The Ultimate Guide for First Time Renters:

Are you moving out of home and looking at moving into your first rental home? Are there a million questions you have about the whole rental process and how it works? Well here are the top tips and tricks for every first-time tenant to ensure that you make the most out of your first rental home.

How leases work:

A lease is an agreement between a landlord and yourself (as the tenant) that is legally-binding.  Within a lease agreement, it defines how long the property will be rented for, your responsibilities as a tenant as well as the cost of rent. It is important that you as the tenant abide by everything within the lease agreement, because it is the right of the landlord to evict you if any component of the lease is breached.

Bond:

A rental bond is an amount of money that is paid at the beginning of the tenancy as an element of financial security in case any terms of the lease agreement are breached.  For most properties that maximum price of a bond is equivalent to 4 weeks rent. If, at the end of the lease the property is left undamaged and clean, the bond can be returned.

Paying rent:

There are many methods of paying rent, these include:

• Electronic bank transfer
• Cash (a receipt must be received with all cash payments)
• Eftpos
• Credit card
• Cheque
• Deductions from your pay

The landlord or property manager keeps a record of your payments. It is generally expected that rent always be paid in advance. If your rent exceeds a specific number of days, it is the landlords right to be able to evict you from the property. However, if you are unable to pay rent for a valid reason, alternative arrangements can be made for you to pay back the outstanding amounts. This time period is specified in the leasing agreement.

Leaving the property:

It is important that there is open communication between the landlord, property manager and yourself as the tenant, especially regarding your status within the property. If you plan on moving out prior to the expiration of your lease, it Is important that the landlord and the property manager are made aware of your situation so they have time to arrange new tenants for the property. By ensuring there is open communication between all parties, it minimises the chances of a misunderstanding.