Name and shame the property management company.
The reason why REAs have a bad reputation is because of shit like this. The public deserve to know which REAs uphold ethical values and which don't, rather than simply existing to serve the landlords and profits.
My expectation would have been for that property manager to push back on the request for $250 from the landlord.
Friend of mine was renting a place and the REA sided with them over a repair request and the owner straight up left the agency and went with another one that didn’t side with the tenant. I think the agents learn quickly not to side with tenants over anything.
Agreed.
I do repair jobs for REAs.. mostly TV antennas, FTTN and HFC wiring. While it's a huge market, 90% of the time the owner doesn't want to pay more than $150.
The average apartment starts at $1500. I often have to hire an EWP for the task 3 story blocks are very common around these parts.
Units are more common than houses for dodgy comms wiring.
All of the above, including shopping centres.
We can them Multiple Dwelling Units, or MDUs.
If I'm laying new conduit through to an upper unit level I'll do the whole level. No point in just running one cable up to lvl 4 then sealing it off so that no other unit on that floor can be serviced in the future.
None of them do that's the problem. The bar is so low and it doesn't matter at current vacancy rates. There is no impetus for an REA to do the right thing because you have to live somewhere.
But they are following the law. OP said it’s not illegal. It’s annoying but they have to just do what the landlord says.
If you don’t… landlord will find another agent who will.
The laws need changing. Can’t just blame agents forever.
There were two comments above me
1. “They work for the landlord. Who’s going to rock the boat with their employer?”
2. “Well because they need to follow the law maybe?”.
To which I responded to comment 2, pointing out that as OP said what occurred wasn’t illegal.
I agreed with comment 1, that it’s difficult to rock the boat with your employer but also added to that because even if this agent DID rock the boat with th landlord and refuse to do this, they would simply find another agent who would do it… rendering the first agents efforts ✨pointless✨.
I reiterate the point in my original comment - laws need changing. Can’t just blame agents forever.
I do it all the time with my employer, tell him his is being stupid or making a bad/illegal/immoral decision, and guess what it's gotten me? Several pay rises, freedom to do what I want and respect from our clients also. Standing up to your employer isn't hard. And it is even easier to stand up to your client sometimes, which is who the landlord is as well as the tenant.
*You do not pay for*
*Repairs if you didn't break*
*It end of story*
\- Money\_killer
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Sometimes you break things and still don't pay for it because you say you'll happily pay the $80 if they would like to refund the first 2 weeks rent for renting out an apartment that didn't meet the state living standards and you never hear about it again.
Basically I broke a powerpoint trying to leverage a lock from it so I could do my washing after asking the real estate 3 times in the past two weeks. Popped it out of the wall and I think one of the plugs needed replacing.
They just have given you their very illegal eviction reason.
No I won't pay for your repairs, and I want to negotiate the rent increase.
If you try to evict me I will take this email to the proper authorities.
there would be a report that they would have received a copy of. need to be careful and do your due dilligence to make sure everything on there is kocher
.
Good landlord helps.
Moved in almost 2 years ago - ducted aircon went, water tank pump exploded, oven door broke. Didn't ask for cent - repaired both within a week.
So does knowing your rights as a tenant, when we left the daft cow estate agent on a power trip (who had let herself in my home without ANY notice and started bossing my end of lease cleaner about and many other incidents) asked us to power wash the drive way that we didn't park on. Not allowed. She also wanted us to trip all the hedges and plants. My husband did this because he's spineless but because they did not prove any out door water supply the tap - tap didn't work- they had no business asking us to do it.
She got put in her place more than once because I'd spoken to someone at services nsw about what we did and didn't have responsibility for, and I had taken my own entry pictures. She tried to blame me for the hob looking "dirty" when it was actually the enamel paint worn off or scrubbed off by the previous owner and it looked like baked on food, picture to prove it, and the seal on the oven door of the DIRTY oven was exactly as it was in the picture, but I had it cleaned so she got it back in better nick than we rented it.
She was not with the letting agent when I signed over my keys.
Honestly I know it's a far reach for many and it took my dad dyeing for us to get a deposit, but the freedom of home ownership is like nothing else.
Until the boiler goes.
Automatically filled this in. Had some wild experiences including one of the tradies working on my house sending me sexually explicit texts, to which the REA replied angrily about… to me! He then tried to send the same tradie to my place to fix the problem after I asked for someone else. Said tradie did the Renos on my home and I was legit scared he’d try to come in as he would know how to get in… just knowing where I live is enough. Just one of the countless awful experiences with Australian REAs and renting. Sigh.
It’s all g now :) that was a few months ago and it’s been calm since. No more weird texts at least. Broken stuff still broken but we’re just living with it lol, no grounds evictions terrify me and the current rental market ain’t looking so hot right now. Also I’m using my mum’s hack of keeping a baseball bat under my bed, dad used to do night shifts, plus lift weights so if anyone tries to come in I’m READY
Get yourself one of those heavy flashlights to keep by your bed instead. It’s much easier to swing- I mean see an attacker with. If you can’t find one of those, maybe shorten up one of those golf clubs, I think they’re called a driver. Main thing is to have something where the impact is all going to be condensed into one small area. With a baseball bat, you will lose much of the power you put into that all important first swing because it’s a larger object, it covers a larger area, and the impact is spread over that area. Ie it’ll hurt less and be less likely to incapacitate immediately. But in the end, better anything than nothing.
A friend had a condition of rental that they must use a specific gardener, the gardener constantly rocked up at random times without letting her know. Her sons support dog was in the yard one time and came up to him barking, he whacked the dog with a rake because he was scared!
He could have easily just texted he was coming and she would have put the dog inside. Theres also the risk he would have let the dog out and it got hurt.
Jesus Christ!!! I have two cats. If they just came in randomly and harmed my cats I would be livid. I hope her son’s support dog is ok :( that’s so upsetting
Thank you for posting the link, I have a nightmare story that I needed to get of my chest and hopefully heard by someone with the reach to do something.
It’s time there was a landlords and property managers blacklist. Name and shame flogs like this so when things return to normal, they’ll be the first to taste karma.
I say this as a landlord and someone who has rented over the years.
[https://www.ratemyrental.co/](https://www.ratemyrental.co/)[https://www.rentrabbit.com.au/](https://www.rentrabbit.com.au/)
Both these companies trying to get this up and running - seems others have tried. I have left a few reviews in the past, but then those startup sites seem to have since failed.
The issue is getting enough reviews.
Just looked at both of those. They really don't make it easy to use. **RentRabbit** -- Looks nice, but I'm sure a lot of people cannot be bothered to register an account just to see anything, especially when you know they're probably just gonna spam your inbox.
**RateMyRental** -- super slow servers. Clicking any button takes forever to load. Also didn't really load anything useful.
The issue is defamation, Australia has very strong defamation laws and these sites put themselves on the hook for getting sued if someone adds a review that can't be proven, or is embellished (or just outright lies)
But it absolutely needs to happen, it just needs to be regulated properly, same as the tenants blacklist.
A better indicator of whether a place has a good landlord is that the rental ad history shows it doesnt get a new tenant in every 1-2 years. The same tenants stay because a place is well maintained and landlord isnt the kind to bill $250 for nonexistent clothesline repairs.
My last landlord was also the REA. She never raised the rent in four years and was always just happy having good tenants that she would always get repair people in immediately (even if some were a bit dodgy brothers).
Very true...but lower priced older dwellings have higher turnover because what looks like a cute cheap cottage is not as comfortable as a new 4x2 for your stuff. Its priced low accordingly but people's expectations can be high even on low rents. So turnover should take that into consideration.
Rather than a black list have a white list of landlords and property managers. To access government incentives / tax brakes, you need to be on the white list. The various administrative tribunals can strike you off. You can still rent property but no assistance from govt to do so.
If you're naming and shaming, the potential for defamation claims would be high. I probably wouldn't be submitting a negative review, no matter how temporarily satisfying it might be.
Just FYI OP, after you move out, ask the agent politely a refund for the clothes line which wasn’t fixed and state that if they refuse, you will report the agent and seller to state police for theft. That will get you your cash back.
Will probably try and take the money to actually fix the clothesline from your bond. One time I knew the land lady was going to screw me so i withheld the last months rent. Walked out all squared up
You could contest this pretty easily at the tribunal. If they tried to do it though, they’ve clearly got an email highlighting the offer which the owner and Real Estate agent didn’t follow through with and have still not done anything with from their end. It’s very likely that a tribunal would throw it out and probably fine the agent for bringing it to them in the first place.
Edit: had this exact experience when a Real Estate agent tried to blame us for damage to a carpet that was clearly there before we moved in that wasn’t in the inspection report. Thankfully we had photos to prove it so they with Drew before they could get in front of the tribunal and get in trouble.
I would ask for a copy of the rental ledger then ask why the $250 extra I paid isn’t on the rental ledger.
Once they say this money was for the clothes line I would remind them it hasn’t been fixed and request a rent reduction (backdated) for the [broken amenities](https://www.tenants.org.au/sample/rent-reduction).
It may not be illegal but it is unethical.
Having gone through similar rubbish while renting, I will never rent again. I'd prefer to buy a studio apartment and move my wife and 2 kids in than to rent again. I'm so glad I bought a house, even if it was a rip-off, I'd prefer to overpay and own a house than to put up with the kind of bullying, blackmail, and extortion rental agents have put me through in the past.
I absolutely agree mate. It's been awful. I've never missed a rent payment in 10 plus years. Sadly we are leaving Darwin as we could not afford the houses or rent increases. Settled for North Queensland.
This should cheer you up, OP. I pay $650 for two bedrooms in Sydney under 15km away from the cbd and under 10km to the nearest decent beach. It was originally $600 but I wasn’t taking any chances given how many people are looking for rentals right now and offered the $50 more to ensure it. Turns out I didn’t need to do that but I didn’t want to take any chances. In my opinion, I got everything I wanted out of this place so I’m not mad about it but the difference between 1,2 and 3 bedrooms here is milk left out on a hot day.
Good luck with the change and congratulations on buying your new home
I'm glad you secured a house mate. The rent increases have been crippling and it is the reason we are leaving but I agree with you a house is a house. The alternative was potentially face homelessness or knock on people's door for help (which definitely not something I'm comfortable with). Anyway thanks for the wishes. We can't wait.
Absolutly. You're paying for your own thing rather than for someone else's. In 20 years no one will care what you paid but you will have had 20 years of freedom from REAs.
That’s exactly what lead to my first purchase. Blamed for things we never did. Place was falling apart and when we brought it up with the REA, there was never a response. Then, they want to do inspections constantly and never accommodate our timing. So, bye.
Landlord tried getting nasty with me and my husband after we moved out. Told her to shut up unless she wants a 10k fine for not putting our bond in a bond account.
Cherry on top was she didn’t want family knowing that she sold the house, so i dropped the keys at her auntie’s house who knew I was pregnant and was shocked that they kicked us out. She complained about it and told me I should of put they keys in the letter box, I told her if someone got keys to the house and trashed it, it would be on us so that’s why I dropped off the keys to her auntie who also was the one to give us the keys in the first place.
I’m still annoyed about the fact they kicked us out while I was 37 weeks pregnant with my first and the middle of summer too.
Yes, you can buy, and then be ripped off by banks, tradies, insurance companies, councils, OH&S inspectors, building managers etc. But at least you won't be ripped off by your landlord 
It is unethical to ask for money towards an asset as a condition of entering a new lease, however it's definitely illegal to take someones money under a false promise that you will provide goods in return.
That's fraud. The REA / Landlord have engaged in fraud and it should be reported, regardless of the dollar amount.
It was their request, you didn't ask for a clothes line.
THEY made it a requirement to sign the lease. THEY stated quite clearly that it was damaged and NEEDED to be replaced.
It is not on you to remind them of something THEY specifically said was a NECESSITY for them.
There is no fathomable way they can argue that they forgot, or it was no longer required. Both of those statements would be admitting that they lied to you about the clothesline NEEDING to be replaced.
I should note the vacancy rate was at a record low at the time so walking away was not an option with 2 kids. To this day I cant rationalise the landlord making up to $33K a year in rent and being bitter about $250 and using it to blackmail us despite us arguing we did not cause the damage.
Exactly. God dam greedy :(
And they never fixed it!!! I never followed them up admittedly. In my mind I said if I go to the rental tribunal I'll show them this email and photos of the clothes line never being fixed.
This makes me think of the entire inflation story…
yeh all prices are up bcuz of the Ukraine issue and btw we had the best year of net profits in 70 years ..
People just take advantage when given the opportunity- disgusting
Yeah I don't get this. They get the 250 back in 5 weeks just on the rental increase and if you move out they will lose more in adverting fees to the REA.
Yeah exactly. I didn't acknowledge in my OP but I did in fact get financial help with this and didn't personally pay for it. Was in a rough spot at the time as I was doing an unpaid 3 month placement. Still, they, and we, were quite shocked with their ultimatum.
If they were actually getting $33k in income I highly doubt they would have cared about the tax deductible $250. More likely they are heavily indebted, are finding it increasingly hard to cope and were reduced to begging tenants like you to subsidize their own stupid decisions. I see this on discussion forums all the time, some landlord whinging about how to get the tenant to pay for a broken door…if a dirt cheap internal door is worth fifteen emails and disputes and social media appeals for help rather than a note to the agent “please replace the door”…they are in over their head.
While 33k is a lot, sometimes it might not even cover your mortgage and expenses. For example one of my properties generates about 24kpa and the lions share of that goes to the mortgage. After rates, insurance, management and putting money from the rent aside for repairs, maintenance, capex and vacancies many landlords in Australia aren’t even positive cash flow.
It gets even worse when you have bad tenants. I had tenants leave the house, garage and yard full of trash. It costs me thousands to hire people and skips to go and clean it out and there was thousands in damages I had to repair above their bond. I’ve also had three ACs blow up in 2 years. They’re $1500 a pop plus labour. I’ve also had about 7 down lights fail that need replacing. I’ve also had a grouting issue in the bathroom letting ants in that needed replacing. Electricians and plumbers aren’t cheap!
Just because the rent is high doesn’t mean the landlord is taking you for a ride. There a huge costs in providing housing for people and it’s a delicate balance between profitability and failure.
I think it’s shit that they’re forcing you to fix the clothes line tho. If you didn’t break it. I wish people were more honest.
I'm not a landlord but how did you work out they make $33k?
Agent takes a cut, interest rates have almost doubled since the start of the year and any capital gains made over the past two years have disappeared. Every landlord is different, but many will be barely breaking even in these conditions.
Yeah, I feel SO sorry for anyone in this situation. It's almost like they thought an INVESTMENT was simply a way of making guaranteed money with ZERO risk. Who would have thought?
Agent takes a cut? Tax deductible.
Interest bill? Tax deductible.
Capital gains disappeared? Hardly, and that assumption relies on having purchased since 2021. Anyone who purchased in 2020 or before is still well ahead.
Of course its less. I was just making a generalised statement. It's 33.8K a year minus your property management fees, interest rate fees and so on as you said. Mate I own a property myself and I would and have never done this to my tenants. My repayments have doubled too. Each to their own I guess. We purchased our house after dealing with this property manager.
Simple, it's Gross not Net. I make $39,000 annually, that's what I say if people ask how much I make. I don't deduct tax and other essentials beforehand. Same thing with what he said there. Everyone knows that houses have upkeep, tax, etc. and that the rent doesn't just go straight into the owner's pocket.
> many will be barely breaking even in these conditions.
I’m a landlord. If the rent covers the mortgage only, that’s not breaking even. the landlord is still up $33k as their mortgage has decreased by $33k, paid by the tenant. ie they’ve made 33k in the last year (assuming zero growth on the property price etc)
This is why property investing beats stocks imo. Very difficult to lose money over the long run as the debt drops predictably and the property prices trend upwards.
I have no doubt. Wonder if I can ask that question to them at the tribunal when they undoubtedly attempt to claim wear and tear from my bond? I've asked for their bond cleaner recommendations because I can't be assed going through "the bond cleaner didn't do x,y and z".
These guys were super-helpful when I had REA issues leaving my last tenancy [https://www.dcls.org.au/tenants-advice/](https://www.dcls.org.au/tenants-advice/)
Once you've moved out - write to the ATO with proof you paid for half the clothes line in case they claim the whole lot.
That'll run up their a*s faster than a ferret down a tube in Richard Gere's house.
Why hint to the property manager? Just do it. They'll just do it to the next tenants. And if the ATO investigates I doubt anything bad will really happen if they comply.
If anyone ever threatens legal action or threatens to do something to the government, you know it's usually an empty threat. They are just saying "I am trying to scare you into agreeing with me but I am too lazy to follow through".
I’m a landlord and I hate landlords who do this wear and tear expected to be replaced and I don’t inflate rent after a lease has been expired, I look at the condition report and if it has been maintained I keep it the same
Got tennants in properties 4-5 years and still going
The full rent cycle was was 550 (12 months) to 600 (6 months) to 650 (12 months but we are breaking lease early to escape to our new home. Will have served 6 months of thr 12 months).
Landlord tried to raise mine from 1300 pcm to 2300 pcm. Ofc I just told them if they upped the price I would just not pay them anything and see them in VCAT in 2 years where they would only end up claiming rental insurance and getting nothing from me. 9 months on my rent is still 1300 :)
Hahaha, Ofc I didn’t. I expressed this over the phone. I did it quite politely. I told him that I was really looking forward to meeting him over Zoom and it would be a great chance to catch up, because we wouldn’t have seen each other for 2+ years by the time our VCAT hearing takes place. I then gently reminded him that a VCAT ruling in their favour doesn’t mean anything in terms of an obligation for me to pay any money I may (or may not) owe them. Bully the bullies :)
I guess it really depends on if you caused the damage or not? The increase isn’t too egregious given the current market. I totally understand not wanting to make waves. Currently saving as hard as possible for a deposit and praying our lease gets renewed without too big an increase.
What I learnt while I was renting, is read the rental agreement and as soon as they step a toe outside, beat them with it. Actually, even if they're a toe inside.
So many people seem to be afraid of submitting a Notice to Remedy Breach and they leave issues for way too long. If the REA isn't handling stuff within a week, without a good damn reason, there's no need to be nice.
Also you can contact the RTA for a casual chat, if you need to know your options. They don't bite.
Meanwhile me, essentially:
REA "Hey yo, I know it's like 4 months before you have to renew but you wanna renew for the same exact rent price for another year starting when your current rental agreement ends?"
Me "Am I reading this right? Yes!?"
REA: "Sign this and done"
Me: Reads, nothing dodgy, done.
I know I lucked out.
Im a landlord and ive never asked tenants to pay for any repair. Some wear and tear is expected and just cause you happen to be the poor bastard that happens to be renting the place when the 10yr old clothesline breaks doesnt mean its on you...
Congrats on getting out of the rent trap. After renting for many years, I've never had a good REA but my experience with the one we were renting from during covid took the cake. We're renting a place privately through family at the moment and have plans to build our own place. I hope to never again be in a position where I have to rent through a real estate.
Sounds like a fantastic plan for your family. Yes I agree. I had one that was really good. It was a private arrangement and had no issues. It was the first house we moved into when we arrived in Darwin (Bayview).
I should acknowledge I got help with that $250 but at the time it was quite distressing given the conditions. Probably should acknowledge that I didn't personally pay for it. I was doing an unpaid placement at the time and was on the brink of postponing it with the rental increase. Very grateful to the help I got at the time given the demands of the property manager.
My rent is increasing by $900.00 a month. I cannot afford it and will be moving out and by checking all sources they're legally within their right.
Tough times. Fortunately they're not charging me for any damage but still, they did charge me double bond at the start because I have a dog so go figure...
Sounds like there is some negotiating to do. Counter offer with paying the 50.5% of the clothes line repairs with the landlord paying 50.5%, $395, of the rent for the next 12 months. Fairs fair right? 😉 If the landlord is having a hard time tell them to cut back on their avocado toast brunches!
In all seriousness this is grounds for making a claim/complaint to the rental board (or whatever it is). I rented for 12 years until we bought a place, never had to deal with crap like this but had friends who took up complaints like this and won.
Am a landlord now, I would never consider asking our tenants to pay for any repairs. Everything breaks over time. Mind you we never go out for brunch, I don't even like avocados and my wife only buys them when they are super cheap from the supermarket.
>We rang some local consumer groups and it's not illegal. Just unethical as they put it.
Requesting you contribute money to replace the clothesline is not legal. It is 'unjust enrichment'.
It's an old clothes line. Sure I guess I could have done that but it was general wear and tear. We live in tropical climates with severe weather conditions throughout the year. It's at least 5 plus years old by the looks of it.
Clothesline manufacturers sell spare parts. Bunnings doesn't stock them, but any broken or worn out part can be replaced.
Info for your new house and your owned clothesline.
I rent out my moms old place while she lives with my brother due to health issues. I just authorise repairs, door knobs, blind drawstrings, one time the door bell didn’t work and I said can’t the tenant just replace the battery. We had a damaged kitchen drawer very bottom, the tenant said it was a old drawer that just snapped, I reckon she kicked it shut, but we just footed the cost. It a PITA being a landlord, I am going sell my moms place next year and put the money in a high interest term deposit for her to live off since the property has stopped appreciating and costs are chewing up rent, agents fee, endless repairs, insurance, mortgage, land tax and rates, screw all that.
Yeah renting sucks. You need to decide if you’re going to be right or homeless. You’ll spend more than $250 on finding a new place but I’d definitely get advice from DFT and then show them you don’t have to pay
Name and shame the property management company. The reason why REAs have a bad reputation is because of shit like this. The public deserve to know which REAs uphold ethical values and which don't, rather than simply existing to serve the landlords and profits. My expectation would have been for that property manager to push back on the request for $250 from the landlord.
Friend of mine was renting a place and the REA sided with them over a repair request and the owner straight up left the agency and went with another one that didn’t side with the tenant. I think the agents learn quickly not to side with tenants over anything.
Agreed. I do repair jobs for REAs.. mostly TV antennas, FTTN and HFC wiring. While it's a huge market, 90% of the time the owner doesn't want to pay more than $150. The average apartment starts at $1500. I often have to hire an EWP for the task 3 story blocks are very common around these parts. Units are more common than houses for dodgy comms wiring.
For dodgy comms wiring, do you mean: Single-storey units? Townhouses? Apartments?
All of the above, including shopping centres. We can them Multiple Dwelling Units, or MDUs. If I'm laying new conduit through to an upper unit level I'll do the whole level. No point in just running one cable up to lvl 4 then sealing it off so that no other unit on that floor can be serviced in the future.
None of them do that's the problem. The bar is so low and it doesn't matter at current vacancy rates. There is no impetus for an REA to do the right thing because you have to live somewhere.
They work for the landlord. Who's going to rock the boat with their employer?
Well because they need to follow the law maybe?
But they are following the law. OP said it’s not illegal. It’s annoying but they have to just do what the landlord says. If you don’t… landlord will find another agent who will. The laws need changing. Can’t just blame agents forever.
If they ask you for money to keep your renting unit. It's blackmail. To make it worse they didn't follow through, so it's stealing.
There were two comments above me 1. “They work for the landlord. Who’s going to rock the boat with their employer?” 2. “Well because they need to follow the law maybe?”. To which I responded to comment 2, pointing out that as OP said what occurred wasn’t illegal. I agreed with comment 1, that it’s difficult to rock the boat with your employer but also added to that because even if this agent DID rock the boat with th landlord and refuse to do this, they would simply find another agent who would do it… rendering the first agents efforts ✨pointless✨. I reiterate the point in my original comment - laws need changing. Can’t just blame agents forever.
I do it all the time with my employer, tell him his is being stupid or making a bad/illegal/immoral decision, and guess what it's gotten me? Several pay rises, freedom to do what I want and respect from our clients also. Standing up to your employer isn't hard. And it is even easier to stand up to your client sometimes, which is who the landlord is as well as the tenant.
Nice anecdote. Here's what I got when I tried that: New company after getting managed out. ymmv
You do not pay for repairs if you didn't break it end of story
*You do not pay for* *Repairs if you didn't break* *It end of story* \- Money\_killer --- ^(I detect haikus. And sometimes, successfully.) ^[Learn more about me.](https://www.reddit.com/r/haikusbot/) ^(Opt out of replies: "haikusbot opt out" | Delete my comment: "haikusbot delete")
That's an almost artfully-bad haiku
I've missed you haikus bot.
It's a terrible haiku, how does "Repair" start the second stanza? Bot can GTFO
Chill man, bot's just doin it's job
That's how it starts, will you be relaxing when it is doing YOUR job?
Ah! So is haiku writing YOUR job? That’s how it starts will You be relaxing when it Is doing YOUR job? - I_dream_of_Brisket
Thank you I just killed myself laughing
Random bot scorned when The Redditor rain'd down fiery Vituperation … *What?* — Christopher Walken
This was amazing. I'm glad I could be your muse.
Why doesn't that work?
Sometimes you break things and still don't pay for it because you say you'll happily pay the $80 if they would like to refund the first 2 weeks rent for renting out an apartment that didn't meet the state living standards and you never hear about it again. Basically I broke a powerpoint trying to leverage a lock from it so I could do my washing after asking the real estate 3 times in the past two weeks. Popped it out of the wall and I think one of the plugs needed replacing.
'haha NO i WONT pay for repairs' 'you have until the end of the month to move out' absolutely destroyed that stupid landlord
This is an easy win at any rental tribunal. You would likely get a much smaller rent increase as well.
They just have given you their very illegal eviction reason. No I won't pay for your repairs, and I want to negotiate the rent increase. If you try to evict me I will take this email to the proper authorities.
Destroyed with FACTS and HOMELESSNESS gg landoids /s
[удалено]
It should be the end of the story, unfortunately it's not always that simple. You'd need to have some way to prove that you didn't break it.
Isn't it up to them to prove that you did? And that it wasn't normal wear and tear or defective? Take them to VCAT.
there would be a report that they would have received a copy of. need to be careful and do your due dilligence to make sure everything on there is kocher .
You guys don’t take your own entry photos?
Things can break after you move in just from normal wear
Good landlord helps. Moved in almost 2 years ago - ducted aircon went, water tank pump exploded, oven door broke. Didn't ask for cent - repaired both within a week.
So does knowing your rights as a tenant, when we left the daft cow estate agent on a power trip (who had let herself in my home without ANY notice and started bossing my end of lease cleaner about and many other incidents) asked us to power wash the drive way that we didn't park on. Not allowed. She also wanted us to trip all the hedges and plants. My husband did this because he's spineless but because they did not prove any out door water supply the tap - tap didn't work- they had no business asking us to do it. She got put in her place more than once because I'd spoken to someone at services nsw about what we did and didn't have responsibility for, and I had taken my own entry pictures. She tried to blame me for the hob looking "dirty" when it was actually the enamel paint worn off or scrubbed off by the previous owner and it looked like baked on food, picture to prove it, and the seal on the oven door of the DIRTY oven was exactly as it was in the picture, but I had it cleaned so she got it back in better nick than we rented it. She was not with the letting agent when I signed over my keys. Honestly I know it's a far reach for many and it took my dad dyeing for us to get a deposit, but the freedom of home ownership is like nothing else. Until the boiler goes.
What you listed sounds like normal wear and tear though .
4 Corners are doing a report on dodgy REA's. Put your story in here and let the country know. https://amp.abc.net.au/article/101692242
Automatically filled this in. Had some wild experiences including one of the tradies working on my house sending me sexually explicit texts, to which the REA replied angrily about… to me! He then tried to send the same tradie to my place to fix the problem after I asked for someone else. Said tradie did the Renos on my home and I was legit scared he’d try to come in as he would know how to get in… just knowing where I live is enough. Just one of the countless awful experiences with Australian REAs and renting. Sigh.
Holy shit. Sorry that happened, jeebuz!
It’s all g now :) that was a few months ago and it’s been calm since. No more weird texts at least. Broken stuff still broken but we’re just living with it lol, no grounds evictions terrify me and the current rental market ain’t looking so hot right now. Also I’m using my mum’s hack of keeping a baseball bat under my bed, dad used to do night shifts, plus lift weights so if anyone tries to come in I’m READY
Get yourself one of those heavy flashlights to keep by your bed instead. It’s much easier to swing- I mean see an attacker with. If you can’t find one of those, maybe shorten up one of those golf clubs, I think they’re called a driver. Main thing is to have something where the impact is all going to be condensed into one small area. With a baseball bat, you will lose much of the power you put into that all important first swing because it’s a larger object, it covers a larger area, and the impact is spread over that area. Ie it’ll hurt less and be less likely to incapacitate immediately. But in the end, better anything than nothing.
Idk about you, but I've never had an issue a metal softball bat doesn't stop or deter
A friend had a condition of rental that they must use a specific gardener, the gardener constantly rocked up at random times without letting her know. Her sons support dog was in the yard one time and came up to him barking, he whacked the dog with a rake because he was scared! He could have easily just texted he was coming and she would have put the dog inside. Theres also the risk he would have let the dog out and it got hurt.
Jesus Christ!!! I have two cats. If they just came in randomly and harmed my cats I would be livid. I hope her son’s support dog is ok :( that’s so upsetting
Yeah the dog was fine but she was quite upset as it was so uneccesary. He could have just txt to say he was coming!
They're going to need to dedicate a year's worth of episodes to truly understand how dodgy REAs ar.
They should just make this it’s own show
Like “media watch” but for REAs doing dodgy shit and just straight up call them out on national TV.
would watch
Thank you for posting the link, I have a nightmare story that I needed to get of my chest and hopefully heard by someone with the reach to do something.
just doing 1 report... that shit could be a year long series
It’s time there was a landlords and property managers blacklist. Name and shame flogs like this so when things return to normal, they’ll be the first to taste karma. I say this as a landlord and someone who has rented over the years.
[https://www.ratemyrental.co/](https://www.ratemyrental.co/)[https://www.rentrabbit.com.au/](https://www.rentrabbit.com.au/) Both these companies trying to get this up and running - seems others have tried. I have left a few reviews in the past, but then those startup sites seem to have since failed. The issue is getting enough reviews.
Just looked at both of those. They really don't make it easy to use. **RentRabbit** -- Looks nice, but I'm sure a lot of people cannot be bothered to register an account just to see anything, especially when you know they're probably just gonna spam your inbox. **RateMyRental** -- super slow servers. Clicking any button takes forever to load. Also didn't really load anything useful.
that’s actually really constructive feedback.
Guarantee they will get taken down by a defamation suit.
The issue is defamation, Australia has very strong defamation laws and these sites put themselves on the hook for getting sued if someone adds a review that can't be proven, or is embellished (or just outright lies) But it absolutely needs to happen, it just needs to be regulated properly, same as the tenants blacklist.
A better indicator of whether a place has a good landlord is that the rental ad history shows it doesnt get a new tenant in every 1-2 years. The same tenants stay because a place is well maintained and landlord isnt the kind to bill $250 for nonexistent clothesline repairs.
Stayed 16 years in my last one, wish I could leave him references.
My last landlord was also the REA. She never raised the rent in four years and was always just happy having good tenants that she would always get repair people in immediately (even if some were a bit dodgy brothers).
Very true...but lower priced older dwellings have higher turnover because what looks like a cute cheap cottage is not as comfortable as a new 4x2 for your stuff. Its priced low accordingly but people's expectations can be high even on low rents. So turnover should take that into consideration.
Agreed. Some places might be a magnet for uni students unfamiliar with the city for instance, and then move on once they get their bearings.
At least reviews like any business :D
Rather than a black list have a white list of landlords and property managers. To access government incentives / tax brakes, you need to be on the white list. The various administrative tribunals can strike you off. You can still rent property but no assistance from govt to do so.
https://www.consumer.vic.gov.au/resources-and-tools/search-public-registers/rental-non-compliance-register
If you're naming and shaming, the potential for defamation claims would be high. I probably wouldn't be submitting a negative review, no matter how temporarily satisfying it might be.
what.. you realise there aren't lawsuits flying all over place due to negative reviews, right?
Defamation literally is a false statement of fact. They would have a hard time winning a case against you if you were simply posting facts.
You don't have to win to bankrupt somebody....
Disgraceful
This along with other experiences during the midst and post COVID has put me off renting forever.
Just FYI OP, after you move out, ask the agent politely a refund for the clothes line which wasn’t fixed and state that if they refuse, you will report the agent and seller to state police for theft. That will get you your cash back.
Will probably try and take the money to actually fix the clothesline from your bond. One time I knew the land lady was going to screw me so i withheld the last months rent. Walked out all squared up
You could contest this pretty easily at the tribunal. If they tried to do it though, they’ve clearly got an email highlighting the offer which the owner and Real Estate agent didn’t follow through with and have still not done anything with from their end. It’s very likely that a tribunal would throw it out and probably fine the agent for bringing it to them in the first place. Edit: had this exact experience when a Real Estate agent tried to blame us for damage to a carpet that was clearly there before we moved in that wasn’t in the inspection report. Thankfully we had photos to prove it so they with Drew before they could get in front of the tribunal and get in trouble.
I also did this. I knew the RE were going to be jerks and I bought a house so I broke the lease and didn’t pay the rent amounting to bond.
I would ask for a copy of the rental ledger then ask why the $250 extra I paid isn’t on the rental ledger. Once they say this money was for the clothes line I would remind them it hasn’t been fixed and request a rent reduction (backdated) for the [broken amenities](https://www.tenants.org.au/sample/rent-reduction). It may not be illegal but it is unethical.
Damn this is quality advice. Don't suppose you'd want to make-ada-decisions for me in life from now on?
No. Too busy. I have to [make ada spaghetti code](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaghetti_code) to improve my financial situation.
Having gone through similar rubbish while renting, I will never rent again. I'd prefer to buy a studio apartment and move my wife and 2 kids in than to rent again. I'm so glad I bought a house, even if it was a rip-off, I'd prefer to overpay and own a house than to put up with the kind of bullying, blackmail, and extortion rental agents have put me through in the past.
I absolutely agree mate. It's been awful. I've never missed a rent payment in 10 plus years. Sadly we are leaving Darwin as we could not afford the houses or rent increases. Settled for North Queensland.
Darwin’s costing $650 for how many bedrooms??
3 bedroom. Darwin currently has a tough rental market. I suppose it's just in line with the rental crisis.
This should cheer you up, OP. I pay $650 for two bedrooms in Sydney under 15km away from the cbd and under 10km to the nearest decent beach. It was originally $600 but I wasn’t taking any chances given how many people are looking for rentals right now and offered the $50 more to ensure it. Turns out I didn’t need to do that but I didn’t want to take any chances. In my opinion, I got everything I wanted out of this place so I’m not mad about it but the difference between 1,2 and 3 bedrooms here is milk left out on a hot day. Good luck with the change and congratulations on buying your new home
I'm glad you secured a house mate. The rent increases have been crippling and it is the reason we are leaving but I agree with you a house is a house. The alternative was potentially face homelessness or knock on people's door for help (which definitely not something I'm comfortable with). Anyway thanks for the wishes. We can't wait.
If I was a serial killer… real estate agents would be my theme
Think alot of people might think of your as a modern day robin hood
Yeah, real estate agents don’t have many friends
Plus they are easy to find. Mercedes, check Personalised number plates, check Suit jacket 2 sizes too small, check You've found a realtor!
Hang around outside your local Tarocash
Realtors are American. We have real estate agents here :)
Real estate agents and those tech scammers. Sometimes I wish I was someone like Dexter.
Are you me? I actually have fantasized about the newspaper articles. Guaranteed antihero status
Absolutly. You're paying for your own thing rather than for someone else's. In 20 years no one will care what you paid but you will have had 20 years of freedom from REAs.
That’s exactly what lead to my first purchase. Blamed for things we never did. Place was falling apart and when we brought it up with the REA, there was never a response. Then, they want to do inspections constantly and never accommodate our timing. So, bye.
Landlord tried getting nasty with me and my husband after we moved out. Told her to shut up unless she wants a 10k fine for not putting our bond in a bond account. Cherry on top was she didn’t want family knowing that she sold the house, so i dropped the keys at her auntie’s house who knew I was pregnant and was shocked that they kicked us out. She complained about it and told me I should of put they keys in the letter box, I told her if someone got keys to the house and trashed it, it would be on us so that’s why I dropped off the keys to her auntie who also was the one to give us the keys in the first place. I’m still annoyed about the fact they kicked us out while I was 37 weeks pregnant with my first and the middle of summer too.
Yes, you can buy, and then be ripped off by banks, tradies, insurance companies, councils, OH&S inspectors, building managers etc. But at least you won't be ripped off by your landlord 
It is unethical to ask for money towards an asset as a condition of entering a new lease, however it's definitely illegal to take someones money under a false promise that you will provide goods in return. That's fraud. The REA / Landlord have engaged in fraud and it should be reported, regardless of the dollar amount.
Thanks even if I didn't humbug them to follow it up and fix it?
It was their request, you didn't ask for a clothes line. THEY made it a requirement to sign the lease. THEY stated quite clearly that it was damaged and NEEDED to be replaced. It is not on you to remind them of something THEY specifically said was a NECESSITY for them. There is no fathomable way they can argue that they forgot, or it was no longer required. Both of those statements would be admitting that they lied to you about the clothesline NEEDING to be replaced.
I should note the vacancy rate was at a record low at the time so walking away was not an option with 2 kids. To this day I cant rationalise the landlord making up to $33K a year in rent and being bitter about $250 and using it to blackmail us despite us arguing we did not cause the damage.
And gets to write it off !!!
Exactly. God dam greedy :( And they never fixed it!!! I never followed them up admittedly. In my mind I said if I go to the rental tribunal I'll show them this email and photos of the clothes line never being fixed.
This makes me think of the entire inflation story… yeh all prices are up bcuz of the Ukraine issue and btw we had the best year of net profits in 70 years .. People just take advantage when given the opportunity- disgusting
Did they take the $250 from you for it and then not fix it? :O
Ask them to refund the $250 with your bond payment.
You just write it off!!
"You don't even know what a write off is"
Who writes it off!?
So they took the $250 and then didn't fix it?
Yeah I don't get this. They get the 250 back in 5 weeks just on the rental increase and if you move out they will lose more in adverting fees to the REA.
Yeah exactly. I didn't acknowledge in my OP but I did in fact get financial help with this and didn't personally pay for it. Was in a rough spot at the time as I was doing an unpaid 3 month placement. Still, they, and we, were quite shocked with their ultimatum.
If they were actually getting $33k in income I highly doubt they would have cared about the tax deductible $250. More likely they are heavily indebted, are finding it increasingly hard to cope and were reduced to begging tenants like you to subsidize their own stupid decisions. I see this on discussion forums all the time, some landlord whinging about how to get the tenant to pay for a broken door…if a dirt cheap internal door is worth fifteen emails and disputes and social media appeals for help rather than a note to the agent “please replace the door”…they are in over their head.
While 33k is a lot, sometimes it might not even cover your mortgage and expenses. For example one of my properties generates about 24kpa and the lions share of that goes to the mortgage. After rates, insurance, management and putting money from the rent aside for repairs, maintenance, capex and vacancies many landlords in Australia aren’t even positive cash flow. It gets even worse when you have bad tenants. I had tenants leave the house, garage and yard full of trash. It costs me thousands to hire people and skips to go and clean it out and there was thousands in damages I had to repair above their bond. I’ve also had three ACs blow up in 2 years. They’re $1500 a pop plus labour. I’ve also had about 7 down lights fail that need replacing. I’ve also had a grouting issue in the bathroom letting ants in that needed replacing. Electricians and plumbers aren’t cheap! Just because the rent is high doesn’t mean the landlord is taking you for a ride. There a huge costs in providing housing for people and it’s a delicate balance between profitability and failure. I think it’s shit that they’re forcing you to fix the clothes line tho. If you didn’t break it. I wish people were more honest.
I'm not a landlord but how did you work out they make $33k? Agent takes a cut, interest rates have almost doubled since the start of the year and any capital gains made over the past two years have disappeared. Every landlord is different, but many will be barely breaking even in these conditions.
Yeah you're right, it's the owner who's the real victim here.
Yeah, I feel SO sorry for anyone in this situation. It's almost like they thought an INVESTMENT was simply a way of making guaranteed money with ZERO risk. Who would have thought? Agent takes a cut? Tax deductible. Interest bill? Tax deductible. Capital gains disappeared? Hardly, and that assumption relies on having purchased since 2021. Anyone who purchased in 2020 or before is still well ahead.
Of course its less. I was just making a generalised statement. It's 33.8K a year minus your property management fees, interest rate fees and so on as you said. Mate I own a property myself and I would and have never done this to my tenants. My repayments have doubled too. Each to their own I guess. We purchased our house after dealing with this property manager.
Simple, it's Gross not Net. I make $39,000 annually, that's what I say if people ask how much I make. I don't deduct tax and other essentials beforehand. Same thing with what he said there. Everyone knows that houses have upkeep, tax, etc. and that the rent doesn't just go straight into the owner's pocket.
> many will be barely breaking even in these conditions. I’m a landlord. If the rent covers the mortgage only, that’s not breaking even. the landlord is still up $33k as their mortgage has decreased by $33k, paid by the tenant. ie they’ve made 33k in the last year (assuming zero growth on the property price etc) This is why property investing beats stocks imo. Very difficult to lose money over the long run as the debt drops predictably and the property prices trend upwards.
Putting $20 on the owner claiming full deduction on that clothesline.
I have no doubt. Wonder if I can ask that question to them at the tribunal when they undoubtedly attempt to claim wear and tear from my bond? I've asked for their bond cleaner recommendations because I can't be assed going through "the bond cleaner didn't do x,y and z".
Probably worth lodging the bond return yourself and making it more difficult for them to try that on.
I'll have to work out to do that. I'm in the NT. Pretty sure we don't have the best rental laws / processes here. But good idea.
These guys were super-helpful when I had REA issues leaving my last tenancy [https://www.dcls.org.au/tenants-advice/](https://www.dcls.org.au/tenants-advice/)
Once you've moved out - write to the ATO with proof you paid for half the clothes line in case they claim the whole lot. That'll run up their a*s faster than a ferret down a tube in Richard Gere's house.
Haha I think might just do that or perhaps hint I might do that to the property manager it they give us a hard time?
Why hint to the property manager? Just do it. They'll just do it to the next tenants. And if the ATO investigates I doubt anything bad will really happen if they comply.
Yeah solid point.
If anyone ever threatens legal action or threatens to do something to the government, you know it's usually an empty threat. They are just saying "I am trying to scare you into agreeing with me but I am too lazy to follow through".
Can’t wait to read the news.com.au article on this post later this week
Yeah, "was this tenant hung out to dry, reddit thinks so"
"reddit full of mean spirited millennials trying to make a poor mum and dad property investor pay for a clothes line"
You're hired immediately by news dot com with a punny headline like that!
To be fair they did ask “if that’s okay?” 😂
We would like to blackmail you or make you homeless if that's okay, actually it doesn't matter if it's okay because we are doing it anyway, okay?
Sounds like they're relaying a message that they don't want to, it's what I would say lol
a polite kicking
You could say that again!
Stop attaching goon bags to your washing line. S/
Hahaha.. I should have said my 2 year old daughter does pull ups on them.
Why's your 2 year old daughter doing pull ups on the goon bags attached to your clothes line??
Cos if she did it directly on the clothes line it would be damaged
That does make sense... Softer grip with built in sedative.
I’m a landlord and I hate landlords who do this wear and tear expected to be replaced and I don’t inflate rent after a lease has been expired, I look at the condition report and if it has been maintained I keep it the same Got tennants in properties 4-5 years and still going
Also the owners car needs $5000 worth of work and he wants you to contribute $2000, have a good day!
Screw the cloths line. How much did your rent go up?
The full rent cycle was was 550 (12 months) to 600 (6 months) to 650 (12 months but we are breaking lease early to escape to our new home. Will have served 6 months of thr 12 months).
Landlord tried to raise mine from 1300 pcm to 2300 pcm. Ofc I just told them if they upped the price I would just not pay them anything and see them in VCAT in 2 years where they would only end up claiming rental insurance and getting nothing from me. 9 months on my rent is still 1300 :)
Sometimes the nuclear option is the best one As long as you didn't put that in writing anyway
Hahaha, Ofc I didn’t. I expressed this over the phone. I did it quite politely. I told him that I was really looking forward to meeting him over Zoom and it would be a great chance to catch up, because we wouldn’t have seen each other for 2+ years by the time our VCAT hearing takes place. I then gently reminded him that a VCAT ruling in their favour doesn’t mean anything in terms of an obligation for me to pay any money I may (or may not) owe them. Bully the bullies :)
I guess it really depends on if you caused the damage or not? The increase isn’t too egregious given the current market. I totally understand not wanting to make waves. Currently saving as hard as possible for a deposit and praying our lease gets renewed without too big an increase.
I suppose it's debatable with these things. I was convinced we didn't do it. I just didn't appreciate the 'condition or else' kinda thing.
Classic predatory behaviour by bottom feeding scumbags
I’d pay for the new clothes line completely. And then take it when I leave.
Hahaha .. I like it.
Congratulations for getting out of the rent trap OP! This is a glaring sign of how ridiculous it is out there.
600 pw is near 30k per year. They can fix their clothes line.
Were paying $650 now so it can well and truly pay for the clothes line.
What I learnt while I was renting, is read the rental agreement and as soon as they step a toe outside, beat them with it. Actually, even if they're a toe inside. So many people seem to be afraid of submitting a Notice to Remedy Breach and they leave issues for way too long. If the REA isn't handling stuff within a week, without a good damn reason, there's no need to be nice. Also you can contact the RTA for a casual chat, if you need to know your options. They don't bite.
Meanwhile me, essentially: REA "Hey yo, I know it's like 4 months before you have to renew but you wanna renew for the same exact rent price for another year starting when your current rental agreement ends?" Me "Am I reading this right? Yes!?" REA: "Sign this and done" Me: Reads, nothing dodgy, done. I know I lucked out.
Im a landlord and ive never asked tenants to pay for any repair. Some wear and tear is expected and just cause you happen to be the poor bastard that happens to be renting the place when the 10yr old clothesline breaks doesnt mean its on you...
I love how badly it is written too ..
do you have any evidence that the washing line was broken when you moved in? e.g. a photo or an email?
Congrats on getting out of the rent trap. After renting for many years, I've never had a good REA but my experience with the one we were renting from during covid took the cake. We're renting a place privately through family at the moment and have plans to build our own place. I hope to never again be in a position where I have to rent through a real estate.
Sounds like a fantastic plan for your family. Yes I agree. I had one that was really good. It was a private arrangement and had no issues. It was the first house we moved into when we arrived in Darwin (Bayview).
I should acknowledge I got help with that $250 but at the time it was quite distressing given the conditions. Probably should acknowledge that I didn't personally pay for it. I was doing an unpaid placement at the time and was on the brink of postponing it with the rental increase. Very grateful to the help I got at the time given the demands of the property manager.
Is this for real?
Yep faird dinkcome
I'm speechless
What they are requesting is illegal. This makes me so mad as a landlord. Ruins it for the good ones
I did call some consumer reps. I was advised it wasn't illegal. They said it was unethical though.
Im in a similar situation, moved out from a place and now im being charged for sun damaged curtains....
Rough context vibes
My rent is increasing by $900.00 a month. I cannot afford it and will be moving out and by checking all sources they're legally within their right. Tough times. Fortunately they're not charging me for any damage but still, they did charge me double bond at the start because I have a dog so go figure...
For 650 a week just get a loan and buy a house
Take half of the clothesline when you leave
The poor English and punctuation makes the deal so… no.
Sounds like there is some negotiating to do. Counter offer with paying the 50.5% of the clothes line repairs with the landlord paying 50.5%, $395, of the rent for the next 12 months. Fairs fair right? 😉 If the landlord is having a hard time tell them to cut back on their avocado toast brunches! In all seriousness this is grounds for making a claim/complaint to the rental board (or whatever it is). I rented for 12 years until we bought a place, never had to deal with crap like this but had friends who took up complaints like this and won. Am a landlord now, I would never consider asking our tenants to pay for any repairs. Everything breaks over time. Mind you we never go out for brunch, I don't even like avocados and my wife only buys them when they are super cheap from the supermarket.
What did you do to the clothesline? We've had the washing machine and dishwasher replaced at no cost.
renting is serfdom in australia
>We rang some local consumer groups and it's not illegal. Just unethical as they put it. Requesting you contribute money to replace the clothesline is not legal. It is 'unjust enrichment'.
> it's not illegal. Just unethical The real estate industry in a nutshell
Lol pathetic scum bastards, once you move out never look back. They ought to be ashamed of themselves.
Very upsetting it was. Been a shitty couple years being renter w covid.
Whats wrong with the clothes line? Buy some cord or wire and fix it yourself? Is it reasonable wear and tear? Or was it dog shit when you moved in?
It's an old clothes line. Sure I guess I could have done that but it was general wear and tear. We live in tropical climates with severe weather conditions throughout the year. It's at least 5 plus years old by the looks of it.
Clothesline manufacturers sell spare parts. Bunnings doesn't stock them, but any broken or worn out part can be replaced. Info for your new house and your owned clothesline.
I rent out my moms old place while she lives with my brother due to health issues. I just authorise repairs, door knobs, blind drawstrings, one time the door bell didn’t work and I said can’t the tenant just replace the battery. We had a damaged kitchen drawer very bottom, the tenant said it was a old drawer that just snapped, I reckon she kicked it shut, but we just footed the cost. It a PITA being a landlord, I am going sell my moms place next year and put the money in a high interest term deposit for her to live off since the property has stopped appreciating and costs are chewing up rent, agents fee, endless repairs, insurance, mortgage, land tax and rates, screw all that.
Sounds fair and reasonable.
Rent increase is fair at the moment, repairs are not (even if you caused it) - this is part of wear and tear.
Yeah while financially crippling no complaints re the rent.
Yeah renting sucks. You need to decide if you’re going to be right or homeless. You’ll spend more than $250 on finding a new place but I’d definitely get advice from DFT and then show them you don’t have to pay
What sort of agent does rental renewal offers over messenger? I never thought I'd be glad of the Qld rental system.
That was via email.
Consumer affairs are your friend