When a rental occupier gives notice
One of the realities of owning an investment property is that occasionally there will be a change in the occupiers who call your property home.
The news that your current renters intend to leave might come after years of them residing there, or perhaps circumstances mean they’ve only stayed 12 months.
But regardless, when a rental occupier gives notice, there’s a process that kicks in and here’s a guide to what that involves.
Occupier gives notice
If your renter is looking to vacate the property at the end of a rental agreement, they need to give written notice of their intentions in advance.
Depending on the circumstances and which state or territory the property is located in, the required notice period can range from 14 days to two months.
But long before a rental agreement ends, a good property manager will proactively manage this situation by liaising with the owner and the renter to find out what they plan on doing at the end of the fixed term.
Liaising with the owner
Once a renter gives notice of their intention to vacate, the property manager informs the owner and seeks their instructions on what to do next.
Perhaps this is the chance to undertake some maintenance at the property while it’s vacant, or maybe you intend to sell and now’s the time to prepare the home and take it to market.
On the other hand, maybe you’d like to re-rent the property immediately.
Market update
If you intend to re-let the property, your property manager will provide you with a market update, including the current rental vacancy rate for the area, supply and demand, and the price that similar properties are renting for.
They will also offer their advice on what price you should charge for the rent moving forward.
Advertising the property for rent
Once you’ve decided on price, the property manager will advertise the property for rent. And this usually includes listings on both their website and the real estate portals such as Domain and realestate.com.au.
Open homes
Potential renters will need to inspect your property prior to applying for it, and this occurs either through general open homes, or inspections by appointment.
During these open homes, the property manager takes interested parties through the home, provides them with the information they will need in order to apply, and also gauges whether these might be the right renters for your property.
Rental applications
If someone’s interested in your property, they then fill out a rental application which includes providing their employment details and previous rental history.
The property manager collects these applications and processes them by cross-checking all the information provided. They will then make a recommendation regarding which renter they feel best suits the property, and draw up a rental agreement for a new rental period.
Exit inspection
In the meantime, the property manager also handles the exit of the existing renters.
This includes taking receipt of the keys on the day the agreement ends and also inspecting the property to ensure it is clean, tidy and has been returned to its original condition barring fair wear and tear.
If so, they will organise the release of the exiting renter’s bond.
How we can help
Our experienced property managers pride themselves on establishing great relationships with both rental occupiers and owners.
We manage every property as if it were our own and you can learn more about our property management services here.
Alternatively, if you are looking to rent a property, you can view the properties we currently have available here.
