rattatoile Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Just want to open up a general discussion on renting, following on from DKeiths post about no credit rating. Me & Wife arrive in Brisbane 2 weeks Thursday. We've got short term rental sorted and are off to our first viewing on the 1st Saturday we're there with regards to a log term rental. However, I'm conscious we're not prepared for what questions / evidence etc we're to be asked. Can anyone provide advice / idiots guide with a run down of what we'll need to provide / have throughout each stage, what we'll need to take to the viewing etc. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rammygirl Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Each agent has a form they like you to complete and list the ID you need, they do differ a bit but many are on line so you can look at a few. generally they want assurance you can pay and personal and/ or previous landlord references. They should make some allowances as you are new to the country but it may depend on the competition! they checked all of our references as well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tina0101 Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 We are in Brisbane and we offered 6 months upfront, had our visas/passports, my husband had his letter of offering employment. We had also sold our house in the UK, so had a bank statement showing the funds in our Oz bank account to further strengthen that we had the money!! If you have references from UK landlords, that will help. We took a letter from our UK estate agent saying how lovely our house in the UK was too, and also had references from our UK employers saying how great we were (lol). We didn't need all of this in the end, but we felt it was better to be safe than sorry. Whereabouts in Brisbane are you looking? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rattatoile Posted January 19, 2015 Author Share Posted January 19, 2015 Thanks so much for the info! We're originally being put up in the Redlands with friends until we secure a rental ourselves. We'd prefer Redlands area due to familiarity but with a right budget (wife attending uni) we're looking anywhere. More Logan way looking more affordable to us at the minute. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roberta2 Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Which university in Brisbane is your wife attending? All of them these days have good public transport. Parking is a pain, and expensive. I would stay away from Logan. Low income areas are obviously cheaper, but they come with lots of problems too, including in the schools. In general, I would move as close to the CBD (Central Business District) as you can afford, even if only initially it's an apartment. (Called units here.) Close to a train station and/or busway. An initial six month lease is the norm. Most accommodation here is rented out unfurnished, by the way. However, there are lots of op shops (Lifeline, Endos, Salvos etc) where you can get very cheap furniture and all kinds of household goods. When your own stuff arrives you can just call them and donate whatever you want to get rid of. Regards, Robyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
srg73 Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Decide on your area first, completely agree with the mention of CBD and Logun. Roberta is not entirely correct, apartments are here, house (detached) are expensive in Brisbane. It is worth doing dummy runs to work to test the commute. regarding securing property. 1, offer or contract of employment 2, savings statement with Aus bank 3, Aus driving licence 4, a nice friendly temperament and get to know your agent, turn up early, stay late and quietly ask them questions whilst there also complimenting the property. 5, we were told....do not pay in advance, make you look desperate and untrustworthy. Best set of luck, there will be many disappointments but you will get there in the end, everybody thinks their place is worth a fortune and is immaculate, many are not! S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roberta2 Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 You can also look at the Brisbane City Council Translink websites for the various bus, train and ferry routes. Don't forget the river - river transport is much better than it used to be. The campuses of both University of Queensland (St Lucia) at Queensland University of Technology (QUT) can be reached by CityCat, for example. For rental accommodation, you are probably already looking at realestate.com. You can also find an example of a standard real estate contract on the internet. You might want to ask about how the water bill is paid. There are some townhouse complexes, for example, where the water bill is paid by the whole complex. So if you have an apartment next door occupied by lots of people who use lots of water, you will be helping to paying their bill. It's not cheap anymore either. The landlord pays the fixed charges, but the tenant pays for usage. When you go for a viewing, ask the agent what the house policy is on shoes. Some will want you to remove your shoes, others won't bother. But it's always good to ask and to wear slip-ons. I presume you won't have a pet. If you do contemplate getting one during the term of your lease, you need to ask the agent first. The majority of landlords will not allow them. Cheers R Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roberta2 Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Poms are especially likely to wilt in the heat here without air con. It's been very hot and humid lately, and a lot of us have had to keep the aircon on all night, which is not the usual practice for most of us. You will definitely need aircon in your bedroom. Look to see how many aircons there are. Turn them on to see if they rattle! Ceiling fans are obviously helpful, including to keep circulating the air when the aircon is on, but I would have a good look at them, and turn them on. Some can be too noisy and will drive you crazy if you are trying to sleep. (I just had to replace mine.) If there is no aircon, or not enough aircon, the landlord is not obliged to put them in. They cost about $2,000, including labour, per room to install. Some places will have ducted air con but that is not so common. Look for insect screens, and see if they are intact. In some areas of Brisbane, mosquitoes are in plague proportions after recent rains. They are not just a nuisance either - can carry diseases such as Ross River fever. Flies are a perennial problem. I couldn't live here without fly screens, although my neighbours seem to! Look for builtins. Tenants love them! Look for security too. Bars on windows, security doors etc. There is plenty of crime here. Some suburbs are obviously worse than others. Crime rates, like elsewhere, track inversely with median house prices. Have a good look to see what the general condition of the place is. Are the ceiling fans (if any) clean, for example? What does the place tell you about the willingness of the landlord to spend money on maintenance when required? Agents do what they can, but unfortunately many landlords are focused only on the rent money coming in and are reluctant to spend anything on maintenance. Property managers are also busy, often with more than seventy places to look after. You don't want to be chasing them for maintenance problems if you can avoid it. Landlords are now required to have wired-in smoke alarms. You will have to allow access once a year for them to be inspected. Even the wired in ones have back up batteries that must be changed annually. Water pressure - turn the taps on and off in the kitchen, bathroom etc. Once you decide on a place, take pictures of everything. The real estate agent should also do so. That helps resolve disputes when you move out. If you decide that you simply must put pictures or posters on the walls, do so very carefully. If there is any damage when they are removed, and the wall needs to be repaired/repainted, that will come out of your bond money. The older houses will have picture rails that solves this problem. The bond is four weeks rent and MUST be paid in advance. You don't want any disputes when you move out. You could be put on TICKER if things get ugly, which is a list of problem renters that only real estate agents have access to. Get on that, and you will have real trouble renting again. Rents have been pretty static in recent years. Cheers Robyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mungbean Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Look for insect screens, and see if they are intact. Since this is a "general" discussion about renting... are insect screens common? Across all of Aus? (I'm moving to NSW) I've been looking at domain.com.au and realestate.com.au and haven't seen any on the photos I've been looking at (unless they're hard to see on photos), nor have they been included in the list of features (which can be quite random I guess). Personally I can't imagine living anywhere without them, unless you keep windows closed 24/7 and run the aircon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickyNook Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Since this is a "general" discussion about renting... are insect screens common? Across all of Aus? (I'm moving to NSW) I've been looking at domain.com.au and realestate.com.au and haven't seen any on the photos I've been looking at (unless they're hard to see on photos), nor have they been included in the list of features (which can be quite random I guess). Personally I can't imagine living anywhere without them, unless you keep windows closed 24/7 and run the aircon. I live in the eastern suburbs of Sydney and have done for over 30 years. My house doesn't have insect screens. None of my neighbour's houses have insect screens. Bugs obviously aren't a problem here (or we'd have them). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mungbean Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Bugs obviously aren't a problem here (or we'd have them). That's good to know! thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickyNook Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 That's good to know! thanks. I'm only speaking for my part of Sydney's eastern suburbs, of course. The rest of the city/state/country could be completely different and insect screens may well be a necessity elsewhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mungbean Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 I'm only speaking for my part of Sydney's eastern suburbs, of course. OK I'm shifting to Inner West Sydney, and if I get malaria I shall hold you personally responsible... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roberta2 Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Brisbane is semi tropical. Civilized life is impossible without insect screens, especially in summer. Even with perfectly fitted and maintained screens, flies get in somehow, especially when you are cooking. Flyswat gets a lot of use since you can't spray around food, utensils etc. Ditto the occasional mozzie. Cockroaches fly, too! And moths etc etc. Sydney? Lived there for years, in the eastern suburbs, and I suppose we had flyscreens. Can't really remember now. Presume we did, because hubby always believed mozzies made him a special target. In recent years, I often stayed with a friend in Double Bay. Multimillion dollar house but no flyscreens. Cockroaches flew in all the time from the surrounding shrubbery. I had to keep the windows shut in order to sleep, and sweltered. Best Robyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
srg73 Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 A lot of detail, personally I would avoid ex family homes issued for rent, landlords can be very emotional about these, full of memories etc. with rentals you will get body corporate fees, check as can be expensive especially if pool included. I personally don't like queenslanders but that's me, most people love them, they can be cooler but high maintenance. Generally the better the transport links, the more expensive the area. We have city cat, train and bus near however we were lucky to secure a 3 bed 3 bathroom unit for less than average in the area. For us body corp and water fees included in our rent. Spend your time reading and adjusting the entry report as this becomes binding on exit. Your bond, my attitude the money will be lost but if we get it back then this is a bonus! Not a great attitude however remember the agent is working for the landlord so the tenant will always be the bad guys. S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roberta2 Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Tenants don't pay the body corporate fees. Landlords pay those along with rates, property insurance, landlord's insurance etc. etc. I am about to rent out a newly built inner city unit, and would be delighted to hear that the tenants would pay the BC fees! Yes, rents will be higher if there is a pool. But a pool that you don't have to maintain is a nice thing to have in this climate. Landlords are also required to pay for maintenance, not tenants. The fact that a Queenslander needs to be repainted every decade or so, at a current cost of $20,000 at least, is interesting but irrelevant if you are a tenant. I agree with the notion that families are likely to be too emotional about renting the family home out for the first time. Inexperienced landlords can be a pain both for tenants and property managers. Landlords simply have to accept that unless you are very lucky, no tenant is going to look after your house as well as you would. Yes, pay close attention to the entry report, noting all defects. Keep photographs. The bond should NOT be lost if tenants have done the right thing. The laws were changed about five years ago to make it fairer for both tenants and landlords. I rented in Japan for years. It was understood that a large part of the "key" money - about five months rent - would never be returned, despite what the law might say. On the other hand, there was a general understanding that you would not be kicked out either. Here in Brisbane , you can be kicked out at the end of your lease, but you should get the bond back unless you have caused damage. Of course, there will always be disputes about what is "damage" and what is "normal wear and tear". And yes, the agent is working for the landlord, but there are also tenant advocacy groups etc and landlords can't just do as they please. My family has also had some very bad experiences with tenants, where the bond money did not begin to cover damage. At least they were not setting up a drug lab, which seems to be happening more and more... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mungbean Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 When you use an agency (like domain.com.au) do they charge a fee to the tenant for finding a place, or does the landlord cover that cost as well? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Thanks so much for the info! We're originally being put up in the Redlands with friends until we secure a rental ourselves. We'd prefer Redlands area due to familiarity but with a right budget (wife attending uni) we're looking anywhere. More Logan way looking more affordable to us at the minute. I remember when I was working in property management for a large company, I was looking for cheap offices for their Gold Coast branch. I thought I'd found the perfect premises in Logan. When I told the local manager he laughed and said, "Better up the insurance and order extra-strong security mesh for the frontage". Then he told me there was no way he would ask his staff to work in that area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roberta2 Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Domain.com.au and realestate.com.au etc are not agencies, just websites. The real estate agent will charge the landlord, not the tenant, for costs associated with getting a new tenant. Lots of agencies - biggest ones in Brisbane are probably L.J. Hooker and Ray White, which are franchises. Nearly all rentals these days will be on these websites, for which they charge the real estate agency. If you approach a real estate agency, they will have a list of places currently available. Most viewings are on Saturday mornings, when they like to have a bunch of prospective tenants viewing a property at the same time. If so, don't be late or the caravan will have moved on. However, sitting tenants no longer have to agree to allow Open House on Saturdays. They do have to agree to inspections when 24 hours' notice is given. So you might have to wait a bit to do your inspection. I am talking here only about the law in Queensland. Other states may be different. If pets are an issue, you will note that some places say "pets considered". Then obviously you have to tell the landlord what you have and it is up to him/her to decide. There will be an inspection of the property every three months. Adequate notice must be given to the tenant. The landlord may or may not be present, but certainly has the right to be present. Yes, a pain if you are a tenant, but also an opportunity to clean up, and to raise minor maintenance issues in person with the property manager. Best Robyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roberta2 Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Re insurance: the landlord pays to insure the building and is well advised to have landlord's insurance as well, which covers lots of other things such as nonpayment of rent. But you as the tenant have to cover your contents, which usually will mean not only your personal effects, but your furniture, white goods etc. (Washing machines, dryers and fridges are NOT supplied in an unfurnished house because most renters have their own.) And yes, in a high crime area you will pay a lot more for contents insurance- although this will also depend on what the house is like. e.g. if it has security grills, Crimsafe etc security door, deadlocks etc etc, you will pay less. You can also expect to pay more for car insurance in a high crime area such as Logan. Again, the insurers will ask if the car is kept in a locked garage, in a carport with a locked door or with no door, in the front yard or on the street. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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