How to handle

PM does an inspection & finds;
carpet dirty -was ok but not the best when tenants moved in 2yrs ago
gardens need weeding - ok not a biggie & out the front looked ok last time we went past (within last few months)
oven dirty - yeah mine too. The stove is pretty old & we have a spare almost new stove were we planning on putting in when the existing one died so may do it now instead to get it out of our garage.
walls marked - they have 3 youngish 3 kids so I would guess its called general wear & tear?
pet bowls in kitchen so either dog (which we know about) is being fed inside (not a good thing)or there is a cat (which we would also allow considering it is a 'family home')

so PM issues breach notice for these items. While I expect the PM to encourage the tenants to look after our property, is this a bit harsh for the first hint of a problem we have had with this family in 2 yrs?

Tenant has now come back to pm with a list of things they would like fixed - fair enough - if something is broken we will fix it however from the size of the list it is obvious these things did not break in the last couple of weeks (fence, blinds, gate latches - fluros not working - mostly little stuff) so it appears to be a response to the breach notice.

I guess my question is - how hard would you expect your pm to come down on long term trouble free tenants who really just need to do some housework? AND - how do we settle these tenants again (apart from stating to fix bits & pieces?)


Cheers
Stella
 
Trouble is that the things mentioned are "in the eye of the beholder" and could be really bad or just wear and tear, particularly the things you cannot see like the marks on the walls. Breach notice seems harsh. Could you call the tenants and arrange to do some of the things on their list, during which you can see for yourself how the walls are. You can then smooth things over.

The food bowls inside are not a problem unless they are leaving "wet" food there which could attract vermin, but dry biscuits are fine. Fairly normal I reckon. Ovens can be cleaned. Gardens can be weeded.

Seems a bit over the top and could describe my house some days :D

can you contact the tenants directly to smooth it out without making it sound like you don't mind if they are wrecking the place?
 
Hi Wylie
That is what we are thinking of doing. We havent had any direct contact with them & are more than happy to meet them & look after repairs for them.

What would be the best way to approach - give them a call & arrange a time to inspect I guess. Would you do this with the pms knowledge & have them come with us or just call the tenants & meet them just by ourselves?

Dont really want to annoy anyone else more than they already are?

I think they may have been a bit harsh too but we wont know till we get there & see I guess.

Cheers
Stella
 
Hi Stella,

I had typed a rather long and well thought out reply to your post and then got a 'network timeout' for Somersoft and lost it. GRRR.

So now for the less long and less thought out response!

Talk to your PM. Find out why she came down on the tenants for these issues. Maybe there was more damage than you THINK she means. If she was just having a bad day, then you need to let her know what YOUR expectations are and remind her that professionalism in this matter is appreciated ;)

If a breach has been issued, is it not the case that she would need to go back and re-inspect to make sure that the breach had been addressed? Perhaps you could organise to go with her at this point and see for yourself the full picture of the property condition. Tell the PM to let the tenants know that you will be there to discuss the maintenance issues and that this is your first opportunity to address their concerns. Alternatively if you don't want to appear to be connecting the two matters ask the PM to set up a different time for you.

I'd prefer not to contact the tenants direct. They may think you are simply checking up on them which isn't really your intention and may put their backs up even more.

Hope it goes well.
 
Hard to know which way to go isnt it?

We only found out Thursday last week about the inspection results as for some reason we didn't receive the pm's email about the inspection results. Lucky they sent a paper copy or we would have had no idea at all.

Pm went back yesterday to inspect if things have been cleaned etc. & it seems this is when the tenant has given her this list of maintenance issues.

Think I will continue to keep the relationship at arms length - will call pm today to get a bit more info & have her arrange a time for us to inspect the place. We haven't been in since they moved in so I wouldn't see them having a problem with this - especially if they want things fixed.

Will suggest to the tenant they let us know if there are things that need fixing - we are happy to keep the place well maintained but we aren't mind readers.

Cheers
Stella
 
It sounds a little over the top to me too, especially as they have been there two years and you have never had a hint of any trouble before. I'd be talking to the PM too, she's the only one who knows exactly why she issued the breach. I'd also say that there is no doubt this is why you now have a list of little things to fix up. There's a bit of tit for tat happening.
 
It sounds a little over the top to me too, especially as they have been there two years and you have never had a hint of any trouble before. I'd be talking to the PM too, she's the only one who knows exactly why she issued the breach. I'd also say that there is no doubt this is why you now have a list of little things to fix up. There's a bit of tit for tat happening.

Yeah - seems a 'junior' inspected the property & the pm issued the breach based on what the 'junior' told her. Apparently most has been cleaned up now which is good but I dont blame the tenant for being ****ed - I would be too.

We are going to the house on Friday & will have a look ourselves & see exactly what needs to be fixed. Hopefully tenant is home & we can havea chat & clear the air.
As for the tit for tat - happened last year when we put the rent up $5pw too so not at all surprised about this.




Cheers
Stella
 
There's a bit of tit for tat happening.


I love it when my Tenants try that on me.


They only do it once when they realise to their horror that both the tit and the tat falls squarely in their lap. :)


After that, you never hear from them again. They become tatless.
 
Update - we went to the property on Friday - only to arrive after a 95k drive to be told tenant had not been advised we were coming?
Tenant ok'd us to access anyway as we were there to fix things they had reported. Put in a near new 2nd hand oven we have had stored for 12 mths, fixed a couple of minor things like lights & gate latches, arranged a fencer to look at fencing & had a good chat to tenants (husband came home from work at lunch so got to meet him too).

After having a quick look around we are certain the PM got a bit carried away - place looks fine considering its age. Have assured tenants we have no concerns with them staying as long as things continue the way they have been. They have caused us no trouble since moving in & have now indicated they are planning on staying so its a win/win it seems.

Seems tenants have asked for things that pm hasnt passed on to us & I know I have asked pm to contact tenants re things & it now seems this wasnt done either. Have asked tenant to continue making any requests thru pm but swapped mobile numbers with tenant so they can contact us if pm doesnt respond to them so I can chase up pm - see how that goes.

Have also requested pm contact me in future before issuing breach notices so we can discuss first.

Time will tell....

Cheers
Stella
 
Stella, are you getting value for money from your current PM?
Sounds like you should be looking elsewhere for proper service.
No way would I accept that the tennant needs my contact details and still pay the same PM fees.
 
Stella, are you getting value for money from your current PM?
Sounds like you should be looking elsewhere for proper service.
No way would I accept that the tennant needs my contact details and still pay the same PM fees.

After speaking with the tenant, I think the only service the pm is providing either of us is the collection of rent & the occasional tradie although I have had to do that in the past too! I am not sure there are any better in the area however I have started making inquiries with other people in the area I know have IP's.
If I start having calls from the tenant my first question will be "have you contacted the agent about this?" & my response will be determined by their answer.
This is they same way I manage my staff at work (have you spoken to blah blah) and it will give me an indicaiton of just how well they are managing the tenant.

Cheers
Stella
 
Sounds like you have it all well under control. Maybe the 'junior' is a bit of neat freak and got a bit over zealous. How neat and tidy a place is can be pretty subjective. What just looks like normal everyday living to one person can look like a right old mess to someone else. Personally I don't particularly care about a tenant's housekeeping skills as long as when they leave it is as good (with the usual allowance for fair wear and tear) as when they entered. The same goes for the garden within reason. I think because the outside of the property is inflicted on the neighbours as well expecting it to be kept reasonably neat and tidy isn't unreasonable. Grass unmown for six months and rusting car bodies on the front lawn, unacceptable. :p
 
Stella,

Ask that all inspections are photographed, especially anything that appears to be a problem like excessive marks, scratches etc on wall.
 
Back
Top