Investor Information

Engaging a Property Manager
There are many advantages to the Owner/Investor engaging a Property Manager to supervise the ongoing management of their rental property.

There is more to Property Management than just collecting the rent;

Tenant Selection
Rent and Bond Monies
Payments and Statements
Document Preparation
Repairs and Maintenance
Rent Reviews
Routine Inspections
Disputes with Tenants

There are many guidelines set out under legislation which apply to renting and as an Agent we, and indeed owners, are required to adhere to these guidelines.

The main Acts are:-

Residential Tenancies Act
Estate Agents Act
Equal Opportunity Act
Retail Tenancies Act

We at Ray White Echuca give assurance that we will be acting in our clients best interests, legally, ethically and financially at all times.

Why Choose Us?

Superior tenant selection
Guaranteed tenant, that is if the tenant breaks his lease in the first six months, a new tenant will be found free of charge with no letting fee
Established in the area
Highly skilled and qualified leasing consultants
Active arrears control
Thorough inspections of your property in accordance with the Act.
Copywriting for newspaper and website advertising
Representation at VCAT by certified VCAT practitioners
Professional dispute resolution
All rental consultants have an extensive knowledge of the Residential Tenancies Act
The preparation of leases in accordance with the Act
Membership of National Tenancy Database
Prompt rent reviews and lease renewals
Efficient updating of possible investment opportunities
Prompt attendance to maintenance
All members of maintenance crew carry public lability insurance
Rent deposited directly into landlords bank account
Payment of landlords accounts if requested such as insurance, rates etc
Efficient refurbishment of the property as per landlords instructions
Detailed monthly statements of all expenditure
End of financial year statement relating to investment property
Regular updates on changes to all laws that relate to landlords and tenants.

AND MANY, MANY MORE !!!!

Frequently Asked Questions
1. How does your company qualify the tenants that it proposes for my property?
At Ray White Echuca we strive to help you find the very best calibre of tenant for your property. To facilitate this all potential tenants for your property will pass through a National Tenancy Database. There are over 700,000 tenants registered on this and only registered Real Estate agencies such as Ray White Echuca have access to it. This search will show if the potential tenant has any outstanding rental debts, has had any judgements at the Tenancy Tribunal against them or even if they are a recommended tenant by another agency. We also carefully check all references provided to us by the tenants, the conversations we have with these referees are diarised so that we can accurately convey them back to you the landlord, as ultimately the decision is up to you. Our job at Ray White Echuca is to assist as much as possible with that decision. We take special care to verify previous landlord’s references and to confirm employment history and income. The tenant’s income is especially important as we apply the principle that the tenant should have a take home pay that is three times as much as his/hers weekly rent otherwise there is a possibility that they will get into financial difficulty.

2. How soon after the tenants pay the rent do I get my money?
We at Ray White Echuca, pride ourselves on a quick turnaround of our rents and statements. We offer electronic direct deposits of your rental income into any bank account nominated by you. However under section 59 of the Estate Agents Act, the body of law that governs the actions of Real Estate Agents in the state of Victoria, all money collected on another’s behalf must be placed in a Trust Account for a period of time to allow any deductions to be made such as management fees, maintenance etc. These Trust accounts are operated under the supervision of Consumer Affairs Victoria. We offer disbursements mid month (15th) and end of month (1st working day of the new month. Extraordinary disbursements can be arranged upon request.

3. What happens if the tenant doesn’t pay his rent?
Under section 213 of the Residential Tenancies Act, we are not able to make application to VCAT for compensation for unpaid rent until at least 14 days after the rent is due. The property manager must also adhere to strict procedures to show that every effort has been made to collect the rent. If your tenant does not pay their rent on the due date the following procedures are completed.

On the 5th day a letter is sent to the tenant
On the 7th day the tenant is called again, again the call is diarised
On the 9th day a text message is sent to the tenant
On the 10th day a final letter of demand is sent to the tenant
On the 14th day the tenant is called
On the 15th day it is the policy of this firm that application is made to VCAT for compensation and possession of the property. The tenant still has time to pay the rent before the VCAT hearing but it’s vital that this procedure is followed to ensure that you do not suffer.

4. How often do you conduct inspections on the property?
The Residential Tenancies Act carefully controls the right of entry to rented premises and if the conditions are not strictly adhered to the lease can be broken. This is another reason why it is vital to only entrust your valuable property to trained Ray White Property Managers. The sections of the Residential Tenancies Act that pertain to the rights and methods of entry are Sections 85, 86, 87, and 88. These sections advise that;

We may only enter the rented premises between the hours of 8.00 am and 6.00 pm.
We must give at least 24 hours written notice of the intended entry and the tenant may not have consented more than 7 days before the entry.
We may only do routine inspections every six months and not until the first 3 months of the lease have elapsed.

Note that the only valid reasons for entry are:

That the property is to be sold
That the property is to be valued for sale or rental
For the landlord to carry out his duties as a landlord, such as maintenance
To show a prospective tenant through in the last 14 days of the notice to vacate
For routine inspections
If the landlord or his agent have reasonable grounds to believe that the tenant has failed to comply with his duties as a tenant.

This may seem very complicated, but the good news is if we follow these guidelines the tenant cannot withhold permission to enter the property.

5. Do you guarantee the tenants that you put in my property?
No we do not guarantee your tenant, but we do guarantee that we will undertake a careful check of all references submitted by the tenant. As we are members of a National Tenancy Database, we will also do a record search to ensure that your prospective tenant does not have any outstanding warrants, judgements or rental debts against him. We make sure that the tenant is able to pay his rent and will not get into financial difficulty. We offer a variety of payment options such as direct debt, online banking which allow the tenant to have many convenient ways of making rental payments. Ultimately we do not choose the tenant the landlord does this with as much help from our professional and skilled property managers as possible.

6. Other real estate companies don’t charge as much as your company, why should I choose you?
You should choose Ray White Echuca as we give you value for money. If we were to charge you a low rate for managing your property then we would have to cut corners and that would not be favourable in terms of efficient management of your investment property. Our fees are competitive. To ensure a high standard of expertise and customer service from your property managers, professional development training is provided on a monthly basis as well as regular in house training. Our property managers also attend information seminars and industry updates at the Real Estate Institute of Victoria. All in all we charge a fair fee for a tremendous service!

7. What happens if I want to sell my property?
If you decide you want to sell your property we will support you every step of the way. At Ray White Echuca there is no artificial divide between sales and rentals, we work as a team and with our customer’s interests foremost in our mind. We are a multi – dimensional office and will therefore mount a dynamic sales campaign for your property, will ensure that all negotiations with your tenants during this time are handled with skill and care in accordance with the relevant legislation, and finally we will offer you possible replacement investment properties that may be of interest to you.

8. What happens if the hot water service blows up on Christmas Eve?
A hot water repair is what is termed by the Residential Tenancies Act, “an urgent repair” and therefore must be carried out immediately. There is no choice as it is covered by an Act of Victorian Parliament. Urgent Repairs usually relate to basic issues of housing such as heating, bathing, cooking and shelter, NOT refurbishment such as painting etc. All of the tradesmen on our maintenance list are aware of what constitutes an “urgent repair” and will act in accordance with the provisions of the Act.

Any appliance that supplies water that cannot be repaired, must be replaced with an appliance that has an A rating. Once again this is under government guidelines. If the tenant takes “reasonable steps” to contact one of the tradesmen recommended by the agency of their property manager, and cannot do so, there are provisions in the Act for the tenant to contact any available tradesmen who can fix the problem. The tenant may spend up to $1000.00 and then recoup this from the landlord.

9. Wouldn’t it be cheaper for me to manage the property myself?
If nothing goes wrong with the property, if you never have to go to VCAT, if you are happy to arrange maintenance in accordance with the Residential Tenancies Act, if you don’t want your tenants screened by a National Tenancies Database and if you have a lot of spare time then perhaps it would be cheaper and most definitely a great deal more stressful.