QLD Where to go if I have a dispute with my Property Manager?

Discussion in 'Property Management' started by Orion, 26th May, 2020.

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  1. Orion

    Orion Well-Known Member

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    I am having a major dispute with my Property Manager (based in QLD).

    They made a mistake drawing up a lease which has cost me $1,500 dollars. They first admitted to it and offered to make good, but have changed their tune. I tried to raise it with the Principle and just received a fiery email to take my business elsewhere.

    Is there some kind of Industry Ombudsman I can talk to?

    I need some help to take things further.

    Thank you.
     
  2. AaronCG

    AaronCG Member

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  3. Orion

    Orion Well-Known Member

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    Thank you!

    Just wondering, do you know if I may need to attend something in person in QLD if it gets to a certain stage?

    I ask because I am based in Victoria and want to make sure the PM will take this seriously.

    I'm concerned they may see it as an empty threat if there is a requirement to travel at some point.
     
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  4. TMNT

    TMNT Well-Known Member

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    Good luck!
    ive had my fair share of disputes with PM/agencies,
    been to court once,
    had one where ive escalated it to head office, eventually they fobbed me off after initially pretending to care, and it was a well known chain
    and as a result generally had a low opinion of PMs, however thats improved a lot with recent good experiences,

    is your PM part of a national chain, then you can complain to the head office
    you can also write google reviews and other review sites
     
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  5. Tom Rivera

    Tom Rivera Property Manager Business Member

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    If they are a member office with the REIQ you can get them involved, but otherwise Office of Fair Trading is the main option.

    If you need to take legal action through QCAT or similar, it's likely you'll need to be present in Queensland or involve some sort of local representation.
     
  6. wylie

    wylie Moderator Staff Member

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    I wonder if it is worth seeing if a letter from a lawyer at this early stage might make them sit up and take notice? I don't know how much that would cost, but if you push them to QCAT and cannot attend yourself, you will need to bring in a lawyer, won't you?
     
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  7. Phoenix Pete

    Phoenix Pete Well-Known Member

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    What was the error? Was the rent (on the lease) less than what it should have been?
     
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  8. Stoffo

    Stoffo Well-Known Member

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    One for the taxation members, would the attendance to QCAT be a tax deductable expense (all travel and accommodation expenses) ?

    I'd take it to QCAT an ensure that my flight back was 7 days after my flight up (I so want a few days away from the normal !)...
     
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  9. Mat

    Mat Well-Known Member

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    Not an issue. Minor civil disputes are heard by teleconference not in person. You won't have to travel to the court (practice direction no 5).
     
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  10. Michael Mitchell

    Michael Mitchell Well-Known Member

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    Interested to know more about the particular issue then will offer my 2c :)

    PM me if you want.
     
  11. Orion

    Orion Well-Known Member

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    Sure. A mistake was made when the lease was originally written up and it's in relation to water charging.

    In the lease there are two sections where the PM can tick who is paying for water, in full or just the excess, that type of thing.

    The agreement was for the tenant to pay, however in one section they wrote the tenant is to pay, but in the other, that the landlord is to pay.

    Problems have happened with two properties, but in just the current instance that I'm disputing, the water bill is over $1,000.

    I wanted to 50/50 the cost with the PM, but they want me to pay in full.

    (The issue becomes a little more complicated as the PM cannot locate my old water compliance certificate, appears to have been lost during PM handover from my old PM years ago. They claim this is the reason why they could not charge, which I also dispute - it's discussed in my other thread).
     
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  12. Antoni0

    Antoni0 Well-Known Member

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    Just wow! What a bunch of unprofessional clowns, I'll bet it will be your word against theirs.
     
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