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Hi all. I have a situation that needs a good advice. Here goes…
I have been renting a room with bath in Dee Why area for about 5 years now. The room is in a big house having 12 rooms (including the landlord’s room) 11 of which are rented out. During my years of stay no formal agreement has been undertaken only a verbal agreement on what amount to pay and what are the inclusives of that payment. The landlord have not issued anything in writing with regards to that agreement and even does not want online money transfer (seems like the landlord doesn’t want any trace of transaction) although I did keep all our sms conversations regarding my payment when it due.
With the above scenario being said, what would be the best thing to do to keep myself protected if any dispute would arise between me and the landlord?
Recently, I purchased an item online and have it delivered to the place I have been renting and paid extra for the signature thing to make sure that it was delivered to me and if not shall be sent back to au post. Apparently, even when I was still out of the house (in work) a notification through email came and said that the parcel was delivered. When I came home (already late night) the parcel was no where to be found in the house so I tried to ask the landlord if she has it. She replied with yes and said she will be leaving it at the door of my room in the morning (take note that her room and mine are just beside each other). Morning came I was off to work (always early), an sms message came when I was still in the bus. the landlord told me that she left the parcel on the dining table (the house has two big dining area both at each end of the house, and the place where she left it was at the opposite end of my room). When I got home it was not there. Tried to ask all other tenants if the saw the parcel but no one did. So I told the land lord that the parcel was not there.
Honestly I have no right to blame anybody but the thing is, after I told the landlord, she was like “It’s your fault, why did you have it sent here, common sense, this is a shared house”.
I was like “Huh!!?”, where was I to have it delivered to?
She also said “Next time, do not have the parcel delivered here (house) na na na na na common sense na na na na na…”
And all I told her was “The parcel was to be only received by me as it requires my signature to confirm receipt, to why the delivery guy let you receive it that I don’t know, but the fact that you received a parcel that is not yours from the delivery guy/company, by that action you already took the responsibility of making sure that parcel was delivered to the recipient.
On that occasion, she did a lot of talking and “a lot don’t do this don’t do that thing” which is already unfair as if that rules she is imposing is only for me. At the very beginning we had no signed agreement (even all the other tenants) I have no problem following rules but it seems she is really becoming unfair.
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You have certain rights that are being trampled all over – your question is, do you want to lose your accommodation by asserting them (as you probably will, one way or another).
I suspect your landlady is probably evading tax and is certainly playing fast and loose with Boarding House laws. Have a look a THIS FACTSHEET from Tenancy NSW and have a think about what that means to you.
Regarding the missing parcel, report it to the Post Office. They don’t have a valid signature which means it has been accepted fraudulently and when you have established that you can ask for it to be replaced.
You don’t have to blame the landlady – that’s up to you. But she didn’t need to accept the parcel and if she hadn’t you would have been able to collect it from your Post Office.
So report the missing parcel to the Post Office. And meanwhile I would be looking for somewhere acceptable to live that’s run along slightly more legitimate lines.
The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers.
Yes, I think your landlord could be evading some taxes too since she does not want to have any black and white agreement with any tenants. You could be living with no rental problems or issues with living conditions as of today, but since there is no legal agreement, you could be evaded at any particular time too. You should really seek a more definite answer through your landlord herself before the worst case scenario happens. As for your parcel, try reporting to the post office and see what their response is. For all we know, your landlord might still have the parcel with her.
In your situation, I would suggest that you get a mail box at the local post office. That way no-one can access your mail. Find one that opens on Saturdays if you have difficulty getting there to pick up large parcels on weekdays.
Perhaps its time to move on and find a new place.
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