NQ floods: Help for tenants, landlords and property professionals
As North Queensland continues to be impacted by flooding, tenants, homeowners and real estate professionals are being urged to make use of RTA and REIQ resources to better understand their rights and obligations.
As North Queensland continues to be impacted by flooding, tenants, homeowners and real estate professionals are being urged to make use of RTA and REIQ resources to better understand their rights and obligations.
Real Estate Institute Queensland (REIQ) CEO Antonio Mercorella said in the aftermath of flooding, there were often many questions about how to address immediate and longer-term needs relating to housing.
“Real estate professionals will be focused on helping their clients and community through this disaster,” she said.
“When homes are flooded, it’s devastating and distressing, and it can take considerable time and resources to get homes restored and back online.
“This displaces owners, tenants and businesses and it puts an additional strain on the local rental market, as property managers help to co-ordinate efforts to re-home people.
“In addition to this, there may also be a need to house tradies and insurance assessors as part of the longer-term recovery process.”
Ms Mercorella said the weather event in NQ was coming at a time when Townsville’s vacancy rate was already tight, sitting at just 1.2 per cent, according to the REIQ’s latest Residential Vacancy Rate Report.
“The important thing is to work together and treat one another respectfully with patience and understanding while the extent of the damage is understood and managed,” she said.
“At times like this, good communication is key.”
HELP FOR TENANTS
The Residential Tenancy Authority (RTA) has a suite of resources that may be helpful for tenants impacted by the floods.
These include the natural disaster web page, the natural disaster fact sheet and a step-by-step guide for tenants impacted by natural disasters.
There are also RTA podcast episodes discussing mould, storms, cyclones and flooding, and when a property becomes unliveable.
Ms Mercorella encouraged tenants to familiarise themselves with resources outlining their legislative rights, and what to do if the floods have damaged or made their rental property unliveable.
“Residential tenancies in Queensland are regulated by legislation and the right to terminate a tenancy agreement on the basis of non-liability applies equally to tenants and property owners,” she said.
“To better understand residential tenancies legislation, tenants can seek support from the RTA and refer to resources such as their natural disasters fact sheet.”
HELP FOR REAL ESTATE PROFESSIONALS
The REIQ Disaster Toolkit is available for real estate professionals to download here.
It has a FAQ section and fact sheets covering insurance issues, Office of Fair Trading (OFT) information, RTA information, Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC) information, and more.
The toolkit addresses questions about rental properties becoming unliveable due to flood damage, buyers terminating contracts of sale if a property had been impacted and who is responsible for getting rid of mould in a rental property.
Ms Mercorella encouraged sales agents and property managers in affected regions to download the Disaster Toolkit to assist them in responding to issues surrounding affected properties.
“We want to make sure that everyone has all the information they need to keep their doors open and their business running so they can assist with these urgent matters,” she said.
“As always, the REIQ is here to help our members with every aspect of professional life.
“We have the Property Management Support Service and the Agency Advice Line available for unlimited call support, simply by dialling 1300 MYREIQ.”
Ms Mercorella said the REIQ saw the extraordinary efforts of its members during Townsville floods in 2019, Brisbane floods in March 2022 and Far North Queensland floods after Cyclone Jasper in December 2023.
“In Queensland, we are sadly no stranger to natural disasters and time and time again our communities have rallied together to help displaced residents and businesses,” she said.
“Driven by a strong sense of community, we witnessed real estate professionals going above and beyond the call of duty to help owners and tenants in need, working tirelessly to keep locals housed and lending a hand to clean properties.
“We have no doubt we’ll see that generosity and community support to get everyone sheltered and back on their feet again.”
Originally published as NQ floods: Help for tenants, landlords and property professionals