How has COVID-19 affected you as a landlord?

I've just received word from a commercial landlord that they will be pausing our rent indefinitely. This is an informal lease (the original lease lapsed) over an allied health office space that won't be utilised due to Covid-19. There are other allied health businesses sharing the same building and they've all had the same notification. Lessors feedback is that they want all of our businesses to be able to bounce back once the dust settles and life returns to normal. Not something we expected but one less expense to lose sleep over.

 

If most folks go bankrupt, businesses won't have anyone left to do business with. So makes sense really.

 

No, reduction in days though.

 

The Government has a lot to answer for....basically its a strategy to get out of helping out people in need themselves and having landlords foot the bill (whether they can afford to or not).

They've also opened the door to unscrupulous tenants gaming their landlords. Class action anyone?

 

I don’t know. We are lucky that our jobs are really secure, it’s just that I’ll be on mat leave in June. Otherwise things would be easier. The government hasn’t announced what the rent relief will be yet have they? The property manager was saying I’d be able to freeze my mortgage but I knew more about that (from this forum) than she did (like interest being capitalised and charged at the default rate).

 

Saw this from a PM...

We have had several inquiries regarding rental payments, please note that under your Residential Tenancy Agreement you are still obligated to pay your rent. We understand how difficult this time is for everyone but unfortunately the government has not released any special considerations for rent or mortgage payments at this stage.

If you are in financial difficulty or experiencing excessive hardship, you can apply to the magistrate’s court to seek a termination of your tenancy agreement or contact Centrelink to see if you are eligible for income support and/or rent assistance.

Another option is to seek early access to your superannuation. The government has allowed $10,000 before 1st July and a further $10,000 from 1st July – 24th September 2020. See link below Early access to your super

In regards to the shortage of toilet paper, be advised under no circumstances are you to flush paper towel, wipes or tissues down the toilet as they do not break down like toilet paper and if they cause blockages you need to be aware this cost may be passed on to you if the plumber advises this is the cause of the blockage.

Both our owners and tenants are as equally concerned as to how the Covid-19 situation will evolve and we wish you all good health during these very trying times.

 

What are your rental rights during COVID-19?

At this point ****’s crazy out there yo is an understatement.

Sally and Erica put it to listeners: what questions do you need answered right now? Overwhelmingly people got in touch who were renting and scared they won’t be able to make their rent.

Enter: Leo Patterson Ross, the Senior Policy Officer at the Tenants’ Union of NSW.

[Note: if you’re a tenant who has been affected by COVID-19 and looking for information related to your particular state or postcode head here for NSW, here for QLD, here for VIC, here for WA, here for NT, here for TAS, here for SA and here for ACT].

 

"[Note: if you’re a tenant who has been affected by COVID-19 and looking for information related to your particular state or postcode head here for NSW, here for QLD, here for VIC, here for WA, here for NT, here for TAS, here for SA and here for ACT]."



Hi wondering similar to above post - if there are appropriate bodies / links for landlords seeking advice support - in vic is it only consumer affairs & vcat.....

 

Have a property in Dublin.
2 couples occupying it, the 4 of them are out of work.
They're not residents of Ireland so I don't think there's a safety net/support for them which also puts me in a pickle. I may need to get onto the Irish bank

 

There are an estimated 650,000 kiwis that live in Australia , not sure how many of these are wage earners, but for those that are not Australian citizens , they are in the same position, they are not allowed to claim unemployment benefits and pretty sure they are not included in the stimulus which allows them to go straight onto benefits.
Give it a month or so many landlords might be in for a shock when the money completely stops rolling in.

 

Hey @Hetty , as you've mentioned you are working from home, given all the recent publicity about kids being withheld from school, and online learning, I wondered how you have prepared for that online learning, what platforms you are using, and what kind of student participation you are experiencing, and the subsequent outcomes you expect are?

 

I’m using Adobe Classroom and Google Classroom. Most teachers (in high school anyway) have been using Google Classroom for years and are adept with technology so that’s not an issue. A lot of staff have stepped up and run sessions (over the internet) to show how to use programs like Adobe Classroom and Zoom. The department have run sessions as well.

So far participation from my younger students has been excellent, but not my seniors. But I’m working on that! It’s early days still. The biggest issue I’ve had along with seniors not participating is contacting parents from my personal mobile, a lot won’t answer calls from private numbers and I don’t want them having my personal phone number. Coming up with solutions for these sorts of things though. Like I’m roll marking online using Google Classroom from today so hopefully that will help with participation.

I’m not expecting a huge difference in terms of outcomes. I can deliver lessons remotely, students have access to all the resources, and if anything I’m checking their work and providing feedback much more than I was able to when at school. If participation is good I think it’ll be business as (almost) usual.

Tech subjects will have difficulties though, and science with their pracs. English, Maths, History, etc. are pretty easy to teach online.

 

So are practical classes for pdhpe.

 

Oh yep. Forgot about that. And sport. I always avoided both in high school!

 

Tax breaks for landlords who grant rent relief

Will be interesting to see what comes out of this

 

Looks like a combination of income tax relief and land tax relief for landlords provided the relief is passed downstream to tenants?
Tax breaks for landlords who grant rent relief

 

I haven’t been affected yet. Have lost some hours at work though

 

game changer? https://www.smh.com.au/world/europe...virus-finger-prick-tests-20200326-p54dyy.html