Here, we look at how these two forks in the road compare across a number of respects, enabling you to more easily reach an informed decision

Finding the right tenant

Do you know how to spot the ‘right’ tenant? If you genuinely don’t, rest assured that professional property managers can thoroughly screen potential tenants to identify ones who would be likely to diligently look after the property and regularly pay rent on time

On the other hand, you might prefer to meet up with tenants directly in order to personally get to know them better — and forge a close relationship with them in the hope of enhancing tenant retention

Legal compliance 

Given that roping in professional property managers would require you to pay them fees, it would theoretically be cheaper for you to take the more direct, hands-on approach to property management

Alas, one flaw of this theory is that you could struggle to keep yourself fully updated with all of the legal rules applicable to New Zealand property management. As a result, you could risk inadvertently violating certain parts of the law and consequently having to incur financial penalties

In contrast, professional property managers already know the ins and outs of the relevant legislation and are adept at keeping pace with changes enacted to it

Property maintenance 

A manager would be able to periodically inspect the property on your behalf and so free up valuable time in your schedule. Another time-saving part of their remit would be responding to tenants’ repair and maintenance requests, which could sometimes come at awkward times of the day or night

Nonetheless, when a tenant does need a suitable tradesperson to turn up at the property to rectify, say, an impromptu roof leak or boiler breakdown, you might favour liaising between the tenant and tradesperson yourself if you fear that miscommunication could otherwise arise at some point in this chain

We emphasise, however, that our professional property managers are accustomed to skilfully handling repair and maintenance requests along with many others that tenants could make. In emailing enquiries@omniproperty.co.nz, you can learn more about our expertise in managing Auckland properties

The post Property Management vs. Self-Management appeared first on Omni Property Management.

Maintenance issues

Complaints about maintenance or needed repairs are common from tenants because there isn’t usually an easy fix that a tenant can carry out themselves. If the tenant is struggling to fix the issue alone and the landlord is not able to help out quickly then this can cause issues between the tenant and landlord. This is where property management companies come in handy because they can offer the tenant the quick solution they are after.

Unwanted pests

If the tenant reports bugs or rodents in the property then it is the responsibility of the landlord to assist with taking action. An exterminator should be contacted promptly. After about a week, the landlord needs to check that the issue has definitely been resolved. A property management company would be able to deal with this instead of the landlord if they were hired, they would also be able to prevent such events from occurring in the first place by inspecting and looking after the property periodically.

Missed rent payments

If a tenant is late on a rent payment then it is important to find out why the tenant hasn’t paid and try to find a solution. Always follow up communications in writing so that you can gain evidence if needs be. Whilst chasing up rent payments can be time-consuming and stressful, this burden can be taken directly away from the landlord by hiring a property management company.

Damp or mould

Damp can be a huge problem in the winter because windows are more likely to be kept shut which prevents condensation from escaping. You should make sure that bathrooms have a good ventilation unit and that kitchens have an extractor fan to take excess moisture out of the property. It is also helpful to inform the tenant of how to reduce excess condensation to prevent mould or dampness from occurring. A rental property management company would be able to take care of all of this for you.

Whilst it can be tempting to manage your own property to save on management fees,  poor management and limited knowledge of legal procedures can lead to big problems – both financially and emotionally. Here at Omni, we want to relieve you of this burden with rental property management in Auckland. 

Get in touch with us today.

The post Common Tenant Issues and How to Resolve Them appeared first on Omni Property Management.

A tenancy agreement is a contract between the landlord and the tenant. This contract needs to be carefully understood and signed by both parties, and no terms of the contract can be breached.

The Residential Tenancies Act details the legal relationship between landlords and their tenants. On top of this, the act also offers an approach for assisting with resolving any disputes between landlords and tenants which may occur.

If any breaches of the Residential Tenancies Act occur, then the displeased landlord or tenant can be taken to the Tenancy Tribunal.

What legal responsibilities do tenants have? 

It is the responsibility of the tenant to pay for any utility bills when living on the property. This includes electricity, gas, phone and internet.

In addition, they also need to pay their rent on time each month, notify the landlord of any damages to the property quickly and keep the property in good condition.

What legal responsibilities do landlords have? 

Landlords have a responsibility to rent out the property in good condition, meeting health and safety standards. A landlord needs to provide at least 90 days’ notice if they want to end the tenancy.

As well as this, if the landlord is to leave the country for more than twenty-one days then they must provide an agent’s contact details to their tenants so that they have a new point of contact if any issues arise.

Landlords do have a legal right to increase rent, but this can only be done once every 180 days and when this happens, they must provide tenants with at least 60 days notice of the rental rise in writing.

Here at Omni we’re committed to approaching property management in Auckland with fresh eyes while delivering a higher standard of service at competitive, no-surprise pricing. We understand the importance of nurturing your assets while maintaining a positive relationship with tenants to achieve the best possible returns for you. Get in touch with us today.

The post The Legal Side of Property Management: Understanding Landlord-Tenant Laws appeared first on Omni Property Management.

Here are some life-changing hacks that every landlord should know.

Create office hours

Whether you’re managing one rental property or a dozen, being a landlord can easily become a 24/7 job. Failing to manage your time could lead to you becoming burned out and making more mistakes.

To better manage your work/life balance, consider creating office hours and including them in tenancy agreements. That way, your tenants will always know when to contact you and you can rest easy knowing you won’t need to deal with requests at odd hours.

Keeping your tenants happy

Keeping your tenants happy is essential if you want to keep the money coming in. Building a healthy relationship and keeping on top of any complaints are great ways to keep tenants happy, but there are smaller things you can do to set yourself apart from other landlords.

Little things like sending a birthday card or regularly asking for feedback will make your tenants feel valued and can help ensure a long and fruitful relationship.

Store important documents on the cloud

Keeping important documents and records safe is essential. While it’s always a good idea to keep physical copies, you should also store digital copies on cloud servers. This means that, in the event of physical documents getting lost/destroyed, you’ll always have the important information on hand.

Buy appliances on sale

An easy way to save money when furnishing a property is to bulk-buy appliances on sale. Appliances regularly go on at various points sale throughout the year, such as Black Friday and New Year Sales. You can also buy second-hand appliances, which may have some slight cosmetic damage but would otherwise work perfectly.

Omni Property Management are professional property managers based in Auckland. To find out more about how we can help new and veteran landlords, contact us today.

The post Life-Changing Hacks Every Landlord Should Know appeared first on Omni Property Management.

1) Time management

One of the main perks of working with a property manager is the time savings landlords will get. This extra time can then be used for other areas of their business, or even for rest. Landlords won’t have to deal with time-consuming tasks such as screening tenants, collecting rent, conducting repairs or creating and implementing advertising for the property.

2) Easy oversight

When landlords attempt to manage their own property, it can often lead to them struggling to keep track of everything which is happening. This can cause bigger issues such as late rent, repairs staying unfixed, and tenant disputes. By hiring a property management company, you will always have someone available who can take responsibility for overseeing all of these issues on more, on your behalf.

3) Peace of mind

By hiring a property manager, you will be provided with peace of mind that your property is in good hands. This can benefit your business and personal life in many ways because many stresses will be taken away from you. This leaves you free to focus on other important things, whether that be business related or in your day-to-day life.

Hiring a property manager will benefit your business massively. If you are a landlord seeking property management services then look no further than Omni Property Management. Here at Omni, we’re committed to approaching property management with fresh eyes while delivering a higher standard of service at competitive, no-surprise pricing. Drop us an email at enquiries@omniproperty.co.nz or call us on 02041789787.

The post 3 Reasons Landlords Need a Property Manager appeared first on Omni Property Management.

If you’re looking for effective property management in Epsom, then look no further than Omni Property Management. With the recent major flooding in Auckland affecting thousands, we are proud to say that we were able to step in and check in on our clients and properties to ensure that there was no damage, and were able to assist in any way possible.

With rain rates of 40-50mm per hour reported in several areas of Auckland, it’s no wonder that there has been a major concern for both personal and property safety, with reports of landslides, falling trees, trapped cars, and damaged homes.

But with Omni, we approach property management with fresh eyes and seek to streamline the property management process, whilst at the same time ensuring the utmost safety in the event of natural disasters such as the recent floods.

With Omni, our healthy homes inspection guarantees that your property is compliant with the Healthy Homes Standards 2019, completing a heating assessment tool on the living area, checking extractor fans in kitchen and bathroom, draughts, insulation, ventilation, moisture barrier and drainage and giving you a detailed report once compliant, providing peace of mind for both landlord and tenant.

With the recent and unprecedented flooding in Auckland, now has never been a more crucial time to ensure that your properties are competently assessed so that they are legally compliant and can be easily maintained and repaired. By choosing Omni Property Management, you can guarantee that all of these considerations will be taken care of so that you don’t have to lift a finger, saving you both valuable time and – crucially – money.

We will provide you with a flexible, cost-effective, and personalised service that guarantees you will be able to retain good and reliable tenants, even in the event of major flooding. We’d love to hear from you. Get in touch with us today to find out more about the comprehensive services we offer.

The post How is the Flooding Affecting Auckland Today? appeared first on Omni Property Management.

They pay on time

It can be incredibly frustrating when you’re dealing with a tenant who is consistently late with payments. Provided that you’ve given them a clear schedule of when to make payments, having a tenant who consistently pays on time will save you a lot of headaches and allow you to effectively plan for the future.

They regularly communicate with you

It’s vital to keep regular communication with your tenants in the event something unexpected happens. Unexpected events could mean that your tenant may not be able to pay on time this month, but as long as they’ve notified you ahead of time you will be able to plan ahead. Similarly, tenants that immediately notify you if there’s an issue with the property, or if it will be empty for a while, are worth their weight in gold.

They are accommodating

Regular communication is vital, but a healthy relationship with your tenant involves being respectful of each others’ time. This means that you shouldn’t have to worry about calls at any hour of the day, and that you will be able to access the property to inspect or carry out repair whenever it is convenient.

They’re good neighbours

A good tenant is one who will be respectful at all times- not just with you, but with their neighbours. This involves being respectful about noise and keeping communal areas tidy. A tenant who won’t be causing any trouble will give you peace of mind.

Do you need help with rental property management in Auckland? Get in touch with us today to see how we can help you.

The post 4 Signs Of A Good Tenant appeared first on Omni Property Management.

The pro’s

Since our default position traditionally has been to have a no pets policy due to all the “problems” caused for landlords, you may not be as familiar with the benefits of allowing your tenants to have pets. Here are some reasons below:

• You automatically get a larger prospective tenant pool
• Tenants are more likely to have a longer tenure, as its more difficult to move again to a pet friendly property
• Responsible pet owners are responsible tenants. If they can take care of an animal, chances are they’ll take care of your rental
• There’s a chance you may be able to charge a premium price which with today’s ever increasing interest rates, can make all the difference
• Allowing pets will help create a good tenant-landlord relationship, which is beneficial to have when / if future problems arise.

The con’s

We are all familiar with the problems pets can cause, I’ll revisit the main ones below:

• Pets can do damage, especially un-trained ones.
• Disruption to neighbors. Dogs barking, birds squawking and roosters waking everyone up! This can all create issues
• Pet odors

In my opinion, the positives of allowing pets far outweighs the negative. However I would suggest, as you do with prospective tenants, you vet (no pun intended) the animal and get reference checks from third parties such as trainers or previous neighbors.

Jackson Farron

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With interest rates increasing and inflation at its highest level in over 30 years, the property boom has come to an end. There are many more rental properties entering the market now, as owners who would typically sell have instead opted to rent their properties out, and weather the storm of the downturn.

Due to COVID restrictions over the last few years, there has also been an accumulation of young people with plans to head overseas for OE’s, as well as to seek the better opportunities out there. Meanwhile immigration remains slow for people coming into NZ for similar reasons. As all these people leave their rentals to go overseas, they are not being replaced, and landlords are now competing for a smaller group of tenants.

Landlords need to ensure that their properties stand out if they want to be competitive in this slower rental market. The properties need to be well maintained, presented as quality, and marketed professionally. Healthy homes compliance also plays a big part in this as tenants look to take advantage of their options.

If you are looking to rent out your property to tenants, it is advised now more than ever to be using a professional property management company who can assist you in getting ahead.

Hayden Walls

The post The slowing rental market in New Zealand appeared first on Omni Property Management.

As it stands, anyone can set up a business as a property manager with zero experience or qualifications. They don’t need insurance, nor do they need to put their clients rent through a trust account. All this responsibility, with lack of regulatory oversight, puts property owners at risk. There are several horror stories out there of negligent property managers failing to distribute funds and using them for their own personal gain. The proposed legislation could prevent things like this happening, while also shining a much-needed light on the reputation of property managers New Zealand wide. Even though the level of oversight should be put up for debate, I think it is widely accepted throughout the industry that this regulation is long overdue. It would appear to benefit the whole picture, from tenants to property owners, and let “proper” property management companies such as ours move forward with confidence.

Jackson Farron

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