoice, and the timeframe for payment (60 days in WA).
3. Put the topup payment with the existing bond.
4. Set a diary note for 12 months time.

If you do this regularly, tenants get in the habit of paying it. Actually I explain this process at initial sign up with the tenant, so it is not a surprise down the track.

And, related to another recent post by Xenia about paperwork...when we take over a property management from an owner-manager, one of the first things we do (just after sending off the termination notice for non-payment of rent) is invoice for a bond top up.

Burbs.

 

[rugrat]

Hi can anybody help? have just moved out of my rental and have been picked up on a few items that apparently need addressing, we have disputed some of these items as 1 is not on the bond inspection report, and others are very petty.i.e. plants in hanging baskets do not hang over baskets!since then the real estate says if we dont sort them they will bring up other items picked upon the inspection report that were not originally mentioned to us as requiring attention! can they do this as original communication never mentioned these extra things?any advice would be appreciated!

Dusta - You should get in touch with the 'tenants advocacy service' in your state, I don't think that you will find much help on this 'investing' website.

 

[callander]

The following is relevent for bonds in Vic and is taken from the Consumer Affairs website.

Amount of the bond
A landlord cannot ask for a
bond of more than one month’s
rent, except when:
• the weekly rent is more than
$350
• the tenancy agreement states
that the tenant is renting the
landlord’s principal place of
residence and that the
landlord intends to resume
occupancy at the end of the
tenancy.
The bond cannot be increased
once you have signed a
Residential Tenancy Agreement,
unless ordered by the Victorian
Civil & Administrative Tribunal
(VCAT).