Usually quiet, leafy and tranquil, Red Cedar Road Pullenvale was the unlikely scene of a series of explosions in mid August 2014. A property manager from a Brisbane Real Estate Agency found potentially dangerous chemicals during an inspection after tenants had vacated the 1 hectare property.
This finding resulted in residents of Red Cedar Road being subjected to a police lock-down for an extended period of time whilst the bomb squad safely exploded the dangerous chemicals. News.com.au reported that one of the tenants in question had used stolen identification belonging to a Navy diver. This story raises some red flags for property managers and property owners alike. Although it isn’t clear whether the property agent is at fault at all it highlights the seriousness of thorough tenancy application processing, identification checks, and of course, regular and thorough routine inspections on part of the property manager.
In the rare case that a criminally inclined prospective tenant elaborately defrauds the property agent it’s crucial for property owners to have their property covered by landlord insurance. According to Terri Scheer Insurance, chemicals are more likely to be found on outer lying properties.
How often should property managers conduct property inspections? Property managers should conduct a routine inspection 3 months after the tenants have moved in and regularly thereafter as agreed with the owner. The law in Queensland does not allow routine inspections to occur any sooner than every 3 months.
So how do you know if your property manager is actually conducting the routine inspections and secondly, how thoroughly?
First you need to check your management agreement and verify the agreed inspection frequency.
Ask your property manager for your latest inspection report if you don’t have your own record of it. Look at the photographs for yourself.
Check that you have current Landlord insurance and avoid a potentially explosive situation with your investment property!
Routine Inspections Are The Bomb
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