Are Property Managers getting a ‘Raw Deal’?

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Are Property Managers getting a ‘Raw Deal’?

I noticed a recent article by a property manager in Far North Queensland as it raised the question about how to handle owners moving into their apartments for long term stays and who is responsible for dealing with this situation when it contravenes their purchase agreement.   Apparently a clause exists preventing an owner from occupying their apartment for longer than three months at a time but many owners seem to be ignoring this.  The question is then posed as to where the clause originated from and who should be ultimately responsible for ensuring it is upheld?

Managers pay large sums for the rights to manage apartments within a building but who is there to protect their investment when the apartment is sold to a purchaser who wishes to use it for their own purpose?  Units are not always lost from a letting pool because the owner is disgruntled with the manager, many are lost because they are sold to owner occupiers over which managers have little control.

So if a clause preventing owners from occupying the property for long periods does exist, then who should be responsible for enforcing it? It can’t be the police as I am sure it would be almost impossible to evict someone from a property they own.  The banks are unlikely to do so as they want their mortgages paid and a court of law would be unlikely to agree that someone should sleep on a park bench if they owned a property which would provide them with a roof over their head.  If the council enforced it, there could be dire consequences for the local property markets.  Many apartments are selling to first home buyers who simply cannot afford to buy a home with house prices and interest rates at their current levels. If the apartments can’t be sold to first home buyers or those downsizing, then who will buy them? This would limit the pool of purchasers dramatically and apartments would fall under the Supply and Demand dilemma which is facing the real estate industry in many parts of the country at present.  If supply is high and demand is low, then prices for apartments would surely fall, possibly impacting the managers own LVR with his bank. Does the Body Corporate have a part to play in all of this?

It seems this is a no win situation and the manager stands to lose most of all.  Is there a solution to this problem, possibly not.  Management Rights will always be subject to both ends of the spectrum. Some amazing opportunities to run a successful, profitable business, but forever exposed to the risks that go hand in hand it seems with anything that provides the potential to make a good profit.

It would be interesting to receive feedback as to whether anyone has any knowledge of this clause being tested in Australia and the relevant outcome.

See more details of our software products HiRUM Property Management Software and HiSITE Channel Management Software and keep an eye out for our regular blog posts on related articles.

Google brings the World to Travellers

How often have you heard the term ‘Google it’ ? meaning to search on the Internet browser ‘Google’ for just about anything. The verb ‘Google’ was officially added to the Oxford Dictionary back in June 2006 and yes, I Googled it! But have you heard of the amazing new FREE tools Google is delivering to Hotels and Travellers alike? It’s called Hotel Finder.

 

Hotel Finder allows you to locate the perfect Hotel / Motel / Resort by pinpointing on the Google map the exact location you wish to stay.

Let’s say you’re thinking of a trip to Darling Harbour Sydney. It looks like a fabulous city to explore but how can you find somewhere close to everything, for a long weekend? Finding every option available would normally take hours of tedious research.

Hotel Finder gives you the tools to do the research in no time at all. Using the pins on the Google map, mark out the area you are thinking would be the perfect location. Hotel Finder will then highlight all the possible Motels / Hotels / Resorts etc within this map giving you photos, rates and full details of each one.

Users can then decide on the Room Rate per night and define the Hotels/Motels/Resorts by star rating etc; adding the properties you prefer to a ‘wish list’ to examine and compare in more detail before placing a booking. The ‘Book’ button allows the traveller to then book directly with the property or by using Wotif, Booking.com or similar.

As a Property Owner there are some basic steps to undertake to ensure your Property is featured with full colour photos, reviews and general information. Get onto Google Places and start the process of claiming your Google Place Page – it’s free and it’s easy. Also think about adding Hisite to your website. Once the travellers’ search finds your property and visits your website for more photos and information you can then direct them to your ‘Book Now’ button and take the booking direct. Hisite gives the traveller options to check dates availability and see room details, term and conditions etc. By booking directly through Hisite the traveller saves on Booking fees etc but the Property also gains a direct booking which then drops into the Hirum system and saves both parties money and time. Contact Hirum today for more details on Google Hotel Finder and Hisite: e: sales@hirum.com.au or p: (07) 5574 4990

Other Interesting Facts from Google: Did you know?

• Dreaming: 68% of business travellers watch travel-related online videos. Among them, 68% are thinking about a trip.
• Planning: The average traveler visits ~22 travel related sites during 9.5 research sessions prior to booking.
• Booking: 37% of leisure travellers report that the internet prompted them to book; this figure is up from 28% two years ago.
• Experiencing: 70% of business travellers check into their flights/hotel with their mobile device. Almost 1 in 4 hotel queries come from a mobile phone.
• Sharing: About 1 in 3 business travellers have posted reviews online of places they’ve been.