Property manager oblivious
Question from Corinna updated on 27th April 2013:
I have a tenant who is under a Tenancy Tribunal order to pay an extra $100 per week on top of her rent until she clears her arrears and water rates. She has only paid one of the weekly extra payments and has neglected to pay her normal weekly rent. She is five weeks in rent arrears and also over $1,000 behind in water. My property manager seems oblivious to her non-payment of rent. What can I do about it as every time she misses her rent I have to put extra in for the mortgage and I already top it up for far more then I should. If I was to employ a different property manager then would the arrears be taken over as well or would I just lose it all?
Our expert Juliet Robinson responded:
Your property manager is your agent, and the collection of rent and arrears is part of the duties carried out on your behalf. If you change your property you should clarify with the new property manager that they will collect the arrears as part of their duties. Then notify the tenant of that change. Your new property manager should then arrange with the tenant for the payment of rent and arrears. When you select a property manager be sure that you select one who routinely checks on rent payments each day and then follows up quickly on any missed payments. Early action is vital, especially when you have to top up your mortgage when the rent is missed. You should read the Tenancy Tribunal order, and be sure about what has been ordered. If the tenant fails to make the payments as ordered by the Tenancy Tribunal, you also have the district court collections process available to you.
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