Protections for property owners and tenants!
It's been an absolute roller coaster ride with changes happening daily as a result of COVID-19. As you may be aware, a proposal was put forward by the Palaszczuk Government in April 2020 with a number of changes which were very worrying for owners of rental properties.
The following temporary and targeted measures will apply for six months to properties where the tenant is impacted by COVID-19 (all other tenancies not impacted by COVID-19 will continue to operate under usual arrangements):
- The six-month moratorium on evictions will only apply to tenancies where the tenant’s income has been reduced as result of COVID-19 and the tenant is at risk of eviction. Tenants can still be evicted for doing the wrong thing and on other grounds.
- We are asking property owners and tenants to work together where a tenant is experiencing COVID-19 related financial challenges to negotiate a new temporary and sensible rent amount. Guidelines are being developed to support reaching agreement including duration and whether repayments are required. While we expect most tenants and property owners to come to an agreement, where this is not possible, we will provide a compulsory, free, fair and independent conciliation service to resolve issues.
- Tenants will need to demonstrate genuine financial distress from COVID-19 that meets an established standard. Tenants will need to have had a 25 per cent reduction in income or show that rent exceeds 30 per cent of the tenant’s income. This can be substantiated by providing the same financial information they do at the start of a tenancy.
- Enabling virtual inspections to protect tenants and property managers from getting COVID-19 and ensuring essential access for repairs and maintenance continues where safe.
- Tenants will be able to have break lease fees capped only where there has been a 75% loss of income and they have less than $5,000 in cash.
- Tenancies that expire during this crisis will only roll over to September 30 2020 at the latest and they have been impacted by COVID-19.
- The six-month moratorium on evictions will only apply to tenancies where the tenant’s income has been reduced as result of COVID-19 and the tenant is at risk of eviction. Tenants can still be evicted for doing the wrong thing and on other grounds.
- In cases where the owner and tenant are both experiencing financial distress, we have established a $20 million-dollar rental grant fund to complement existing Centrelink support.
As we continue to navigate COVID-19 its great to see the above measures put in place for owners and tenants a like.
Keep smiling and stay safe....... from the whole team at Your Haven Realty!
