The new year is a great time to reset your financial goals as a landlord.
Here are five new year’s resolutions that can add value and or protect your property investment in 2023.
1. Are you protected?
Apart from your home, an investment property is your most important asset. So, like your home, you need to plan for unforeseen events. These include malicious or intentional damage to the property caused by a tenant or their guests or even theft.
What if your tenant takes off and defaults on their rental payments? There may be situations where the tenant makes a legal claim against you, or there are expenses relating to this action. In all these cases, landlord insurance can cushion the financial hit.
It’s important to remember that not all landlord protection policies are the same. Some, for instance, are designed to be taken out in addition to a typical home and contents or strata title policy, while others are more comprehensive. Meanwhile, other policies allow you to take out cover for the property’s contents, which is helpful if you rent out a partially or fully furnished property.
2. Visit your investment property in 2023
Your Property Manager is sure to be doing a great job keeping an eye on your investment for you. However, as a landlord, it’s still good to check the property’s condition. Your Property Manager can organise a visit and liaise with your tenant to find a suitable time.
Once you gain access to the property, examine it for anything from frayed carpet to peeling paint and get onto the repairs pronto to ensure you have a happy tenant – and happy tenants are more likely to take care of your property.
3. Check the terms of your tenancy agreement
Be sure that you have a fixed-term tenancy agreement with your tenant. If the agreement requires updating, perhaps the usual 6-12 month agreement doesn’t work for you. If you want more surety of cash flow or wish to change the time of the year when an agreement ends, go for a longer lease if the tenant is happy to oblige.
4. Get a depreciation schedule
5. Investment property loan health check
If you have any questions, or need clarification on any of the above, please contact Anna Marten, our Head of Property Management, on 9651 1666 or anna@guardianrealty.com.au.
Important note: Clients should not rely solely on the content of this newsletter. All endeavors are made to ensure the content is current and accurate however, we make no representations or warranties as to the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or currency of the content. Readers should seek their own independent professional advice before making decisions.