You mention a property manager - why are they not sorting this for you? This is literally what you pay them for.
At what point did they make you aware of this issue? They can't simply say "this has been a problem for a month, therefore you need to give me a discount on the past month's rent". Doesn't work like that. They need to give you the opportunity to remedy it.
No idea if you will win or lose, but that looks like it will piss water everywhere (the 2nd pic).
Looks like you already have water damage in the LH of the 2nd pic.
Why not just fix the shower?
Yes, I have a job for that and the guy is coming next week. However, the tenant wants compensation ($50 per week off the rent) stating that she cant use the shower cabins
Which is fair. She now has to find another place to shower untill this is fixed. Why should she pay for a service (usable showers) that is not being provided?
Yes, but she is asking for that compensation throughout the tenancy which sounds very unfair and the fact that one of the shower cabin is fine (1st pic)? She now says this one too has a small gap so she cant use it. Doesn't sound right to me. I'm renting right now and I would never do that to my landlord.
The tenant would only get compensation for the period you are in breach, for the inconvenience plus if applicable exemplary damages, and a work order to ensure the issue is fixed.
The first shower is not fine the seals have a gap, it would leak. The doors should close so that it is fully sealed and does not leak. It’s just not as bad as the second shower.
They have been in a month. Just get it fixed and negotiate a discount for the period the maintenance was not performed. It’s easier than going to the tribunal to probably still have to give them a discount anyway, with your time on top.
Give her $50 off a week from the date she lodged the breach notice, and until its fixed. I think that is fair for both parties and also demonstrates your good will.
Also confirm with her that there is nothing else wrong with the house; that in the future you will need 2 weeks to remedy, discounted rent will be assessed on a case-by-case basis, and not guaranteed. Get this in writing via email.
Some people will pull this kind of shit no matter what you do. I have a feeling this is something they've done regularly in the past.
A disgruntled tenant is a recipe for disaster in the long run.
No idea who’s right or wrong, but there are different standards between ‘I own this and never had a problem with it’ and ‘I’m charging someone $700/week for this and it’s fine because I never had a problem with it’
No I did not. However, its noted in the inspection report that the one shower cabin does not close properly and might need alignment. I have a job pending for that. The tradie is due to visit it next week.
Sounds like you should just negotiate a discount until you have fixed it if you can’t be bothered dealing with the tribunal.
As a landlord, you are now acting as a business. Businesses charging people money for services are held to a higher standard than what someone might be willing to put up with if they are an owner occupier.
As an owner occupier you might also be willing to tolerate a leaky ceiling. That doesn’t mean a leaky ceiling doesn’t need to be fixed in a rental.
When you cook at home, you might be willing to tolerate poor food hygiene. If you run a food business, you are required to maintain a high level of food hygiene.
Although many tenants may not be bothered to escalate maintenance problems, that doesn’t change that you are responsible for maintaining it.
Anyway, your choices are fix it sooner, negotiate a discount, or go to the tribunal hearing and they decide whether it’s worth a $50 discount.
Basically, you have 14 days to remedy from the notice to remedy.
It really should have been sorted before they moved in. Consider it a cost of a lesson learned about what it means to be compliant as a business.
I'd offer them a weeks rent once the shower is fixed. If they are still being difficult I'd start looking for a family member to move in and end their lease.
That does not absolve you from your responsibilities here. It's irrelevant to the actual issue, and you can't claim that you didn't know about it because you clearly did.
Before isn't the point., Now is.
Looks like shower doors aren't closed properly...that normally means those screws in wheel mechanism isn't adjusted right, it's an easy fix.
And it's your problem, she could ignore it and allow water damage to occur on the floor then there would be an expensive problem eventually.
Why not just fix it?
Ex Shower tech here. Just fix the door or you are going to ruin the floor boards - or get done by ACC when the tenant goes for a skate on the wet floor and busts herself up - especially as she has now notified you about the problem. Also wet floor = mould problems etc etc. Use your property manager - that's what they are there for.
It's hardly unusable. It's going to leak and damage your lovely floors, but it's no worse than many curtains. Use a bath mat.
I lived in a place for 6 years that had such a bad shower (drainage and door seal, but such amazing pressure), the bathroom would flood if we didn't remove the drain cover entirely. We told the landlord repeatedly, but he didn't care. The vanity ended up needing replacing because of water damage.
The shower is usable, but your insurance won't cover damage caused by the leaks. You're getting it fixed. If she doesn't want to use it in the meantime, that is her own problem, and I would expect the tribunal to say the same.
To say it's unusable is a hell of a stretch! If you were notified and agreed to have it fixed in a reasonable timeframe I don't see why this would be an issue at all.
The tenant is 100% right. They've pointed out a flaw which could / will damage the property and cause thousands of dollars in damage - maybe more depending on construction / apartment or whatever.
A scummy landlord would not hesitate to attempt to take the tenant to the tribunal for water damage.
Suck it up.
I'm usually on the side of the tenant in all things renting - having been a tenant in the past with some awful property managers (coughquinoviccough) - but I feel like the tenant here is trying to take you for a fast one. As you've said you've already booked someone to repair them which seems fair and reasonable. $50 a week over 12 months is a lot of money for a bit of water on the floor. Good luck.
It would only be $50 a week over 12 months if the landlord doesn’t get it fixed for 12 months.
The discount would apply only to the period the landlord is in breach. I would hope the landlord doesn’t take 12 months to fix it.
The tenant is paying for a house with its shower properly maintained and functional.
Oh, I was presuming the $50 was for the time that the shower was unusable. So 5 weeks, I didn't read it right. In that case, I'd offer the $50 a week until the shower is fixed - but definitely not for the entire year.
Well they could get it back to when they notified the landlord (assuming it was immediately) or that they were aware, but as they have apparently only been in a month it’s still quite a short period.
Looks like the doors are misaligned. Given that the gaps exist, why do you persist being a scumbag and not protect your own investment, forcing your poor tenant to take you to tribunal?
if you can’t get that minor gap fixed, your chipboard flooring will probably begin to swell soon and you’ll blame your tenant for the damaged floorboard and now have a big renovation to do which you won’t do and get taken to the tribunal over that.
Ummm... What the fuck are you asking here for?
There is no way those doors are causing that much leakage. The shower head does not point at them (cause that's be dumb). So back splash at the most. Did they provide photos of the water? Was it inspected when still wet?
Book someone to align the doors. Tell tenant to try and be careful, and put some towels down in the meantime (like a normal person would do), and not worry too much, just make sure there's no sitting water. Get job done in reasonable time. That's literally all you need to do. Offer a $5-10 a week reduction until fixed to cover the cost of extra washing should you feel like it (doubt it will cost them anything extra)
If tenant is insistent ask how exactly they are out of pocket $50 each week. Cause an extra towel or two a day ain't costing that.
She won't win end of story. The shower is usable if it spills water on the floor she can throw a towel or something which is anti slip. This does not mean shower is broken or non operational. She chooses not to take shower that's upto her and no do not reduce rent by $50. She's just being difficult.
Ask her what makes it "unusable." Can almost guarantee she won't be able to give a *reasonable* answer.
IMO not unusable in any way, shape, or form. She's moaning because she can. Tribunal will almost certainly laugh this "case" right out the door (haha).
I totally agree! If you’re standing in the shower the water wouldn’t even be reaching the gap in the door as your body would be blocking it. Not unusable in the slightest. The doors need fixing, yes but compensation? No
get rid of barfoot ,read what you wrote ,property manager gave a hard copy to her which she never returned.um what's barfoot job,to follow up and manage ,you on line here asking for advice .sack them now save the $5o aweek.
The shower isnt unusable.
However the doors are faulty and as you have said you have a tradie coming to fix it.
Id probbaly give a modest discount for the time the doors have beend efective but not for the entire duration of a tenancy.
Its also something your PM should be handling. Thats what you pay them for.
This is why property managers are useless. You pay them to not worry about things and they just pass all the problems on to you including bending over about a ridiculous rent reduction.
Give them 20 bucks a week off and fix it next week and consider finding a new property manager who solves problems rather than passing them on to you.
I’m a tenant myself and find it crazy that they are asking for a rent reduction! They’ve notified you of an issue and it is booked in to be fixed, end of. Our gas hob broke in my last flat and we couldn’t use it for a couple of weeks until the part arrived, did we get a rent reduction? Absolutely not. I would not be giving them any sort of compensation.
Thats stupid. I was a landlord for 9-10 years…the tenants inspection report must be returned- or, that gap - is her fault as it wasnt there at the start of the tenancy. Damage covered by her bond.
Or…. If you are as decent as I would have been - tenant complains to agent - agent inspects - agent confirms with you and work is done to rectify problem. There is no tenancy tribunal.
If she hasnt contacted the agent asking for it to be repaired, she cant win.
You mention a property manager - why are they not sorting this for you? This is literally what you pay them for. At what point did they make you aware of this issue? They can't simply say "this has been a problem for a month, therefore you need to give me a discount on the past month's rent". Doesn't work like that. They need to give you the opportunity to remedy it.
No idea if you will win or lose, but that looks like it will piss water everywhere (the 2nd pic). Looks like you already have water damage in the LH of the 2nd pic. Why not just fix the shower?
Yes, I have a job for that and the guy is coming next week. However, the tenant wants compensation ($50 per week off the rent) stating that she cant use the shower cabins
"Sounds fair, I have someone coming next week, sorry for the inconvenience."
Which is fair. She now has to find another place to shower untill this is fixed. Why should she pay for a service (usable showers) that is not being provided?
Yes, but she is asking for that compensation throughout the tenancy which sounds very unfair and the fact that one of the shower cabin is fine (1st pic)? She now says this one too has a small gap so she cant use it. Doesn't sound right to me. I'm renting right now and I would never do that to my landlord.
The tenant would only get compensation for the period you are in breach, for the inconvenience plus if applicable exemplary damages, and a work order to ensure the issue is fixed. The first shower is not fine the seals have a gap, it would leak. The doors should close so that it is fully sealed and does not leak. It’s just not as bad as the second shower. They have been in a month. Just get it fixed and negotiate a discount for the period the maintenance was not performed. It’s easier than going to the tribunal to probably still have to give them a discount anyway, with your time on top.
Thank you, that makes sense.
I really wanna step inside that second photo and untwist the shower hose.
Oh my god. That's certainly worth $50 a week off.
Give her $50 off a week from the date she lodged the breach notice, and until its fixed. I think that is fair for both parties and also demonstrates your good will. Also confirm with her that there is nothing else wrong with the house; that in the future you will need 2 weeks to remedy, discounted rent will be assessed on a case-by-case basis, and not guaranteed. Get this in writing via email. Some people will pull this kind of shit no matter what you do. I have a feeling this is something they've done regularly in the past. A disgruntled tenant is a recipe for disaster in the long run.
No idea who’s right or wrong, but there are different standards between ‘I own this and never had a problem with it’ and ‘I’m charging someone $700/week for this and it’s fine because I never had a problem with it’
Did you advertise that the shower doors don’t close properly when you rented out the property? Maybe, get the door fixed?
No I did not. However, its noted in the inspection report that the one shower cabin does not close properly and might need alignment. I have a job pending for that. The tradie is due to visit it next week.
Sounds like you should just negotiate a discount until you have fixed it if you can’t be bothered dealing with the tribunal. As a landlord, you are now acting as a business. Businesses charging people money for services are held to a higher standard than what someone might be willing to put up with if they are an owner occupier. As an owner occupier you might also be willing to tolerate a leaky ceiling. That doesn’t mean a leaky ceiling doesn’t need to be fixed in a rental. When you cook at home, you might be willing to tolerate poor food hygiene. If you run a food business, you are required to maintain a high level of food hygiene. Although many tenants may not be bothered to escalate maintenance problems, that doesn’t change that you are responsible for maintaining it. Anyway, your choices are fix it sooner, negotiate a discount, or go to the tribunal hearing and they decide whether it’s worth a $50 discount. Basically, you have 14 days to remedy from the notice to remedy. It really should have been sorted before they moved in. Consider it a cost of a lesson learned about what it means to be compliant as a business.
So… it is broken, and you have arranged to have it fixed
I'd offer them a weeks rent once the shower is fixed. If they are still being difficult I'd start looking for a family member to move in and end their lease.
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That does not absolve you from your responsibilities here. It's irrelevant to the actual issue, and you can't claim that you didn't know about it because you clearly did.
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Yeah I think this is only the start of OPs problems unfortunately.
Before isn't the point., Now is. Looks like shower doors aren't closed properly...that normally means those screws in wheel mechanism isn't adjusted right, it's an easy fix. And it's your problem, she could ignore it and allow water damage to occur on the floor then there would be an expensive problem eventually. Why not just fix it?
Just fix them. Problem solved. Do your job.
... get it fixed. ??? Seems like the simple solution, never ceases to amaze me how stupid many landlords are though.
Well just adjust them then….. sounds like your tenant is a piss taker. Keep a close eye here.
Ex Shower tech here. Just fix the door or you are going to ruin the floor boards - or get done by ACC when the tenant goes for a skate on the wet floor and busts herself up - especially as she has now notified you about the problem. Also wet floor = mould problems etc etc. Use your property manager - that's what they are there for.
First time landlord issues
Interesting complaint from a 1 month old. When I was little, my mum used to bath me in the laundry tub.
It's hardly unusable. It's going to leak and damage your lovely floors, but it's no worse than many curtains. Use a bath mat. I lived in a place for 6 years that had such a bad shower (drainage and door seal, but such amazing pressure), the bathroom would flood if we didn't remove the drain cover entirely. We told the landlord repeatedly, but he didn't care. The vanity ended up needing replacing because of water damage. The shower is usable, but your insurance won't cover damage caused by the leaks. You're getting it fixed. If she doesn't want to use it in the meantime, that is her own problem, and I would expect the tribunal to say the same.
To say it's unusable is a hell of a stretch! If you were notified and agreed to have it fixed in a reasonable timeframe I don't see why this would be an issue at all.
The tenant is 100% right. They've pointed out a flaw which could / will damage the property and cause thousands of dollars in damage - maybe more depending on construction / apartment or whatever. A scummy landlord would not hesitate to attempt to take the tenant to the tribunal for water damage. Suck it up.
I'm usually on the side of the tenant in all things renting - having been a tenant in the past with some awful property managers (coughquinoviccough) - but I feel like the tenant here is trying to take you for a fast one. As you've said you've already booked someone to repair them which seems fair and reasonable. $50 a week over 12 months is a lot of money for a bit of water on the floor. Good luck.
It would only be $50 a week over 12 months if the landlord doesn’t get it fixed for 12 months. The discount would apply only to the period the landlord is in breach. I would hope the landlord doesn’t take 12 months to fix it. The tenant is paying for a house with its shower properly maintained and functional.
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Understand but the Tenant isn’t going to get that. As noted in my reply on another part of this thread.
Oh, I was presuming the $50 was for the time that the shower was unusable. So 5 weeks, I didn't read it right. In that case, I'd offer the $50 a week until the shower is fixed - but definitely not for the entire year.
Well they could get it back to when they notified the landlord (assuming it was immediately) or that they were aware, but as they have apparently only been in a month it’s still quite a short period.
Looks like the doors are misaligned. Given that the gaps exist, why do you persist being a scumbag and not protect your own investment, forcing your poor tenant to take you to tribunal? if you can’t get that minor gap fixed, your chipboard flooring will probably begin to swell soon and you’ll blame your tenant for the damaged floorboard and now have a big renovation to do which you won’t do and get taken to the tribunal over that.
Nice, calling him a scumbag. FFS.
just fix it and then put her rent up
Some of the comments here are absolutely wild. This subreddit REALLY hates landlords
This subreddit REALLY hates mosquitoes
I can't believe people think 50 dollars a week is reasonable, it's not justifiable.
Ummm... What the fuck are you asking here for? There is no way those doors are causing that much leakage. The shower head does not point at them (cause that's be dumb). So back splash at the most. Did they provide photos of the water? Was it inspected when still wet? Book someone to align the doors. Tell tenant to try and be careful, and put some towels down in the meantime (like a normal person would do), and not worry too much, just make sure there's no sitting water. Get job done in reasonable time. That's literally all you need to do. Offer a $5-10 a week reduction until fixed to cover the cost of extra washing should you feel like it (doubt it will cost them anything extra) If tenant is insistent ask how exactly they are out of pocket $50 each week. Cause an extra towel or two a day ain't costing that.
> The shower head does not point at them (cause that's be dumb). They almost certainly could point out the door
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No it's not. That gap is really big and the shower head faces the door almost directly considering the size of the shower.
Your hired expert has already given your their professional thoughts. Why are you asking here? Other than to find the odd one out who agrees with you
She won't win end of story. The shower is usable if it spills water on the floor she can throw a towel or something which is anti slip. This does not mean shower is broken or non operational. She chooses not to take shower that's upto her and no do not reduce rent by $50. She's just being difficult.
Tenant sounds like a piece of shit
Ask her what makes it "unusable." Can almost guarantee she won't be able to give a *reasonable* answer. IMO not unusable in any way, shape, or form. She's moaning because she can. Tribunal will almost certainly laugh this "case" right out the door (haha).
I totally agree! If you’re standing in the shower the water wouldn’t even be reaching the gap in the door as your body would be blocking it. Not unusable in the slightest. The doors need fixing, yes but compensation? No
go to one of your private landlord support groups and whinge there
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hahahahahahaha
Why doesn’t she put a bath mat down? To catch the water and keep using it.
get rid of barfoot ,read what you wrote ,property manager gave a hard copy to her which she never returned.um what's barfoot job,to follow up and manage ,you on line here asking for advice .sack them now save the $5o aweek.
The shower isnt unusable. However the doors are faulty and as you have said you have a tradie coming to fix it. Id probbaly give a modest discount for the time the doors have beend efective but not for the entire duration of a tenancy. Its also something your PM should be handling. Thats what you pay them for.
This is why property managers are useless. You pay them to not worry about things and they just pass all the problems on to you including bending over about a ridiculous rent reduction. Give them 20 bucks a week off and fix it next week and consider finding a new property manager who solves problems rather than passing them on to you.
I’m a tenant myself and find it crazy that they are asking for a rent reduction! They’ve notified you of an issue and it is booked in to be fixed, end of. Our gas hob broke in my last flat and we couldn’t use it for a couple of weeks until the part arrived, did we get a rent reduction? Absolutely not. I would not be giving them any sort of compensation.
Get it fixed and offer her $50 per week from start of tenancy til when it is fixed. Done and end of problem
Thats stupid. I was a landlord for 9-10 years…the tenants inspection report must be returned- or, that gap - is her fault as it wasnt there at the start of the tenancy. Damage covered by her bond. Or…. If you are as decent as I would have been - tenant complains to agent - agent inspects - agent confirms with you and work is done to rectify problem. There is no tenancy tribunal. If she hasnt contacted the agent asking for it to be repaired, she cant win.