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New to renting? Avoid these common mistakes!

The great thing about renting, is the flexibility to choose where you want to live and the freedom to change your lifestyle as regularly as you like. This luxury can be severely compromised however if you inadvertently manage to get yourself onto the little-known tenancy blacklists.
 
Things have to be really bad for you to be put onto a tenancy blacklist, however there are a few key things – especially if you’re a first-time tenant that will definitely fast track you getting there – so pay attention and try to avoid these common mistakes.

Consistently late payments

If your rent is overdue regularly it will definitely be frowned upon by your agent. During your tenancy they will go through the usual procedures their agency has in place – SMS, emailing to advise your rent is late, calling etc but if you have annoyed them enough by doing this consistently, they can apply to QCAT (Queensland Civil & Administrative Tribunal) for an order to have you blacklisted or they can give future agents rental reference checks on your arrears. Also – tenants regularly assume their bond is a pot of cash they can dip into for any old expense. This is NOT the case – the bond is a totally separate amount of money to rent and cannot be used to pay outstanding rent debts. 

Excessive property damage

Excessive damage does not mean scuff marks on the wall and a few scratches on the floor from dining chairs being moved regularly. That is wear and tear rather than damage and it happens when people live their day-to-day lives in a property.

Excessive damage refers to things that are broken in ways that will be costly to repair, and that have happened outside the range of normal day-to-day living, or when damage was caused maliciously.

If you genuinely broke something by mistake then you should be responsive, report it to the agent and let them know you will pay for the repairs, so they know you are acting responsibly towards the property. If damage occurs and you are not sure if it is your fault or not, just call your property manager - that’s what your condition report is for after all!

Breaking the conditions of your lease

It’s amazing how many tenants only pretend to read their lease and then sign away without thinking, or sign on knowing full well they intend to break the conditions of it. If this is you, it does you an enormous disservice. Not only do you not learn what your responsibilities are, you also miss out on what the agent’s obligations to you are.

Things such as having a pet without approval, using the property for illegal purposes, or moving other people in without permission, can all be considered lease violations. Understand the conditions of your lease and what each party’s obligations are and be sure that whatever you do is above board and does not compromise your standard as a great tenant.

If you have managed to do one or all of the above, you may get a QCAT order and end up on a blacklist quicker than you imagined possible. Of course the best approach is to be a good tenant in the first place! And you thought getting your first rental application approved was the hard part.  

by Celine Battendier