What we need from you
Firstly, we need three full sets of keys. Two sets will be given to tenants once they’ve signed the lease agreement, and one set will be kept in our office in case of emergency.
We also need some information about your property to help us market it. These are the sorts of things prospective tenants will want to know before deciding if your property is for them. This includes whether your property is pet friendly, what appliances such as washing machine or freezer are included, what services are available in the area, and whether you have any plans to put the property up for sale while the property is leased. This is something to keep in mind, as if the property is listed during the tenancy and the tenant wasn’t advised, they’re within their rights to terminate the agreement with no break lease costs.
Things you have to do
You need to make sure your property complies with legislation and good rental practice. We can offer advice if you’ve got any questions.
- Smoke alarms
Your property MUST have working smoke alarms. The Office of Fair Trading has produced a handy leaflet outlining your responsibilities.
- Swimming pool
If you have one, it must have a valid compliance certificate issued by your local council. This is to meet new laws an regulations around swimming pool fences and general safety. The swimming pool check list, developed by the NSW Water Safety Taskforce is a handy resource that can help you find out if you comply.
- Water efficiency
All rental premises must meet required water efficiency standards. if needed, we can get one of our qualified plumbers to undertake a water efficiency audit and issue a Compliance Certificate, which we can keep on file. Just ask us for more information.
- Appliances
These must be maintained in working condition during the lease. If you have them, we recommend you keep your original warranty and any appliance manuals and provide a copy for reference by your tenants. We can keep these on file for you if you’d like.
- Cleaning
It’s really important to make sure the property has a pre-tenancy clean. This is so we can make sure your tenants return the property to the same standard at the end of their tenancy. We work with a number of recommended cleaners and can arrange a quote if needed.
- Landlords insurance
Owning a residential investment property comes with some risks that could result in financial losses to you. These can include loss of rental income due to change in a tenant’s financial circumstances, damage to the property by a tenant, or even being held liable for an injury to the tenant or a member of their family while on your property. We strongly recommend that you arrange landlords insurance for your property to help minimize any risks. We’ve enclosed some brochures to give you more information.
- Contents insurance
This is a necessity. Although tenants will have their own contents insurance to cover personal belongings, you will need to be insured against fire of flood damage to internal furnishings such as your kitchen, carpets and light fittings. We can provide you with details of companies who specialise in this kind of insurance, so please just ask.