Government says tenants don't have to pay rent if under hardship

Discussion in 'Property Market Economics' started by Jess Peletier, 20th Mar, 2020.

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  1. HUGH72

    HUGH72 Well-Known Member

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    Wow... I’m a little surprised. That’s a lot of government support. No excuses there for a rental holiday.
     
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  2. Codie

    Codie Well-Known Member

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    Apply for a COVID-19 Rental Grant

    a small grant that is helpful for those with no other options, it gets paid straight to the landlord. It appears things are starting to come through that protect the other side as well as the renter
     
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  3. Toon

    Toon Well-Known Member

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    A little clarification:

    Tenants in rental moratorium will have to pay rents: Housing Minister

    "Sukkar's clarification has been welcomed by the Real Estate Institute of Australia.

    “A moratorium on evictions doesn’t mean rent is not payable, it is", REIA president Adrian Kelly said.

    "If circumstances mean that payment in full is not possible it is a holding off from payments, not a cancellation.

    “It is for people who cannot pay at this time not for those that can.

    “If you can pay your rent now, you pay it.

    “If you can’t pay your rent now, you have been given grace for six months, but will have to catch up when you are able to pay it again.”"
     
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  4. The_Billy

    The_Billy Well-Known Member

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    Nobody is bigger than the system. They may strike, but there are avenues that they should be seeking in lieu of this. If they don't, they potentially risk damaging their profiles, being black marked and so on when things settle down.
     
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  5. Patrico1966

    Patrico1966 Well-Known Member

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    The minimum standards is the minimum we need right now.
     
  6. Antoni0

    Antoni0 Well-Known Member

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    I'm hoping that proof of hardship needs to proven in the policy they're supposedly meant to be coming up with, I'm not a legal person so take it with a grain a salt but I'd say you might be breaching the privacy and confidentiality act by asking for details to prove it, even though it's in our best interest for tenants to do the right thing here. These state government authority rental groups will jump on this like no tomorrow, it might be worth getting legal advice.
     
  7. skater

    skater Well-Known Member

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    Well, the answer is below. I've got quite a few paying between $300-$360 on benefits.

    Thankyou @Karina
     
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  8. Omnidragon

    Omnidragon Well-Known Member

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    It's class warfare that's all. At the fed level, there are lightweights. In various states, there are lefties. Writing was probably on the wall in hindsight with public mood against capitalism and career politicians in power.
     
  9. Tyler Durden

    Tyler Durden Well-Known Member

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    You certainly shouldn't have anything to worry about then, perfectly affordable.

    $300-$360 wouldn't even rent a studio where we have IP's.
     
  10. Antoni0

    Antoni0 Well-Known Member

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    They're lefties until they have to take money out of their own pocket to give to the poor, how many times do you hear of them taking homeless into their houses and feeding them ?
     
  11. hieund85

    hieund85 Well-Known Member

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    Talked to my PM (TAS) today. She mentioned she heard that tenants in TAS will need to appeal for rent reduction/freeze and a committee established by the state government will assess it. Not sure how true it is and the details of how this will work. But key point is tenants cannot just stop paying rent and get away with it.
     
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  12. Antoni0

    Antoni0 Well-Known Member

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    Have a talk to the tenants yourself and scope the position they're in. In Qld we get direct billed for water and not the Tenant, I can't afford to pay their water if I don't get a rental income to cover it.
     
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  13. kitdoctor

    kitdoctor Well-Known Member

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    I understand what you are saying but just about everyone misuses the words inflation and deflation. Decreasing prices are an effect of deflation. Further info Deflation.com
     
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  14. FireDragon

    FireDragon Well-Known Member

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    For commercial properties, can the landlord request some shares of the business in exchange for the rent free or reduced rent period? I understand it's difficult to value a business especially in the current situation but it's still better than giving the rent free period for nothing.
     
  15. Codie

    Codie Well-Known Member

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    Reached out to my tenants today to see how things are going and to ask if they wanted me to send them any of the links for Govt support, both for rental, employment, job assistance etc. I think we forget that all though on property chat we spend a lot of time getting across all options, most of the population is just trying to interpret the news headlines/reading speculation on Facebook

    Both were very appreciative for the phone call and sounds like there’s no plans to ask for a reduction. Gave me a good chance to chat through my honest position and relate to them.

    By the end of the calls I think we were all so much more comfortable knowing we aren’t out to take advantage of each other, it’s a 2 way street, and empathising with the other could save ALOT of landlords and renters. Wish I had done it earlier.
     
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  16. S1mon

    S1mon Well-Known Member

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    good point mate. did you see ACT chief minister said this today? seems ok to me i guess (in terms of sharing the pain to landlords/stopping scamming). for me roughly works out for 6 months as..save $1600 on land tax but get $2500 less rent.

    "
    In an initiative set to cost $39 million, the government will hand land tax and residential rate rebates to landlords who reduce rents for their tenants by at least 25 per cent.

    The rebate will be equal to half the amount of the rent reduction, up to a maximum of about $100 per week for the next six months.

    Mr Barr said short-term tenancies between tenants and landlords who would use the new scheme may be used.
    "

     
  17. Jana

    Jana Well-Known Member

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    Codie, You probably have good tenants. Those phone calls could be interpreted as opportunity by few who look opportunities.

    I always keep away from giving those opportunities. In QLD, the tenants can’t take much advantage from landlord as state govt respond this to some extend.

    In Sydney bloodbath is over 30-40%.
     
  18. Codie

    Codie Well-Known Member

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    May be true. I look at it the opposite way, by ringing it gave me the chance to explain I’ll be in a similar situation and am not some rich greedy landlord, also was able to explain the deferral payments and how they aren’t just a free period, it still needs paid. They didn't know this.

    i would suggest a lot of the people
    “Taking advantage” may not know the full story and are going off the news and armed with the correct information may stop a lot of this.
     
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  19. Lacrim

    Lacrim Well-Known Member

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    The unanswered questions about where landlords and tenants now stand

    "Mr Kelly said he didn’t think it was reasonable to ask someone in financial strain to repay their missed rent later on.

    “I have a personal view that if a tenant can’t pay the rent and they get to the end of the six months and they have a large debt, I don’t think that will be able to be dealt with in a practical way,” he said".


    OK...but I have a larger mortgage at the end of the 6 months if I had to defer it. Why the double standard?
     
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  20. Bentley

    Bentley Well-Known Member

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