If you believe your rental property has been abandoned, the first thing you need to do as Landlord or Property Manager is to check for signs before you consider entering.
These are the most common grounds to believe your property has been abandoned.
- The rent hasn’t been paid in full (or at all);
- The tenant has stopped responding to your communication attempts;
- Lawns and gardens are unkempt;
- The letterbox is overflowing;
- Neighbours or other sources have provided information to suggest the tenancy is abandoned; and
- You’ve received information from the tenant that suggests they’ve abandoned the property.
Despite signs confirming your suspicions that the property has been abandoned, you will still need to issue an Entry notice to the tenant allowing 24 hours’ notice.
If the tenant responds to your entry notice, you can take this opportunity to address your concern that the property appears to be abandoned. However, if you do not receive any contact from the tenant, you may proceed and inspect the property.
When inspecting the property, keep an eye out for these signs:
- A distinct absence of household furniture and items;
- No personal belongings left lying around; or
- The utilities are disconnected.
Once you’ve confirmed the property has been abandoned, Section 355 of the Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Act allows you to terminate the tenancy.
You can issue an Abandonment termination notice (Form 15) to the tenant at their residence. The tenant must notify the Landlord or Property Manager that they haven’t abandoned the tenancy within 7 days of receiving the notice or the tenant can lodge an application applied to QCAT to have the notice set aside. If you do not receive a notification from the tenant, the tenancy will end seven days after the Form 15 is issued. The second option is to apply for a QCAT order.
Stacey Lee Realty has experienced Property Managers to handle the task of maintaining your investment and ensure your investment is working for you with minimal hassles. Call us today at 07 3399 2966 or visit www.staceyleerealty.com.au