House not rented yet - 5 weeks with no tenant!

Hi all,

So I recently built a house in the area of Melton, Melbourne (in the Botanica Springs Estate in Brookfield) and then tenanted it out on a 6 month lease to someone who was building their own property in Toolern Vale.

They stayed for 8 months while it got built, then moved out on the 16th March.

It has been empty since then. My property manager advised me immediately that rental demand was NOT tight (which I knew, as the vacancy rate for the area is around 10%!) and to reduce my rent to $310 per week, which I did. They're the experts in the area, as I live in Sydney.

It has since been on the rental market since then and although we've had people looking through each Saturday, nobody has submitted any applications.

Wondering what I should do or if anyone can provide me with any advice - Should I reduce the rent further? Should I change property managers? Should I discuss the situation with the Head Property Manager of the RE? Should I offer some sort of benefit to an applicant (e.g, free foxtel for 6 months)?

Any advice is appreciated. Please note, I don't want this to turn into a thread about whether buying in Melton is a good or bad idea, blah blah blah. Ive seen those threads on here and I knew that my property would be more difficult during this time - just didn't think it'd take over a month!

Thank you :)
 
Well if your property manager hasn't kept you informed about why this might be happening or a strategy to get your place rented then that should answer your question about changing managers or not :)

A quick look around realestate.com should be enough to place the rent fairly closely, what has been the feedback from the people inspecting? That should be a powerful guide as to what you have to do to get it rented.
 
Firstly, check your ad on realestate.com.au and ensure the pictures are good, clear and comprehensive and you are happy with the wording of the ad. Ensure amendments are made if there is anything you are not happy with.

Second, check how your property compares with other in the same rental charge. You want to be the cheapest comparable property.

Third, people often search in "bands", so I would suggest dropping the rent to $295 pw to "catch" those looking up to $300 pw.

So long as your checks show your property is correctly listed and in a competitive pricing range, I would suggest dropping the rent to $300 pw with the first week's rent free.
Marg
 
Melton

Hiya Kael

Speak to my PM Damian Parawa of Barry Plant; he is very very good! and will be totally upfront with you...
 
Well if your property manager hasn't kept you informed about why this might be happening or a strategy to get your place rented then that should answer your question about changing managers or not :)

A quick look around realestate.com should be enough to place the rent fairly closely, what has been the feedback from the people inspecting? That should be a powerful guide as to what you have to do to get it rented.
Hi Andrew - thanks for you reply. Well the Head Property Manager (who I started dealing with because I transferred across from another RE) was very good with keeping in touch. Replied to emails within a day, called me when needed to, kept in touch. Now that the house is on the market again for rent, the actual property manager looking after the area my house is in is dealing with it and she hasn't returned my emails - she gets them and then acknowledges that she gets them when I ring her or she rings me - but she hasn't replied to my emails as of yet.

On RE.com.au I've checked similar size houses, of similar quality, and they vary greatly. For example, in the Botanica Springs Estate in Brookfield, where my house is situated, there are no 4 bedroom houses available for les then $320 a week. Mine is on for the $310 a week. But then in the estate south of Botanica Springs (not sure if that is Melton South or Brookfield), the 4 bedrooms there can go for as long as $280 per week :/ With people struggling to pay the bills and such, do you think they'd mind the extra 2 minutes drive if it meant they were saving $30 a week on rent?

Firstly, check your ad on realestate.com.au and ensure the pictures are good, clear and comprehensive and you are happy with the wording of the ad. Ensure amendments are made if there is anything you are not happy with.

Second, check how your property compares with other in the same rental charge. You want to be the cheapest comparable property.

Third, people often search in "bands", so I would suggest dropping the rent to $295 pw to "catch" those looking up to $300 pw.

So long as your checks show your property is correctly listed and in a competitive pricing range, I would suggest dropping the rent to $300 pw with the first week's rent free.
Marg
Hi Marg and thanks for your reply.

That's the thing about my ad - it has no pictures on it :/ I can link it to you if you'd like. It also advertises it as a single car garage, when it is actually a double garage. However, I have emailed these issues to my property manager on Wednesday but haven't heard anything back yet. Nothing has changed on the ad either.

The "band" thing, I completely forgot about. If they're searching for maximum price of $300, it wouldn't come up - I never thought about that! Thanks for that.

As I stated above also - the only difference between my houses and other cheaper houses in the suburb is the estate they're in - my house is the cheapest in my estate for a 4 bedroom home built only 9 months ago.
 
If they are slow in updating the ad with pictures and correct information, what ttype of response are applicants getting when they enquire?
How long do they need to wait for email replies?

Consider being an 'applicant' by emailing the RE and asking about the property, and also call and ask about viewing the property. (use a different email address and phone number, of course)
The response you receive may be the clue you need.
 
That's the thing that annoys me about re agents. They come to you and say "do you think we should increase the rent", to which my response is always how dies it compare with others in the area?

I always thought of them as the experts. But not always.

Make sure you do your own dd.
 
I have had a similar problem in the past so go through your add and make / add the correct changes and submit some of your own photos and email that to your PM and insist they change it asap,

House will not rent without photos and especially if others have photos.

If you say you will accept outside pets,you can normally be a little dearer than the opposition.

Before reducing the rent, try offering one week free as that can be a winner as well.
Hope it rents soon ;)
 
^^^ agree with comments above
- make sure it is really well advertised on re.com.au; good photos and well written, accurate description, and try anonymously contacting the agent as a potential renter - sounds like they might not be looking after your est interests for whatever reason. maybe share the web ad link on here so you can get some constructive feedback
 
I know of three properties which have sat vacant for nearly 8 months. :) Even after dropping the rent $40/week from $310 and offering two weeks free rent....

All I can suggest is to drop the rent to $300. Every week you wait is another $300 you're not getting paid...
 
That's the thing about my ad - it has no pictures on it :/ I can link it to you if you'd like. It also advertises it as a single car garage, when it is actually a double garage. However, I have emailed these issues to my property manager on Wednesday but haven't heard anything back yet. Nothing has changed on the ad either.

Photo's would be a good start. A lot of people would probably thinking its a dump or something and skipping past. Given that at the very least photos should have been taken during the final bond inspection they should have them on hand.

Is the house clean? Not smelling of cigarettes or similar? Would a quick patch up and paint job improve its appearance inside perhaps?
Do you know how many people have been through it?
 
It's honestly almost all been covered here but I'll add the obvious for those who have overlooked it.
I've held property during slow periods and my wife always wants to hold out for the average return for the given area. However, if a $300 P/W property sits on the market for 1 month trying for the same $ as all the others, that's $1200 P/A gone and a simple drop of $20 P/W would possibly result in a faster uptake AND result in a lesser loss ($1040) than the other scenario of holding out for the $300 P/W average.

I always prefer to lock in a lease rather than be greedy for a couple of bucks...
(and sleepless nights)
 
Get in touch with the Head Property Manager immediately and let him/her know that you are not happy with the performance of the PM allocated to your property. Management won't know if no-one tells them.

Demand immediate action on photos and correct listing information.
Marg
 
Like some others have said - vacancy is often linked to price. Reduce your asking rent and get someone in ASAP. Speak to your PM about when the peak periods for rentals are and try to have the next lease expire at this time - that will provide you with an opportunity to reassess (and possibly increase) the asking rent.

Cheers

Jamie
 
40 homes to rent in Brookfield!

I just jumped onto realestate.com.au and called up Brookfield. There is now a dozen 4 bedroom homes between $260-$290 per week; 6 at $300 per week and 4 at $310+ per week. There is also another 9 3 bedroom homes around that price. Only 1 of those houses do not have photos so I'm assuming that's yours. If it is that one, when I googled the address I came up with the previous agents ad from August 2011 which was fantastic!

When you look at Melton as a whole there is approx. 200 homes to rent.

Unfortunately it is now a renters market - prospective tenants make appointments to attend but don't show! (I know this from experience.) As you are in the agent's hands you must be able to have complete trust in what they are doing.

I'd certainly be demanding a better ad - complete with photos within 24 hours!
 
I'm in Melton if I can be of any help....ie check out their services or go to an open inspection etc.
Being a new property, you want to be a little picky with your tenants, as melton has all sorts, I dont know that your asking price is so far out there, its in the range, but I have noticed this year there are more rentals on the market than previous years, or should I say, more that are up on the rental sites for longer.
Spring/summer months are the best times to have your lease turn over, around the kids school holiday breaks is always good timing.

I have a rental in Melton as well as living here and have had first hand experience with several of the real estate agents in the area (and you really want to be listed with a local agent over a property management based elsewhere). Some I wouldn't touch with a barge pole, others change property managers way too often to get any stability, so ask/check around and make sure your doing the best for your investment in that department.
PM me if you wanna ask anything.
 
i would get the advert fixed up before you drop the price.
everything you have said gives me the indication that your house is being viewed as a dump, and dropping the price just reinforces that image.
If you fix the ad, and it still doesnt rent, then drop the rent.
 
Thank you EVERYONE for the great advice and replies - I'm overwhelmed by how helpful everyone is on here, yet again! Thank you! P.S. Sorry for the long reply ):

If they are slow in updating the ad with pictures and correct information, what ttype of response are applicants getting when they enquire?
How long do they need to wait for email replies?

Consider being an 'applicant' by emailing the RE and asking about the property, and also call and ask about viewing the property. (use a different email address and phone number, of course)
The response you receive may be the clue you need.
That's a good question - A good idea you've raised - I'll either email them myself or get someone to ring them.

I have had a similar problem in the past so go through your add and make / add the correct changes and submit some of your own photos and email that to your PM and insist they change it asap,

House will not rent without photos and especially if others have photos.

If you say you will accept outside pets,you can normally be a little dearer than the opposition.

Before reducing the rent, try offering one week free as that can be a winner as well.
Hope it rents soon ;)
Thanks. I've seen a few other homes in the area offering the same thing, but I don't see as many now that I've checked tonight. It might be something worthwhile to look into... I just need to get some good tenants in there!

^^^ agree with comments above
- make sure it is really well advertised on re.com.au; good photos and well written, accurate description, and try anonymously contacting the agent as a potential renter - sounds like they might not be looking after your est interests for whatever reason. maybe share the web ad link on here so you can get some constructive feedback
I'm more then happy to provide the web ad link - 6 Carissa Road, Brookfield. Please help!

Photo's would be a good start. A lot of people would probably thinking its a dump or something and skipping past. Given that at the very least photos should have been taken during the final bond inspection they should have them on hand.

Is the house clean? Not smelling of cigarettes or similar? Would a quick patch up and paint job improve its appearance inside perhaps?
Do you know how many people have been through it?
You raise a valid point - I don't want people thinking that, especially since the house isn't even a year old yet!

The home is clean and doesn't smell or anything. The last tenants, when they moved out, got a professional cleaning company in to clean everything up and it looks spick and span now.

It's honestly almost all been covered here but I'll add the obvious for those who have overlooked it.
I've held property during slow periods and my wife always wants to hold out for the average return for the given area. However, if a $300 P/W property sits on the market for 1 month trying for the same $ as all the others, that's $1200 P/A gone and a simple drop of $20 P/W would possibly result in a faster uptake AND result in a lesser loss ($1040) than the other scenario of holding out for the $300 P/W average.

I always prefer to lock in a lease rather than be greedy for a couple of bucks...
(and sleepless nights)
I would rather the same thing! Fingers crossed now.

Get in touch with the Head Property Manager immediately and let him/her know that you are not happy with the performance of the PM allocated to your property. Management won't know if no-one tells them.

Demand immediate action on photos and correct listing information.
Marg
I'll give the property manager one last go before I call the Head PM - I'll try a few of the other things here, like sending an email to her from another email account and ringing up, being a renter ;)

Like some others have said - vacancy is often linked to price. Reduce your asking rent and get someone in ASAP. Speak to your PM about when the peak periods for rentals are and try to have the next lease expire at this time - that will provide you with an opportunity to reassess (and possibly increase) the asking rent.

Cheers

Jamie
Thanks for that advice - I've always wondered when it was best to rent a home out.

I just jumped onto realestate.com.au and called up Brookfield. There is now a dozen 4 bedroom homes between $260-$290 per week; 6 at $300 per week and 4 at $310+ per week. There is also another 9 3 bedroom homes around that price. Only 1 of those houses do not have photos so I'm assuming that's yours. If it is that one, when I googled the address I came up with the previous agents ad from August 2011 which was fantastic!

When you look at Melton as a whole there is approx. 200 homes to rent.

Unfortunately it is now a renters market - prospective tenants make appointments to attend but don't show! (I know this from experience.) As you are in the agent's hands you must be able to have complete trust in what they are doing.

I'd certainly be demanding a better ad - complete with photos within 24 hours!
Yep, I just checked :( The estate south of mine (Riverina) has a lost of homes that are a bit smaller (yard size and home size) that are renting for as low as $260 per week! They are smaller, but still, it shows the difference in price!

I'm in Melton if I can be of any help....ie check out their services or go to an open inspection etc.
Being a new property, you want to be a little picky with your tenants, as melton has all sorts, I dont know that your asking price is so far out there, its in the range, but I have noticed this year there are more rentals on the market than previous years, or should I say, more that are up on the rental sites for longer.
Spring/summer months are the best times to have your lease turn over, around the kids school holiday breaks is always good timing.

I have a rental in Melton as well as living here and have had first hand experience with several of the real estate agents in the area (and you really want to be listed with a local agent over a property management based elsewhere). Some I wouldn't touch with a barge pole, others change property managers way too often to get any stability, so ask/check around and make sure your doing the best for your investment in that department.
PM me if you wanna ask anything.
It's great to hear from a local! Thank you for the info! I'll send you a PM with my PM's info, see if you can highlight anything for me ;)
 
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