There are many questions that arise during a tenancy. When you move into a property managed by Wilson’s YOUR Local Agent you are provided with a comprehensive tenant guide that has been designed to answer many common queries. You should also refer to your tenancy agreement and the New Tenant Checklist which we are legally required to provide you.
Here we summarise some important information to help you with the most frequently occuring queries.
Office Hours
Our office is open Monday to Saturday between 9.00am and 5.00pm. All queries regarding your tenancy or the property should be directed to our Woy Woy office:
85 Blackwall Road, Woy Woy NSW 2256
t: 02 4344 2511 f: 02 4341 4257
e: front.desk@wilsonsproperty.com.au
I’ve lost my key. Can you let me in?
If you lose your keys during the tenancy, you may temporarily collect our keys for the purpose of gaining access and cutting a copy (at your own expense). In this situation we do recommend you arrange a locksmith to change the locks for your security and that of the property and your personal belongings.
If you lose your keys outside of normal office hours, you will need to engage a locksmith to gain entry to the property at your expense.
What do we do if we want to change tenants during the lease?
Your tenancy agreement states the maximum number of persons permitted to occupy the premises. You must notify the Property Manager in writing of any change in either the originally approved tenants/occupants, or if you seek permission for a new or additional person to move into the property. This should occur before the change is due to take effect, or as soon as possible after it occurs if it not possible to notify us beforehand.
Unfortunately, you are not allowed to sub-let your property or allow another person to move into the property without the Landlord’s consent.
If the tenants change during the course of the tenancy, the bond can not be partially refunded. It is up to the tenants involved to arrange to pay the vacating tenant’s portion of their bond. You should also make sure all new and old tenants sign the Change of Shared Tenancy bond form for lodgement with Fair Trading, otherwise there may be a delay in the rental bond refund when you do vacate the property.
How do I give notice to end my tenancy?
Your tenancy agreement is a legal contract providing protection for both you and the Landlord, and can therefore only be terminated in a limited number of ways. Please refer to your Residential Tenancy Agreement for more details on the amount of notice you need to give, based on your personal circumstances.
A Vacating Notice must be served in writing by one of the following methods:
In Person: at 85 Blackwall Road, Woy Woy NSW 2256
By Post: PO Box 125, Woy Woy NSW 2256
Fax: 02 4341 4257
Unfortunately, at this time email is not a permissable form of service for legal notices, so we are unable to accept notice of your intention to vacate by email.
Please note that rent will be charged until all keys to the property are returned to our office after you vacate.
Repairs and Maintenance
All requests for repairs and maintenance are to be reported in writing. If your repair is an Urgent Repair as defined by the Residential Tenancy Agreement, please phone us on 4344 2511 to report it as soon as possible, and we will then ask you to follow up in writing. This procedure is in place to ensure we receive all pertinent details regarding the repair so it can be quickly and appropriately actioned, and to protect both you and the Landlord in the event of a dispute.
Repairs can be logged by:
- In Person by completing a repair request form and submitting at our Woy Woy office. Forms are provided to you with your welcome pack at the commencement of your tenancy or can be collected from our reception.
- Email front.desk@wilsonsproperty.com.au. Please note this is the only email address repair requests are to be directed to, and as this is not a legal form of service we suggest you phone our office within 24 hours to make sure it has been received and logged.
- Fax to 02 4341 4257.
- Online at our website via the Maintenance Request form.
Once received, repair requests are logged in our computerised maintenance system and actioned in terms of priority and in accordance with the Landlord’s instructions. You may contact us to discuss your repair request at any time, however we do ask for your patience during this process while we coordinate and liaise with the Landlord and Tradespeople. Once approved for quote or repair, the assigned Tradesperson will contact you directly to arrange access. Please note we do not coordinate the diaries of our contractors, so keep in mind they will also have to prioritise your repair depending on the urgency and scope of work required.
You will need to give access for repairs during normal business hours; any requests that our Tradespeople attend out of normal hours for non-urgent repairs may result in an after hours charge for which you are responsible. You may give consent for the Trades person to collect our office keys to gain access if you will not be at home; please notify our office if you have given this consent so we can record this permission on file and expedite your repair.
No Power? Leaking tap? Try these tips before calling for help
Before proceeding with logging your maintenance request with our office please refer to this guide first to avoid any unnecessary call outs which can attract fees.
No Electricity
1) Have you opened an electricity account with your preferred retailer?
2) Have you checked your fuse box? There may have been an overload and the safety switch has been activated and needs resetting.
If the safety switch trips or blows again, check your appliances. One of them may be faulty. Turn off and unplug all appliances, including the fridge, then reset the safety switch in the meter box. If the safety switch trips again, then contact our office to lodge a repair request.
If the switch remains on, it is likely one of your appliances is faulty. With the safety switch reset, plug in and turn on your appliances one by one starting with the fridge, checking the safety switch after each appliance is reconnected. If you find the safety switch has tripped, it is likely the appliance you just plugged in is faulty and you will need to arrange replacement. If we have to book an electrician to attend to restore your power and they identify one of your appliances as being at fault, you will be responsible for their call out fee/service charge.
3) Live in a unit/villa? Have you checked with a neighbour? It may be the body corporate/strata manager that needs to be contacted for action.
4) There may be a fault in the street. Do neighbouring properties have power? If not, try contacting Ausgrid on 13 13 88 to find out about power outages in your area.
No hot water
- Is the hot water system gas or electric? Have you arranged connection of your gas or electricity?
- If an electric hot water system:
- have you checked the fuse or hot water switch in the meter box? Someone may have removed the fuse or switched the hot water off by mistake.
- Have you checked to make sure the tap is turned on to supply water to the hot water heater?
- Is your hot water system leaking? Water leaking from the overflow may indicate the pressure relief valve needs to be purged for the system to operate efficiently. If water is leaking from any other part of the system please notify our office as soon as possible.
3. If you have a gas hot water system:
- has the pilot light gone out? Most units are easily relit – follow the instructions normally located on the inside of the system.
Lights or power-points not working?
- Have you checked your fuse box? If there has been an overload the safety switch may need resetting. Refer back to “No Power” above to check each appliances.
- Have you replaced the light bulbs (and starters for fluoro tubes)? This is your responsibility under the tenancy agreement.
- Have you tried plugging another appliance into the powerpoint? It may be your appliance not working, rather than the powerpoint.
- Have you checked the connections to make sure they are not loose or dirty? Sometimes pulling the element out and cleaning them and putting back in again can fix the problem. Please remember to switch off the power to the stove prior to touching the elements.
- Some stoves have on/off or isolation switches, usually on the wall near the stove.
- Before reporting repair, please make note of the brand and model details of your appliance. These can be found on the appliance, or can normally be found on a compliance plate inside or behind the appliance, if it can be easily checked.
Stove element not working?
- Have you checked the connections to make sure they are not loose or dirty? Sometimes pulling the element out and cleaning them and putting back in again can fix the problem. Please remember to switch off the power to the stove prior to touching the elements.
- Some stoves have on/off or isolation switches, usually on the wall near the stove.
- Before reporting repair, please make note of the brand and model details of your appliance. These can be found on the appliance, or can normally be found on a compliance plate inside or behind the appliance, if it can be easily checked.