Advice on renting

Post by **Alex** » Tue May 17, 2011 4:52 pm

hey guys,

basically my girlfriend and I are planning on moving into our own place over the next 2months (max)

im chasing any advice which will maximise our chances of getting a place against often dozens of other people in the same boat as us.

we have no prior history and are fresh into the market.

any help will be MUCH appreciated.

before anyone starts, we are in the process of saving up to build a house of our own within the next two years.

cheers guys!

alex

Post by **TOONGA** » Tue May 17, 2011 5:30 pm

are you sure you want to rent if you are looking to buy in a couple of years.
paying someone elses mortgage for 2 years is a big downer, I know as we rent.

on top of that are all the utility bills, all of which have just risen and are set to rise again

Having said that

it may be difficult as you are first time renters but written character references can help

being a couple is a good start

Alex don't I repeat don't tell them about your "hobby", rental agents are prone to being anally retentive when it comes to people who store car parts or build cars.

dress well when you go to the real estate office not only to apply but if you get an offer of a lease it works in your favour to be seen as clean and tidy

GOOD LUCK

TOONGA

Post by **Alex** » Tue May 17, 2011 6:27 pm

thanks toonga, yeh i plan on going strait after work to view the property tomorrow, so i'll be in my office clothes anyway.

might not need to give the car a wash anymore with all this rain!

sad to say but im not that much into modding cars anymore! but im sure that will come back to me in the future.

fishing is about my dirtiest hobby!

im sure i'll learn from this first application what they are looking for etc. Im not holding my breath.

Battlewagon · Post by **Battlewagon** » Tue May 17, 2011 7:54 pm

How can I best put this.....first impressions count.

Turn up in a late-model car, even if it's not yours.

Remember the agents name, make eye contact.

If you have a business card, attach it to your application.

Bribery. If you can manage it, offer the first month's rent up front.

apg39 · Post by **apg39** » Tue May 17, 2011 8:22 pm

I'm an ex-property manager so I can give you a fair idea...

Honestly...history > no history. I know everyone needs a start but at the end of the day PM's work for the owner not you & a smart PM will recommend to the owner the tenant that will be the least amount of work for them. Easiest way to decide that is based on their history because it always reflects the future behaviour. Owners want that extra reassurance that these guys with 3 years experience know whats going on so don't expect trouble, I've had to turn down many first time renters who I think would be great tenants but the owner couldn't be convinced because it's only my gut feeling not something proven like history.

That's not saying you won't get a place though, just it won't be as easy. And once you are in...don't move after 6 months or it will be harder next time.

My best tips:
* Clean car or take the nicer car you own. A well maintained car helps alot in first impressions, no way will I rent to someone in a bunky with the floor covered in rubbish.
* Dress well, not obvious that you freshly shaved & showered just for the viewing, work clothes are fine but if they are tradies clothes always clean arms/hands/face or keep a spare shirt in the car. Smell nice
* Shake their hand straight away & introduce yourself & partner... firm but not crushing & look at them in the eyes...instant trust. Once again, don't over do it...just normal. Best if you offer your hand first but don't run up to them & grab it.
* ALWAYS ask if they want shoes off, tradies take shoes off without even asking, shows them you are considerate/clean & it's a habit you already have so carpets won't get dirty. (Make sure you have decent socks on too obviously)
* Take a good look at the place & ask questions, don't annoy them though.
* If there are others there be kind & considerate to them, have a laugh if possible...al reflects well on you. Landlords or their friends sometime pretend to be tenants as well...rare but can happen.
* Don't be judgemental, racist, abusive etc in conversations to the PM or anyone there. Treat your partner with respect. All reflects well on you.
* Ask questions about the landlord, how long a lease they want, will they consider first time renters & expectations about gardens.
* Give them info on yourself in conversation. Don't lie. Don't lie. Don't lie. DON'T LIE in conversation or the application, we investigate alot of things & we will find out if you lie.
* Make sure you understand the application & give them everything they need as soon as you drop it into the office, nothing more annoying then chasing stuff & alot of the time it will sit there while someone else takes the place. If possible drop in the application as soon as you can - ask for the PM when you go in, may not be able to talk to you but at least they know you're there.
* Personal references mean jack sheit - pretty much never called because they will be "yeah great guy, shouldn't have any problems etc. etc". BUT being first time renters they probably will ring so they have something to tell the owner, don't put down family, select a good friend who isn't going to act like a dick or make stupid jokes.
* If you make reference to the garage/cars, call it 'maintaining' your cars...modding = hoons, burnouts, drunks etc. Maintaining = looks after things, skilled etc. Justify it by joking about price of mechanics/dealerships if need be.
* Don't talk about housewarming/cocktail parties....at all. We listen while you are in other rooms etc & make a mental note not to bother with you.

Best tip of all time:
* Don't over do it, be keen but not too keen, talk but don't talk to much, look & size up rooms but don't spend forever doing it. Anything over the top raises alarm bells & we'd more than likely look deeper into your application. People who talk too much are hiding something. Taking a long time is just annoying too.

You want to be 'remembered' so that when your application lands on their desk & they pick it up to see who it is they will instantly say "ah yes thats Joe Bloggs, nice guy" & will want to help you out by talking you up to the owner or moving the application along quicker so no one else jumps in.

If the property doesn't suit, thank them & ask what else may suit. Take their rental list with you so the PM can't just give you that & palm you off. Ask questions about others on the list you like.

Good Luck!

Battlewagon wrote: Bribery. If you can manage it, offer the first month's rent up front.

Glad you added this because I forgot...don't do this. Gives the impression you are desperate, dodgey & have something to hide. Means absolutely nothing paying a month in advance, as soon as you sign a lease you pay 2 weeks in advance anyway & you HAVE to pay the rent no matter what, all you are doing is paying a little earlier...who cares? Instead tell them you will pay rent via direct deposit (they take it from your account).

Post by **Alex** » Wed May 18, 2011 10:38 am

really good advice there Andrew. I will take all this into account to try and maximise our chances.

I have a good friend who is an ex-rental agent who i have put down as a reference so hopefully she can give us a good wrap.

going to look at a place tonight at 5, will let you know how we go!

Post by **Alex** » Wed May 18, 2011 10:42 am

another question, good or bad idea saying my partner is pregnant?

apg39 · Post by **apg39** » Wed May 18, 2011 11:00 am

Pregnant wouldn't make a difference to me unless I knew the neighbours were cranky whingers in a small unit complex. I wouldn't say no though, just direct you to another suitable property.

lefty · Post by **lefty** » Wed May 18, 2011 11:21 am

look up gumtree,quokka etc for rentals self-managed by the owners.
I rented my place in Wilson to a young couple with no history and they have been fantastic. They know that they will need my good reference in the future.
It may also serve you better if you talk to the owners direct rather than through a prop manager who will only see the history.

p.s I may have a 3x1 house in Kelmscott available in October/November if you can wait that long.

AndrewT · Post by **AndrewT** » Wed May 18, 2011 1:04 pm

- Don't toilet paper your entire house with your mates for fun.
- Don't piss your room mate off for fun to the point where he kicks his bedroom door to pieces out of rage and you end up having to pay for half of it by loosing part of the bond.
- Don't blow shit up in the drainage pit next door until the old man who lives opposite calls the cops.
- Don't ride office chairs down the hill on the road out the front of your house at 4am.
- Don't let your mates set stuff on fire in the back yard for fun then nearly burn the house down.
- Don't tune the carby on your rotary powered car when it only has extractors and no exhaust at 11pm at night in the front yard.
- Don't do burnouts on the oval at the private school down the road almost every night then drive directly home leaving an obvious trail of dirt and grass.
- Don't rent if you are only earning about 100 bucks a week.

Then again you aren't 18 heh.
Man, me and my mates were retards, but we had fun

apg39 · Post by **apg39** » Wed May 18, 2011 1:27 pm

Hi Phil!

lefty · Post by **lefty** » Wed May 18, 2011 2:55 pm

property managers are a bunch of useless $%$#

oh hai andrew !!!

apg39 · Post by **apg39** » Wed May 18, 2011 5:40 pm

Agreed.

steptoe · Post by **steptoe** » Wed May 18, 2011 9:57 pm

I'd keep mum about yer girls 'condition' as it may be seen as reducing your income to pay rent, sometime after the baby bonus runs out....

lefty · Post by **lefty** » Wed May 18, 2011 10:26 pm

you will need to show proof of income anyway , so as long as you make a decent amount you should be fine.
Tenants with young children/babies will be seen as more likely to keep the house clean and less likely to have wild parties

Post by **TOONGA** » Thu May 19, 2011 9:28 am

So Alex how did it go?

TOONGA

Post by **Alex** » Thu May 19, 2011 9:30 am

lefty wrote:you will need to show proof of income anyway , so as long as you make a decent amount you should be fine.
Tenants with young children/babies will be seen as more likely to keep the house clean and less likely to have wild parties

yush yush. Paying the rent isnt a problem, getting the boot thru the door might be a problem.

We went and looked at a place last night very quickly. The house was nice and the perfect size, just the block was tiny. We will keep looking i think.

alex

Venom · Post by **Venom** » Thu May 19, 2011 10:10 am

It might be worth asking what the estate agent what the average time is people are spending looking/applying for houses. When i was looking this year i was told it was taking people in Ballarat 2 months or so of applications before they were finding a house. I didn't have that time and just told everyone I knew in Ballarat i was looking for a house, and ended up renting privately through a friend of a friend.

YouTube · Post by **El_Freddo** » Wed May 25, 2011 2:33 pm

I think that it all comes down to the real estate agent and what their business expects for their Property Owners.

Last October we were looking for places in Lakes Entrance - everywhere we looked they only rented in 12 month blocks, not good for us since we were only after 6 months. Anyway, kez got talking to one management group on the phone about out situation - had employment lined up for the summer and needed a place to rent for that time. The spoke to a guy that was selling a house that had little to no interest, we got email photos and rental details. To seal the deal we paid the first two weeks rent even though we weren't there (honeymoon then a weeks work with school). Our estate agent was great, but the owner seemed to be a cantankerous bastard - held us for a months rent at the end due to "not giving a months notice of moving out" even though we'd been in 5 weeks earlier to say that we would be leaving soon and will advise our departure date. Anyway we only paid two weeks due to new tenants moving in.

That said, they're not all like this. I've know perfectly good tenants miss out on a place because the real estate agent told the owner something about the tenant that the owner didn't like... Its a game of hit and miss in my opinion.

Best of luck mate! It could be worth looking into bringing those house plans forward 2 years! It would definitely be something worth nutting out against the renting for the same time (I realise build time is a big factor too)

Cheers

Bennie

Post by **Alex** » Thu Jun 02, 2011 1:39 pm

well we found the perfect place, ticks all the boxes we need.

this is the first application i have lodged, and we were accepted! Almost too easy haha.

so excited! It also has a double garage where you can drive into the grassed backyard.....wish i still had my l-sereis haha, perfect 'car maintenace house'

YEW!

alex