Need guidance on two items discovered in recent inspection

[oh_noes]

Hi Somersoft

*Self Property Manager here*

In a recently inspection, two items were reported/discovered:

1. Broken blinds in one bedroom (picture attached)
2. Some form of water damage in the same bedroom (picture attached)

The tenant advised they were unsure how both happened but did have someone else staying in that room for a few weeks and appears to have held back notifying me until this inspection.

In your experience, are both of these something typically remedied by the owner?

Item 1 (blinds) I feel is cut and dry and the tenant is responsible to fix but I thought it would best to ask here.
Item 2 (water damage) I feel I at the very least should have a builder come out to inspect and advise. As the wall backs onto the bathroom I have considered that there may have been a minor leak, but in my limited building experience I feel the damage would be worse.

Any advice?

Thanks

 

[vaughan]

Those blinds are pretty old = wear and tear.

The water damage looks like it's been there a while too. Is the bathroom on the other side? Get a builder in to check.

 

[Angel]

The little plastic attachments on your blinds get brittle from the sun and can break just from opening/closing them. They are cheap but very fiddly to replace.

If the actual piece of blind can be picked up off the floor and clipped back into place, be prepared for the same thing to happen to all the other pieces.

You could ask the tenants to reattach the fallen pieces as they fall off, or get another blind, preferably not a vertical. Does this make sense?

 

[DaveM]

1) Blinds look old, could have been accidental could have been carelessness. For $3 a blade to replace, hardly worth worryinig over

2) Leaking waterproofing membrane in the shower is my bet

 

[ww2_nut]

You definitely have a leak in your shower. Likely causes could be missing grout or grout is no longer water proof and is allowing water through it.
It could be a simple fix like regrouting the shower, or a major fix which could be pull up, re waterproof and retile.
Either way get a licenced builder to have a look at it

 

[jackbak]

The fact that they are unsure how it all happened ring alarm bells for me - blinds don't just fall off by themselves (even old ones) and if there's a puddle of water in a bedroom you generally know how it go there...

Either way Id try and get rid of the tenant ASAP, by not informing you about what looks like major water damage means they couldn't give a rats about your house. An even if the blinds are old, simply opening and shutting them isn't going to break 5 or 6 of them off, someone has pulled them off somehow.

 

[Sez]

As others have said - the plastic attachments on the verticals are made brittle in the sun, how old are the verticals? I think you would be better off getting them replaced with a more tenant friendly window furnishing. In my experience Hollands are the best for investment properties.

Get that bathroom checked ASAP, I would be more concerned about he tenant not reporting that damage than some old vertical plastic fittings breaking. Have a chat to the tenant about reporting maintenance ASAP, especially things such as water damage.

 

[willair]

Hi Somersoft

*Self Property Manager here*

In a recently inspection, two items were reported/discovered:

1. Broken blinds in one bedroom (picture attached)
2. Some form of water damage in the same bedroom (picture attached)

The tenant advised they were unsure how both happened but did have someone else staying in that room for a few weeks and appears to have held back notifying me until this inspection.

In your experience, are both of these something typically remedied by the owner?

Item 1 (blinds) I feel is cut and dry and the tenant is responsible to fix but I thought it would best to ask here.
Item 2 (water damage) I feel I at the very least should have a builder come out to inspect and advise. As the wall backs onto the bathroom I have considered that there may have been a minor leak, but in my limited building experience I feel the damage would be worse.

Any advice?

Thanks

Looks like there may be a problem in the bathroom area,plus if one was to rip the wall off the water damage may go into the other walls slab ect,then you may find termites-white dryrot through out the pine wall frames,only takes a small leak from the shower,and the water goes into everything if some of the bathroom fittoff is "MDF"MEDIUM DENSITY FIBREBOARD..
IMHO..

 

[eXc]

The fact that they are unsure how it all happened ring alarm bells for me - blinds don't just fall off by themselves (even old ones)

Blinds don't like wind.

Hard to see in the picture, but our blinds fall off like that all the time if we have a strong wind.

We just clip them back in and wait for the next wind to come up. If they have thrown the blinds away, then that's a different story.

I guess you could argue that the tenant was careless and left a window open during strong winds...but I don't think that will help much.

 

[marg4000]

My concern is that you are unsure of what is tenant responsibility and what is the owner's.

If you intend to self manage, you really must get all relevant information and actually know the leglislation so you can act promptly.

In this case I think both are the owner's expense.
Marg

 

[fisherman]

You need to put in a more robust track and block out curtains. Your cost, sorry.

Shower wall, if you are very lucky it might be just lack of silastic around the tap and shower stem. That can be checked in a couple of minutes flat. However it is 90% likely it is the waterproof membrane that has failed. Replacing grout and those so-called shower proofing companies will not fix. You need the hob removed and membrane replaced.

No shortcut, but a new shower alcove at the end and new tap hardware at the same time if you are smart.

 

[The Fence]

My concern is that you are unsure of what is tenant responsibility and what is the owner's.

If you intend to self manage, you really must get all relevant information and actually know the leglislation so you can act promptly.

In this case I think both are the owner's expense.
Marg

Totally agree.

In NSW it is the responsibility of the tenant to report as soon as possible of any maintenance issues such as that leaking bathroom!
Any damage that ensues is then the responsibility of landlord. If not reported in a timely manner then go the tenant for damages & rightfully so.

Get yourself fully educated on the tenancy act in your state. Research as many possible tenancy cases and their outcomes and lean from that experience. Once this is done you will be far more in control.
Until then you are a train wreck aiting to happen.

Otherwise get a good (if you can find one) PM.

 

[oh_noes]

Hello

Thanks for the guidance. I have a builder coming out.

Regarding the blinds, I think I will switch them over to more tenant friendly roller blinds. Am I required to get approval on the type of blind from the tenant? Moving from vertical to roller?

Thanks

 

[KathrynF]

Vertical blinds are the worst in Rental Properties! In fact, any property!

They have a life span of up to 7 years (if they are good quality). The sun makes them brittle and the beading is just painful. They often catch on the windows and break with little encouragement. Unfortunately, if they're not brand new you wouldn't have much of a leg to stand on if you were seeking compensation from the tenants.

As for the water, I would be concerned that the tenant never mentioned anything. Although I think some tenants walk around their homes with their eyes closed.

To cover your tracks legally, I would get a plumber to attend and confirm the water damage and what has caused it. If the shower has played no part and the house is okay otherwise, the tenants may have done something. But it's a weird place and I doubt it.

I would send a letter or an email to your tenant emphasising that you would love to be told of these things as soon as they occur versus at a later date. Damage left untreated can become massive issues.

Good on you for regularly attending to conduct inspections.

All the best.

- Kathryn

 

[wylie]

I would send a letter or an email to your tenant emphasising that you would love to be told of these things as soon as they occur versus at a later date. Damage left untreated can become massive issues.

Good on you for regularly attending to conduct inspections.

All the best.

- Kathryn

Change that to "expect to be told" and it sounds better...

 

[crest133]

Def looks like shower membrane (if it ever had one) leaking. Had a few of these in my motels. Fix it before the problem spreads any further into framework, flooring etc. Bad luck but must be done. Spruce up the shower asap.
Cheers
crest133