Hi there,
I just moved out of a house and am awaiting my bond back.
The owner had access to the house after leaving as he's in a rush to sell.
The real estate agent said they only had access to the outside
They are trying to charge me for dust on the skirting boards and not getting the driveway power cleaned (it wasnt in the firstplace).
They also didnt give me a chance to go dust the skirting boards.
Can they legally do this without asking me to fix it?
They can't deduct anything without your approval.
Reply to them that the property was cleaned and left in similar condition to when you arrived (assuming it was and there weren't any oil stains or anything added to the driveway). If you didn't dust the skirting boards you might be a bit stuck, but ask them for an invoice for the cleaning bill - I'm betting they didn't clean them either.
Some REAs are bastards, I had one try to charge me a $200 cleaning bill because an empty plastic water bottle was left in the property and the lawn regrew by the time they checked. Demanded the keys, went and threw out the bottle and mowed the lawn again, then sat in their office until they agreed to inspect it and repaid the bond.
Yes the driveway is the same, the agent also turned up on the move out day to apparently take pictures of the lawn however we weren't given any notice they were coming.
They want to charge $80 for the skirting boards however I can go dust them in minutes.
We were there for 2 years, the driveway is the exact same. We swept it
Is the $80 including the power clean wash of the patio as well, or is that on top?
Unbelievable. After 2 years of receiving rent, the landlord wants to argue over $80. It works out to be less than $1/week that you were there!
Fight it, but I seriously wouldn't be wasting too much time on it.
More likely the rea is behind this.
Newbie just joined.
Has the final inspection been done?
How much are they wanting?
Have you put into the bond board for the money back?
Have you looked at the rental agreement to see if you agreed to getting the driveway power cleaned on leaving? Is the driveway got allot of oil stains from your car?
Sorry I read their complaint wrong, they want the patio power cleaned. There is no lawn just a huge sand patch. We swept it prior to leaving.
Do I have a legal right to go and "dust" the skirting boards? Can they just charge for this or do I have a right to go rectify issues.
You should have a right to rectify the issues yourself. I was asked to go fix something after I vacated my last rental property (some oil on the stove).
Do I have a legal right to go and dust the skirting board before they go hire people to do it?
I don't think you have right of access after you have vacated. You should have removed the dust before you vacated.
HOT TIP. Tenants should always submit the bond claim from the Tenancy Authority before the REA do.
The landlord has a legal obligation to minimise costs. If they don't allow you reasonable access to rectify the issues and instead opt for a cleaner, they aren't minimising costs. You can they dispute the cleaning costs and say they should be $0, because thats what it would cost for you to rectify the issue.
Apply for your bond back from the government agency now.
Offer to go back and dust the skirting boards, and if the driveway is the same as the PCR then I would mention that, and continue to fight it. It wont be worth their time / owners expense to argue over something so trivial.
I've also had an experience where the property manager asked for something to be rectified, and I picked up keys, dropped them off in 2 hours time without doing anything and the PM returned our bond, no questions asked.
Touche
if the driveway is the same as the PCR then I would mention that, and continue to fight it.
Yep, the REA will try any old excuse. If you have the condition report to back up your claims (they normally have photos attached), you should be able to point to that. Last time I was subject to an REA tryna pull one over, I showed them the dozens of photos I took of each dirty item upon tenancy so they quickly back-tracked when I had photographic evidence :)
this was published back in 2017. Hope it still apply.
p/s: I would fight it. They are just picking easy target.
When I moved out from my rental, the REA wanted to deduct my bond due to "handrail on the balcony is dusty". I argued that balcony is outdoor area and the main road is just 10m away with heavy traffic. No way I can make it dust free. She backed down.
OP had the chance to get the place professionally cleaned.
There is no longer any access to the property so the OP should pay whatever is stipulated to remedy the issue.
OP had the chance to get the place professionally cleaned.
There is no requirement to do this.
You do not have a legal right to go dust the skirting boards. When you leave and hand back the keys you don’t have any more opportunities and would then need to pay for the cleaning. $80 for the skirting boards sounds reasonable to me, it might not be hard to do but they would take into account the call out fee for a cleaner. I would let them have that but not the driveway, if there are no stains then that is just normal wear, they don’t have a leg to stand on.
Does the driveway look the same in the pics on the initial inspection report?
Dust on skirting boards - meh.
How long were you in there for?