PM - Don’t push the friendship: Leasing to family and friends

Don’t push the friendship: Leasing to family and friends

It all seems simple enough: you have a property and you’ve also got a friend or family member who’s willing to lease it from you directly. You don’t need to bother with a property manager, right? Wrong.

In a perfect world, every lease between friends or family would be a simple affair – but in the complex real world, ‘freestyle’ leasing and attempting to manage a property yourself can be a very costly mistake to make.

All too quickly, friendships are soured … and they’re the least of your worries. What happens if your casual tenant repeatedly fails to pay their rent on time? What happens if their girlfriend/

boyfriend/sub-tenant moves in unbeknownst to you? Should there be a kitchen fire, or the home is robbed, or they simply fail to clean the bathroom for a year resulting in damage to your fittings and fixtures: who is responsible? What if they take you to a tribunal for negligence? 

DIY property management is a dangerous trap we recommend no landlord fall into – even when your tenant is a friend or family member.

Not sure how to lodge a bond or unsure of local legislation in relation to tenancy laws? Contact one of our property managers to avoid the heartache and risk of DIY leasing.