Rental Agents: Bridges or barriers?
In the past this column has been accused of being too hard on landlords and, to be fair, when things go wrong in rental units it’s often the man or…
A pox on your proxies
QUESTION: I am not quite sure what “Proxy Farming” is. I think that I am experiencing the effects – Dudley, via the Flat Chat Forum. ANSWER: We’ve addressed this in…
Golden oldies get a going over
All the talk recently has been about strata newbies rushing into the off-the-plan market with their first-time buyers grant in one hand and their stamp duty exemption in the other.…
Sinking under water bills
QUESTION: My rental agent has just closed, leaving the water bill unpaid for six months – having pocketed my share along the way. He sold his rental roll to another…
Breaking the mould
QUESTION: Our apartment has a mould problem that was not disclosed to us before signing the lease. We have complained about this several times since moving in 12 months ago…
Last gasp for state’s smokers
We know smoking is a filthy habit – as many tobacco addicts will concede – and most of us are enjoying having pubs and restaurants that exile smokers to the…
Party boy pays – but Dad’s on a warning
QUESTION: While we were away recently my son held a party in our unit. One of the guests was beyond stupid and did some damage to the common property. My…
Should you fight for the right to be untidy?
QUESTION: We recently had our routine landlord’s inspection and a letter was left saying that the premises were in an “unsatisfactory condition” and would need to be re-inspected. This was…
Things that go bump, ping, thump … in the day
Noise in general is a big issue in apartments – usually it’s your half-deaf neighbour channeling their inner Fat Boy Slim at two in the morning – but sometimes the…
Tenant wants to pay more for dog
QUESTION: I recently bought an apartment which has a by-law to exclude dogs. Apparently they had issues with a previous dog and decided all dogs should be banned. I don’t…
High-rise defects: Who cares?
A decision handed down by the Supreme Court last week (Oct 10) that a builder had no ‘duty of care’ to an Owners Corporation throws yet another spanner in the…
Help the people who help you
Ever since we started Rental Rants, I’ve had the link to the TenantsNSW websiteon a hotkey. It’s where I go for definitive information about renting and is invaluable for both…