QLD REIQ Template - Landlords should oppose QLD Government's planned protections for COVID-19 tenants

There is a great email template on this website and the premiers email address. It took me <2 Mins to send the email with my name at the bottom, encourage others to do the same.

 

So moving forward from all the rumour and getting "Facts" from Domain (which sells advertising) rather than quoting the state govt's actual press release.

Hands up if you just viewed the REIQ presentation, like @Blueskies, and sent the prepared email as directed by someone who is actually smarter than any of us when it comes to these matters.

Way to Go Ms M

 

Thank you Wylie

 

This Labor State Government has gone too far. Maybe they should go.
@$%^&*((₩€_/

 

wow.. this is something else. If this doesn’t initiate a property market crash, nothing will.

So the tenant may be entitled to a 12month waiver, with no recourse for the LL, while possibly not showing proof of hardship..
and the landlord, a 6month deferral, which will require paying interest on interest..

And even if a distressed landlord needs to sell, the tenant could prevent them?
Houston, we have a problem

 

Please go to the window and open.

Scream I"m as mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore!

 

And after that 12 months can the rent go back to normal again or can it only be increased by some small amount each year because tenant can't be expected to adjust to such a big jump and we can't have the tenant being given a notice to vacate for some otherwise valid reason in some "retalitory" way because they were in hardship...

 

There’s already legislation preventing excessive rent hikes.. safe to assume rent can only increase in small increments
Refer RTA;

If the tenant still feels the increase is excessive, they can apply for dispute resolution once the new agreement is signed. They may also apply to QCAT for a decision.

QCAT considerations:

• difference between the proposed and current rent

 

OK. So basically we must refuse to reduce rent except by a small amount in order to protect our interests. If tribunal are able to force us to reduce rent then so be it but you can't reduce rent by say 50% and then have that tenant getting to live there for years at basically that price even after they get their job back. Government has just ensured we can't afford to negotiate.

 

Where's this speculation come from? I haven't seen it anywhere.

 

Selling is allowed and is one of the reasons a lease can be broken...

 

Yes selling is allowed, mid-lease for example, but if the tenant wishes to stay, they can deny access to the property unless for emergency repair.. how does a distressed LL sell if nobody can access?

 

I have been issued with a notice to leave. Do I have to leave?

You cannot be evicted for rent arrears due to financial distress caused by COVID-19. If you have received a notice to leave in these circumstances, you should contact the property manager or owner to discuss this and negotiate a way to manage the issue.

There are approved reasons for ending a tenancy which will still apply. These include for example, where the premises are being sold or the owner is preparing the property for sale or there has been a serious unremedied breach by tenant (other than failure to pay rent due to hardship related to COVID-19).

 

@Closet i’m not sure how your response addresses the (rhetorical) question I asked..

That is, tenant doesn’t want to leave (why would they if their rent is waived), and the LL needs to sell (they will be under a lot of pressure after the 6month deferral), but nobody can access the property unless for emergency repair.. won’t selling be a bit tricky?

 

What the link implies is that normal practices apply...notice to leave is issued...business as usual... with same resolution and treatment if tenant refuses to leave in non COVID-19 times...

 

@Closet how does a LL issue a notice to leave, mid-lease, if the tenant is not in breach?

 

As per the link...usual process ...- The property manager/owner applies to QCAT to end the agreement due to excessive hardship (if they have evidence to support the application).

 

The FaceBook recording is here.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=237328287417473

For me, it's a little hard to concentrate at the start but once you get into it, you'd see the problem.
Useful to have a notepad and pen ready.

 

Done.. while I sort of understand where they are coming from, Queensland's proposal seems ridiculous, even compared to NSW and VIC's similarly proposed legislation.