Help needed to help secure a rental property

Hi Everyone,

First of all thank for taking the time to help me and I apologise if this is posted in the wrong section.

My current situation is that I am looking for a 2 bedroom apartment to rent in Melbourne with a friend but with neither of us being too clued up on the industry and procedures and both being in non-ideal circumstances we are looking for tips to help us secure a place.

First off I am 24 and from the UK on a Working Holiday Visa I have 8 months remaining and have a 6 month job contract as a chartered accountant of which is likely to turn into sponsorship (This is not far enough down the road to be of any use to a rental agency though I am sure)

I also have some short term rental referees from Australia and a 3+ year referee from back in the UK. I also have enough money to happily pay 3 months up front if this could possibly help.

My Friend is 21 and from Sweden she has a monthly grant of around $2400 and a referee history from Australia of around 1 1/2 years she is currently in the first year of he studies and will be looking to stay in the place for around 2 1/2 years+ whilst completing studies.

If anyone is able to help me work out a good way to present this to look suitable to be possible tenants then it would be very much appreciated. Also if you have any tips on what to have prepared before hand that would be great also.

Thanks,

Matt

 

Hi Matt, welcome aboard.
Have you tried Craigslist... I mean Gumtree?

 

Haha, Really hit and miss for anything other than shared houses. Whilst there seems to be an endless selection on actual real estate sites

 

@Lil Skater

 

Matt ... what areas are you wanting to live?

 

My friend is attending swinburne university in Hawthorn East 3124, I will be travelling to CBD for work. Ideally I would say Hawthorn East and the surrounding area

 

Have you tried the pub? Find the other pommies your age on working visas and jump into a share house

Serious question. .. why are you in Ozzie and living in Melbourne? ? thought you guys enjoyed the nicer weather over here

 

I've done my travelling and pretty sick and tired of hostels and share houses. I'm used to having my own place!

Melbourne is nice weather compared to England!!!

 

Have you considered house-sitting as an alternative? Will save you money on rent.

I've had some longish holidays in the last 6 months and so organised a house-sitter whilst I was away.

House Sitting in Australia

You may need to get a police check, or the referees that you have may suffice.

 

Certainly a good idea for a site but can't find much suitable for me on there at the moment

 

And you have a female Swedish companion

Have you tried serviced apartments or stayz type arrangement? They should be able to do a deal for longer

 

You could try every airbnb in the area asking of they would rent to you for x number of months. They might give you a lead if not an actual home to stay...

 

Hi Matt
Welcome.
Are you having trouble finding a suitable rental or getting applications accepted? I know the latter can be challenging.

 

I would write a letter to go with your application stating all the details you have provided. We had 3, 20 year olds do this for a house at Kallangur, Our agent said they presented well, seemed really down to earth, financials checked out, so they could afford it, would I give them a chance.
As we had 4, 20 somethings ourselves, gave them a go , after she firmly told them if they stuff up they would be gone and not much hope of another property. Only do 6 month leases just in case but they have been there 18 months now and inspections are great.[/QUOTE]

 

Hi Matt,

I don't know what the rental situation like in Melbourne. In Sydney though, this is what I found effective as renter
1. attend mid-week open house (less competition - the weekend ones we had 12 people in one tiny apartment, weekdays about 3)
2. have all documents and applications ready, if I like the place I hand it over directly to the PM. note to her I'm ready to move by x date and bond can be send right away, etc.

 

Hi Everyone,

Thank for the advice!

I haven't actually gone through the process of attempting to secure a place but just wanted some tips on how to make my application look as good as possible.

I will make sure I get all my documents ready to present immediately (100 Points of ID, Employment contracts, Reference contact details) along with a covering letter of our current situations.

By Application ready do you mean getting an application form off the agents website and already written out? This is something I haven't considered before but sounds like a good idea if I am reading this right.

I will likely start viewing places in a few weeks so wish me luck

Thanks,

Matt

 

I think your application will be quite strong. A young professional in an accounting firm should be looked on quite favourably even though you don't have much rental history here.
In Melbourne there is quite a glut of apartments so they may be easier to secure than a townhouse.

 

Hey Matt,

I'm a PM in Melbourne, so happy to help out where possible.

I love getting applications with cover letters explaining the tenants situation, I also love talking to tenants as they come through inspections to get a feel for who they are and what they're like - I want to know who I'm dealing with. Also make sure your application is easy to read, neat and tidy - nothing's worse than getting an application covered in coffee.

Also don't be afraid to ask an agent of they have anything "coming up" that may not be listed. Hawthorn and surrounding areas are quite busy in terms of new developments, you might find some agents have a couple of properties due to settle in the next week or two that aren't advertised yet (for instance, I have 2 unlisted).

Be friendly, well presented and make sure your references are easy to contact and you'll be okay!

 

Yes, application form from the PM site (or request one if they don't have it on the site).

Let us know how it goes!

 

Swinburne uni noticeboards around campus will also often have rentals on display.

I don't think you'll have a problem in Hawthorn, there are heaps of apartments. Landlords are used to students with less income / stability.