your advice please - promlem with tenants

your advice please - problem with tenants

Hi,

I would like to hear your opinions on the following situation:

I have a property which was let to new tenants a couple of weeks ago.
This is a newly built house, and the only thing missing was the blinds.
The blinds supplier indicated that the blinds will be ready by the end of January, and this was communicated to the tenants.
Now, I have been informed that the blinds delivery might be delayed by two weeks.
The Tenants are (obviously) not too happy with this, and have notified the PM that they are seeking compensation by way of rent reduction.
Now, while I sympathize with the tenants (and I do - it IS an inconvenience)
where do I stand? Am I obligated to reduce the rent? if so, is there a rule to how much of a reduction?

I'm am also chasing up the blinds supplier to try and speed things up on their end...

Should I just attribute this to the cost of doing (RE) business, and just offer the reduction? :confused:

your thought are appreciated...

Cheers,
LeeF
 
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This might sound hard... But I would just tell them to put up sheets if they are that worried about privacy!
It's only another 2 weeks and it is not your fault that the blind maker is running behind.
The tenants knew when they moved in that you were in the process of getting the blinds.

Just my 2c worth
 
Should I just attribute this to the cost of doing (RE) business, and just offer the reduction? :confused:LeeF

Yes, offer the rent reduction first next time something like this happens (be pro-active rather than re-active). The tenants were given to understand they were having blinds by now - its only fair to them to compensate them.

Maybe only $10 - 20 per week depending perhaps?

Makes for good relations.

Aimjoy
 
I would not reduce rent for that. It's outside your control. They took on the implicit risk when they rented the place that the blinds might be delayed, otherwise they would have insisted on it being done before they signed the lease.
 
They took on the implicit risk when they rented the place that the blinds might be delayed, otherwise they would have insisted on it being done before they signed the lease.
Twitch,
I beg to disagree. It is the Landlord who takes on the risk when informing the tenants that the blinds will be in by end of Jan. Tenants don't take on any risk here but the landlord is on a promise and I think you'd find the Tribunal would agree.

Since there is a heap of profit in blinds - over 30% I am given to understand - it might be an option to seek some kind of compensation from the blind supplier but for a few $'s I'd just suck it up and do the right thing by the tenants who signed a lease in good faith that blinds would be supplied by a certain date.

Aimjoy
 
I'd agree with Twitch & Miss Muffitt on this. It is only 2 weeks, they took on a new house knowing the blinds were coming from the manufacturers. These things sometimes cause delays.
 
2-2, LOL.

to build my case further, it's a dangerous precident this early in the lease to reduce rent for this kind of issue. Next they'll be asking for rent reductions if the HWS blows up, a toilet blocks, the council don't pick up the rubbish one week....
 
I wouldn't have offered any compensation first, but if they are unhappy it is only fair to provide some. The landlord isn't meeting their obligations/word. $10-20/week seems fair. Alternatively, MissMuffitt could offer them her sheets (you never know, the tenant mightn't have any spare ones)...
 
2-2, LOL.

to build my case further, it's a dangerous precident this early in the lease to reduce rent for this kind of issue. Next they'll be asking for rent reductions if the HWS blows up, a toilet blocks, the council don't pick up the rubbish one week....

Exactly, and with a new house, there are going to be teething problems. A good PM would be explaining to the tenant that new houses do sometimes have a few short term problems, however once sorted should remain problem free for a long time.
 
I wouldnt be lowering the rent. You are doing your best to ensure that the blinds arrive as soon as possible. I'm not sure why tenants expect reductions for every little thing, and I think they have a cheek in asking for one. m Property owners do not seek compensation every time a tradesperson or supplier is running late.
 
Am I obligated to reduce the rent?

No.

But ever so gently remind them (so as not to upset their delicate little feelings) that the rental market is extremely tight, and to brace themselves for a large increase in rental in 6 months time.
 
Exactly, and with a new house, there are going to be teething problems. A good PM would be explaining to the tenant that new houses do sometimes have a few short term problems, however once sorted should remain problem free for a long time.


The that's 2 things that are not the tenant's fault but the landlords:

1. The blinds arriving late - you , the landloard told them they would arrive at a set date - not their fault
2. Your (property manager wasn;'t professional enough to reinforce the situation & manage the negotiation (it is not unreasonalbe for them to ask "where are they" or to be a bit idissapointed) !

As far as setting a precedent which might see them ask for rednt redcution for thing s like council rubbish collections ?????… If they complain about riiculous things later on, you tell them no… simple I wanted expensive sneakers when I was a kid but got dunlop volleys instead, I didn;'t mve out of home because of it. I guess the point is that this is businesx, and as such we don’t; need to get personally offended at each question a tenant asks, they will ask questions.. .like a customer v.s a sales person, both have their own "job" to do. Expecting your tenant / customer to act like you do, or in your interests in unrealistic.
 
Hi,

The blinds supplier indicated that the blinds will be ready by the end of January, and this was communicated to the tenants.

I think if you (your agent) give a time frame which you did the tenant has an expectation this will happen. I would definitely offer some small compensation of $20 per week.
 
I would not reduce the rent in this circumstance. This is not a critical service such as hotwater, toilet, shower etc. Nor is it highly inconvenient such as in the case of a stove not working.

If the place is new this will not be the first thing that goes wrong. The joy of being the first tenant is that you get to test drive in in return for everything being sparkling new. My townhouses have had various hicups and I have only compensated one which made the place unlivable for two days. The tenant did not ask for this we just gave it to him. He has weathered some other inconveninces without any compaint whatsoever.

In the case of your tenants they moved in without blinds knowing they would be living "blindless" for a period of time as they are on order. There has been no deliberate deception. I would be putting pressure on the blind company to have them ready as a matter of urgency if they have failed to meet a deadline.

So I would be saying to the tenants "I will ask blind company to do asap"
 
I would like to hear your opinions on the following situation:

I have a property which was let to new tenants a couple of weeks ago.
This is a newly built house, and the only thing missing was the blinds.
The blinds supplier indicated that the blinds will be ready by the end of January, and this was communicated to the tenants.
Now, I have been informed that the blinds delivery might be delayed by two weeks.

Hi LeeF,

If I was a tenant and had moved into a house without blinds I would probably put up sheets to provide privacy, especially to the rooms I was concerned about. Has the tenant done this?

If they have, then leaving them up a couple more weeks is a small thing and I would think they were unreasonable demanding a reduction in the rent.

If they have not made any temporary arrangements perhaps you should, although it's probably cheaper and easier to reduce the rent for a few weeks.


Regards

Andrew
 
I would probably reduce their rent for a couple of weeks or I would send them a present or something because I would want to keep them on my side.

With a new house you would want them to report any construction/quality issues that come up with the house and if you are a $##%! Landlord they won't bother so you will be stuck with building construction issues.

With a new house they will be inconvenienced by many problems that will come up and the rent is not exactly entry level so I would make sure they are happy.

I would also give them my mobile number so that they can report any building defects directly to me.

Cheers
 
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Thank you all for your feedback.
I have decided to offer a small reduction until the blinds arrive.
As some of you have suggested, I do believe that the tenants had an expectation for the arrival date of the blinds. lesson learnt - should have never provided a date at all.
Looking at the bigger picture, I would rather keep the tenants happy (for all the reasons some of you have mentioned), especially given that this reduction will hardly impact my yearly taking.

Thanks again,
LeeF
 
Take some of your old sheets around and stick 'em up for the tenants until the blinds come.

No cost to you at all, and you'll seem like a champion.

Then, you can go to Dimmey's or one of those joints, and replace your old sheets with new ones for you, and the cost will be a tax deduction as well.

Perfect.
 
If you promised them blinds in two weeks then that is what you have to deliver.

Sure, they could tack up sheets. But what about the condition report when they leave? They will be held responsible for the nail holes in the window frames.

And what if there are further delays? Your supplier has already proved that they are not reliable, and you say the delay "might" be 2 weeks - the "might" would worry me and I would press them for a firm delivery date.

I suggest you knock $50 off in total, that will give you breathing space in case of a further delay. You will also have to give your tenants permission to tack up sheets for privacy, with no penalty for the minor damage they will cause.
Marg
 
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