tenant's rights?

[graisme]

hi all
can anyone tell me whether a tenant can demand extras after they have signed the lease and moved in? these extras include another tv aerial (in the lounge room instead of the family room) and gates to close off either side of the property.
the property has never been lived in before and everything is brand new but i have had complaint after complaint from them and now they are making what i think are unreasonable demands. i am right?

 

[troyhunt]

Generally speaking, I believe the answer is "no" unless it relates to legal obligations such as smoke alarms and pool fences. I'd be very confident in my right to refuse something as trivial an additional aerial. Having said that, consider the cost and the goodwill it may provide. It might work in your favour in the long run.

 

[graisme]

thanks troy
the tenant has been very difficult since the tenancy commenced in early dec.
there were 2 a4 pieces of paper stickytaped down on the front tiles and a piece of underfelt which i had left there to protect the new tiles. he threatened to go to consumer affairs about it and wanted a week's rent in lieu. it's gone on and on ever since.....

 

[Player]

Agree with troyhunt,

Stand your ground and ensure the PM does also, especially on a new lease.....and whats more on a new house

I will not provide anything in a properly functioning property after the fact. They signed it up as is. If they are long term and have kept the house in good order, I will value add small items and increase the rent concurrently.

 

[troyhunt]

the tenant has been very difficult since the tenancy commenced in early dec.
there were 2 a4 pieces of paper stickytaped down on the front tiles and a piece of underfelt which i had left there to protect the new tiles. he threatened to go to consumer affairs about it and wanted a week's rent in lieu. it's gone on and on ever since.....

I'm not sure what the rental market is like in Ballarat at the moment, but when I've had difficult tenants in any of my properties lately I've been very clear to the PMs that this is not the market for tenants to be pushing their luck. If they don't like where they're living then there's 10 other people lined up behind them who will probably pay more to live where they are. As Player said, stand your ground and don't create a pattern of yielding to frivolous demands.

 

[Perp]

Whilst it's legally true that a lease is signed "as is", I don't think that sticking rigidly to this line is a winning approach. It really is nigh on impossible to know what a house will be like to live in before you move in, and I think it's natural that there'll be some things that a tenant will discover upon moving in which make it less pleasant for them to live there. And particularly with a new home; I bet you would find things out about it that you didn't like, either. Maybe that family room gets way too much sun to be practical for watching TV in.

Generally, I would do small things such as those requested, as other tenants are likely to appreciate them, too, and it creates goodwill.

The fact that this is already a "problem tenant" who already sounds unhappy does, however, change the equation, and makes it much more difficult to know what to do...

 

[graisme]

he signed a 12 month lease. doesn't that mean that i am stuck with him? i would very much like him to move on....

 

[Perp]

Oh yes, you're stuck with him as a tenant; I thought you were seeking advice as to whether to put in the antenna socket and gates! No, you can't evict a tenant for making requests. But you can say "no".

 

[Player]

he signed a 12 month lease. doesn't that mean that i am stuck with him? i would very much like him to move on....

Fraid so.....remove the antenna already there and buy them a few sets of rabbit-ear's from the reject shop.....see how well they work in Ballarat

 

[graisme]

thanks everyone, the comment about him moving on was just a whimsy. but thanks for the info.

 

[Witzl]

what is it with the request some tennants make??

I was made to feel bad in the other thread when i mentioned asking my landlord to keep two cats and get some aircon (whilst offering to pay more rent).... and this dude is asking for another antenna socket and whinging about some stuff on the tiles??

The place im in now needed both the antenna socket and side gate.
The gate is really a non issue IMO (that depends on the house, it could be a security risk)... but the TV antenna was easy. I just ran cable along the corner of the room and into the other room. Problem solved.

I'll echo what others are saying.
Dont pander to the ridiculous, but maybe think about some of the more reasonable requests.... you might be able to agree on a higher rent for doing so.

 

[Lamingtons]

I was thinking .. if he wanted to watch tv in another room.. like I did. I bought an extra long cable, got a split thing or whatever and dragged the wire across. I now realise I was the model tenant.

 

[sparky23]

I wouldn't worry about the aerial so much but why do they want side gates? If they have small children to keep fenced in fair enough perhaps they didn't notice there weren't any when they looked before moving in and certainly it makes sense so far as security goes.

However if they are shaping up to be the tenants from hell they could be asking so that they can move their 6 pit bulls to the property that they forgot to mention earlier!LOL

 

[GoAnna!]

I would offer to release them from their contract at one month's notice if you truly do have such as easy to let property. If they are going to stress you out for 12 months let them go.....life's too short. Or learn the art of saying no.

 

[boomtown]

Tell them they can have whatever they want if they pay for it. If I thought it was a genuine improvement I might offer to go halves.