Rental inspections can cause tenants a lot of unnecessary stress simply because many people don’t know what to expect or what’s expected of them. Here are a few steps to ensure a stress-free rental inspection. 

For starters, your Property Manager will notify you about the inspection in writing, whether it’s by text or email, and well before the inspection date. The notice period will depend on where you live, but in NSW, the minimum notice is 7 days, unless you agree otherwise with your Property Manager. 

Once you have been given the notice, you might want to plan to spruce-up the property – but without going overboard. This means the internal and external sections of the property if you’re renting a house such as the yards, gardens and pools should present as well as possible at the inspection. 

The point is to try and use the notice time wisely. For example, you might clean the shower one day, tidy up the verandah or balcony the next. It is much easier to neaten up progressively than leave it to an exhausting rush at the last minute.

If you have approved pets, ensure they are secured during the inspection to ensure they don’t get out. This step also protects the Property Manager, especially if you’re unable to attend the inspection. If the pet isn’t approved, good luck hiding the evidence from an experienced Property Manager!

As a tenant, especially if you have a nine to five job, you don’t need to attend the inspection. But if you can’t, notify the Property Manager you won’t be at the inspection and give them permission to use their spare set of keys to enter your property. If the Property Manager doesn’t have an extra set of keys, which can happen, you’ll need to work with them to access your property to conduct the inspection.  

Finally, be sure to leave a list of repairs or maintenance for the Property Manager. A failure to notify of a repair or maintenance issue could cause your lease to be terminated if it leads to a significant and expensive repair bill. 

To find out more about your responsibilities as a tenant, contact your local Raine & Hone Property Manager.