NSW Statements for Landlords

My agent seems to be using a standard software for the statements (I don't know which one but I've seen the exact format before with other agents). What is weird about the way it is set up is it indicates the period to be 4 weeks + 1 day but only four weeks of rent is collected.

For example,
Paid From 7/3/20 (Saturday)
Paid to 4/4/20 (Saturday)
If rent is $500, the rent received for this period is $2000.

Since the rent is exactly 4 weeks, it is really paid to 3/4/20. It is common to have this set up like this where the last day is non inclusive? My previous agent statement's paid to date is exactly the date its paid to.

The next statement would show:
Paid from 4/4/20 (Saturday)
Paid to 2/5/20 (Saturday)

 

It's definitely a case where the paid to date is not inclusive of that date. The software is probably REST Professional and that software does allow the use of either inclusive paid-to dates or non-inclusive paid-to dates.

Personally I find the inclusive paid-to dates as the least confusing of all.

 

But thats so misleading why is it even an option? And the thing is on the last statement before the tenant vacates, it will come up a day short of rent but the system doesn't pick that up.

 

Why is it an option? Beats me. It shouldn't be an option as most lay-people would assume that the date is inclusive.

Agencies that use non-inclusive dates would have all their staff enter vacate dates etc as the day after the tenant actually vacates, so that the owner is not left one day short in rent as you have pointed out.

 

Most probably just an issue that 00:00 is midnight but is included in the following day which runs to 23:59. Think NYE which starts the new year and 1 Jan as the change from 23:59 to 00:00. You would need the tenancy to conclude at 23:59 but most systems only deal in days.

When I go on holidays I arrive at my accommodation on Saturday (usually after 15:00) and leave on the following Saturday (before 11:00). Did I just get 8 days for the price of 7?

 

That's so odd, and it's incorrect. Why would they offer that as an option?

 

It's still only 7 nights although you have 6 full days + 2 partial days.

 

REST allows this option its sort of like charging midday to midday rather than midnight to midnight.

I don't like this option however alot of agencies in Sydney still have this setup

Eg. Paid from Monday 1/1/20 to Monday 8/1/20 then the next payment will pay from Monday 8/1/20 to Monday 15/1/20

 

My thoughts exactly!

My tenants moved out and surely enough I'm one day short of rent in my final statement. The thing is my agent doesn't seem to know about this abnormality. When I pointed it out, they couldn't work it out and told me it's unlikely to be incorrect because its generated by the software but couldn't explain why my rent doesn't marry up. They have been sitting on this issue since last Friday and I still don't have a resolution! I'm quite annoyed because they kept pushing me to release the bond (telling me i have to do it within 48 hours of tenants vacating which I've ascertained in another thread is untrue) yet they don't seem to be putting any priority onto resolving the issue in order for the bond to be released.

Surely if the setup is common, they would know how to handle it because people vacate all the time so I would expect it to be normal practice but the impression I get is it's the first time they've had to deal with the issue - and they have been operating in this industry for decades! I wonder how many owners didn't check and lost a day of rent each time a tenant moves out.

I cringe at the thought of needing to go through this whole debacle again when the next tenant leaves.

 

The easiest way to differentiate between an inclusive paid-to-date and a non-inclusive paid-to-date is to go to the rent ledger.

eg: Rent paid from 03/07/2020 to 09/07/2020 (Friday to Thursday) - paid-to-date is inclusive
Rent paid from 03/07/2020 to 10/07/2020 (Friday to Friday) - paid-to-date is non inclusive.

 

It is only "easy" if the agent understands the setup and know how to interpret this . My statements actually reflect the latter in your example, that's how I picked up there was a discrepancy. It's only a matter of counting the days times the daily rent and seeing that it reconciles with the rent paid to date.

i'm not sure why its so difficult... but I'm still waiting for their response - it's been one week and counting.

The software is silly for allowing this option in the first place.

 

That's why I gave the two examples ...to show the difference.

And as for your last comment... if it were up to me... I'd make it only paid-to inclusive with no other option.

 

What you haven't clarified is the day that the tenant vacated did they exit on the 9th or the 10th based on @Phoenix Pete's example? Both are correct but the tenant has no right of occupation on the 10th.

 

Probably some programmer doesn't understand that a week is Saturday to Friday (inclusive), not Saturday to Saturday, and just for got to include a minus 1 when calculating the last date. ie. 7 days from the 1st is the 8th, but inclusive is 1st to the 7th.

@Simon Hampel might correct me if I am wrong...

 

Vacated on the 10th

 

Then they are a day short.