How long between inspection and moving in?

Hi, after years of chasing a visa and then waiting for the house market to recover again we are finally planning the leap to Canberra (from the Netherlands) mid January.

As we will take our cats with us but no kids (as in, we do not leave them behind, we just don't have any kids ) We might be a bit limited in rental homes.

Plan is to rent a short term rental for the first 4 weeks and by then move to a 12 month rental somewhere. Our questions:

- Would 4 weeks suffice to find a nice 3 to 4 bedroom house in a quiet location in that time of year?

- How much time (in General) passes between a successful inspection, granting you the house and receiving the keys? This would give us an indication of how long we should rent the (rather expensive) short term rental.

- Any other (cat specific?) rental advice you want to you share?

As said, as we move closer to the date we might have some more questions but for now any help in regards the above is welcome.

P.s. We've visited Canberra twice in the last 4 years and had a look into different areas and suburbs and are still open minded as to which suburb suits us best.

I do not have a job lined up so far and the missus will work from home office.

The shortest time I have waited is one day..the longest is one week...depends how long it takes for your references n stuff to come back or whether estate agent even bothers checking them and also how quick owner is to get back to estate agent

Depends how soon the house is available but they tend to do things quite quickly. I've been in 3 rented houses and 1-2 weeks has been average for me.

January might be quiet as everyone is away or out of town on their Christmas/summer holidays and typically December is when the host of diplomatic/political/military postings seem to change over so you may have to just take what's available. That said there's huge rental capacity here so plenty of stuff coming up all the time but it does move fast; you pretty much have to dress smart and go to inspections with the paperwork already filled in - ready to hand in if you like the house in order to get the better rentals.

I think a couple of weeks to process seems reasonable, assuming it's available from when you inspect it. I know some letting agents are pretty damned active, so they want everything chop chop.

I think real estate is most active around January, so there's lots of properties, but a fair amount of competition. There's less available in winter but less competition. So I think that's good for you.

If you get desperate bear in mind you can offer more than the rent listed, e.g. it says $430 and you offer $440 or $450.

In terms of cats, that's a tough one. All advice I have been given is don't declare you have them. In fact, sign a form stating you don't (most seem to want that).

Bizarrely everyone seems to have cats & dogs, but nobody seems to be allowed to have them. It seems to be a bit of a farce.

Some people have said they sign an extra clause, declare the cats, and pay an extra bond (a pet bond). But doing that may mean you get refused.

PS The main problem with declaring you don't have them is having to take a day off and go for a scenic drive with the cats whenever they want to do an inspection - usually every 3 months at first!!

See if you get a second opinion on pets....

Thanks all. Having around 4 weeks of temp. rental seems OK if I take your experiences.

We visited Canberra December 2015 and noticed there were many houses available, it seems to have dropped off by now. So this is in line with your remarks.

When we were over we had an informal chat with a real estate agent. We touched upon the cat topic and here advice was roughly the same. Do not declare them and park them at the neighbours during inspection time or sign a pet clause/offer to pay more. She even declared she took her cat somewhere else during inspection time when she was younger

The first option sounded (and still sounds) so weird. (the concept of inspections is also weird for a Dutchy by the way) But if that is how it works... :wacko:

The inspections seem to be common here. From what I can see they usually come to inspect at 3 and/or 6 months.

Because we made sure everything was clean when the last inspection happened we didn't have any of the ones that were scheduled in the lease agreement after that one.

I think the problem with the pet bond is plenty of landlords just don't want the hassle of pets (as if pets are worse than bad tenants), so they will choose a non pet owner over a pet owner. We haven't wanted to take that risk when we find a place we like.

I have a feeling we will only declare the cats when we buy a house!

Must say if I was a landlord and said no pets but people took their pets and hid them at inspection time I would feel mighty pissed off! I would be even more peeved if MY agent was suggesting to potential tenants that they should go directly against MY wishes by deceit. There are landlords who don't mind so use their places!

Hi Quoll, Don't worry. We noticed quite a lot of properties on AllHomes are pet friendly. They will be on the top of our list!

Thank for providing an alternative perspective Quoll.

As a landlord myself I really don't care who rents my place, so long as they pay the rent, don't do damage, or if they do I will keep their bond. Students, babies, pets, adults, anyone could damage a property, so I ask my agent to vet the people for the kind of people they are, not whether they have pets, babies, or parties.

If you look for pet friendly properties, in Melbourne city area there's 3,300 places for rent today, 36 are pet friendly. Given 2/3 of Australian homes have pets, that doesn't leave many options for pet owners looking to rent.

Personally I would far rather pay an extra pet bond and be honest, so I hope some of the discussed legislation around the "no pets" policy will come into effect and sort the problem out.

It was more that potential tenants were being advised by agents to go against what their client (the landlord!) had requested that bugged me, not the pet per se! If I was a landlord I think it would depend on the kind of property I was renting out as to whether I would approve pets or not and having people in my family who have an allergy to cats means that if I were to rent out my home for whatever reason then I would expect it to be cat free against the time we might move back into it - otoh if it was purely an investment property then I would be open to negotiation. But deceit - no.

In answer to the original question - yeah, 4 weeks will be plenty!

Well we were told two weeks maximum but probably earlier when we applied. As it turned out the landlord didn't respond to the agent and we had to wait 4 and a bit weeks for the keys!

Although this is unusual it can happen.

Have secured a cat friendly property for the first 4 weeks, let's hope we will find something by the time that contract runs out.

Have secured a cat friendly property for the first 4 weeks, let's hope we will find something by the time that contract runs out.

Good luck - where will you be staying?

Thanks.

We start the first week in Chapman at a place we've stayed before with a really lovely and helpful owner. This gives us a bit of familiarity when everything else in our life changes Sadly we cannot stay there when our cats arrive so we looked around and found something not to expensive just outside Canberra. (Bywong) Maybe slightly less convenient due to the distance but in the end still only 20 minutes to the City. At least we will be surrounded by Roo's. Curious what the cats will make of them

Thanks.

We start the first week in Chapman at a place we've stayed before with a really lovely and helpful owner. This gives us a bit of familiarity when everything else in our life changes Sadly we cannot stay there when our cats arrive so we looked around and found something not to expensive just outside Canberra. (Bywong) Maybe slightly less convenient due to the distance but in the end still only 20 minutes to the City. At least we will be surrounded by Roo's. Curious what the cats will make of them

Bywong's pretty decent; an easy drive now that the Majura Parkway is complete and an easy run to Bungendore if you want something quieter.

Our cats just stared and then ignored the roo's in the way that only cats can do :smile:

Bywong's pretty decent; an easy drive now that the Majura Parkway is complete and an easy run to Bungendore if you want something quieter.

Our cats just stared and then ignored the roo's in the way that only cats can do :smile:

hahaha, Yeah cats can be very.... lets call it, unimpressed with a lot of things. In our garden they ignore about everything. Hedgehogs pass through our garden with the cats not blinking an eyelid. Even the blackbirds can steal the cat food right in front of them. They cannot be bothered

But this means you have cats... in a rental? Or is it your own property?

Very interested how it works for you, if your cats can roam free in the garden, or even outside the garden? Or are they indoor? Do many people have cats or is Canberra more a doggy town?

Our cats are currently outdoor cats and enjoy the 'lifestyle' very much, they do not tend to roam much outside the garden, way to much work But they like to sunbath a bit in the grass or look for shade under a bush.

Any advice or experiences with cats in Canberra are welcome!

Any other (cat specific?) rental advice you want to you share?

Pets do make it harder to find a rental. But it is certainly not impossible.

I suggest putting your cats in a cattery for a while, whilst you find a suitable rental.

We did in the past when moving around. One stay was for 12 months when we were moving interstate. Another stay was 3 months. Most catteries will give you discounted rates for long stay.

Rentals will normally advertise as "No Pets" or "Pets Considered". If nothing is said on the advert, then it pays to ask.

Even places that say "No Pets" will sometimes reconsider if you present your case.

In regards to the "Pets Considered", you really need to show that you are a competent pet owner:

You should make sure your cats are up-to-date with their vaccinations

Are wormed every 3 months

Are flea protected

Are desexed

Are micro chipped

Are toilet trained

Do you have vet records of this. That may help your application.

Treat it like a cat resume (i.e.) vouch for them and present them in the best light possible.

In Sydney, you have to also register cats and dogs with your local council, once you have moved into your rental.

I have rented loads of times with cats.

It is much easier renting with cats than with dogs, because cats are much quieter and cleaner animals. And therefore more favorable in the landlords eyes.

I don't think I can post links yet, as only joined this forum today.

But using Google, try searching for:

"resume for pets for renting in sydney"

"resume for pets for renting in brisbane"

Or wherever

And loads of ideas come up

Bizarrely everyone seems to have cats & dogs, but nobody seems to be allowed to have them. It seems to be a bit of a farce.....

First place I lived said a big fat NO to pets, and I had to sign the lease agreement saying I had no pets.

I actually had two cats, and kept them there anyway without the landlord or real estate agent knowing.

During the periodic real estate inspections, I simply booked the cats into the local cattery a few days prior. And then scented and cleaned the house up to remove any evidence.

I had them in this rental for five full years before getting found out.

The landlords then tried to issue another lease saying No Pets. I simply argued that they had been there for five years with absolutely no problem or incident, but I would personally cover any future damage out of my own pocket.

They backed down and agreed to keeping them there....... And I got my full bond returned when I left.

I actually steamed cleaned the carpets at my own expense which they loved, and it got me a very good reference from them (even though I had lied to them about the cats), which came in most useful for securing my next rental.

However, after that experience, I was always truthful from the go-get with a pet resume, and offer of extra bond. Both work well.

At least we will be surrounded by Roo's. Curious what the cats will make of them

When my youngest cat was a kitten around 8 months old, she use to chase roos.

It was so funny to watch a tiny kitten stalking a fully grown kangaroo.

Nowadays she wears a bell on her collar to protect the birds. But my main concern is snakes. She is fascinated with them.

Thnx BooBooBear for the extra info, by searching for Pet resume Canberra I came across the site of the local RSPCA with some helpful tips and a site with a Pet resume example. Fixing up my own resume for the Australian job market. Might as well do one for the cats

And yes, we also need to find a way to protect local wildlife (and the cats themselves) Night curfew is a given I guess to protect native wildlife. And maybe an enclosure during daytime. At least they can go outside but won't be in harms way or catching of local wildlife. Although they are not really predators anymore, more lazy ass opportunists, they are still cats.

Hi,

Most likely your here now and settled. Hope it's going well. When we arrived we had 3 weeks in temp accommodation and I was working from day 1, somehow we still got into a 12 month rental and the temp place cleaned up with several days to spare. Normally anywhere from a couple of days to a couple of weeks seems about right for getting keys.

Also, I don't have pets here, but I'm aware a few suburbs, like Forde, are officially cat containment areas, so cats aren't aloud out in those areas, which would be a bit of a shame for them.

Hi,

Most likely your here now and settled. Hope it's going well. When we arrived we had 3 weeks in temp accommodation and I was working from day 1, somehow we still got into a 12 month rental and the temp place cleaned up with several days to spare. Normally anywhere from a couple of days to a couple of weeks seems about right for getting keys.

Also, I don't have pets here, but I'm aware a few suburbs, like Forde, are officially cat containment areas, so cats aren't aloud out in those areas, which would be a bit of a shame for them.

Hi Andy, thanks for the info. FYI we're not in Canberra yet, we'll arrive end of January. Hope it will not be to crazy in the rental market but it seems a busy season. As we're not planning to go to Gungahlin we'll be fine. Think we'll end up in Belco or Weston by the look of things.

I'm guessing I won't have job from day 1 and the missus has a job but puts it on the backburner for a few weeks so we should have time to arrange stuff.

Thanks again for for the info, always to hear some real life experience!