PRD Toowoomba: Landlord’s bizarre, abusive exchange with future tenant

A prominent Toowoomba property manager has landed himself in hot water after a bizarre and abusive exchange between himself and a future tenant on a public social media page.

PRD Toowoomba senior property manager Mitchell Betheras.

A Toowoomba property manager has gone viral for all the wrong reasons, after he abused a prospective tenant asking a community group for feedback on the organisation.

Screenshots of the exchange between Toowoomba resident Tim Entwistle and PRD senior property manager Mitchell Betheras have now been shared hundreds of times online, which included strong language and homophobic slurs from Mr Betheras.

The bizarre exchange began when Mr Entwistle asked a Toowoomba Facebook group about its experiences with PRD, the real estate agent his rental was being transferred to.

Mr Betheras in his initial response identifies himself as “be all and end all” for PRD and threatens to not take Mr Entwistle’s lease on.

A post made to Toowoomba Community Notice Board has been the result of a spate of hurtful and disrespectful comments made by a local property manager.

In his initial response, Mr Betheras threatens to not take Mr Entwistle’s lease on.

His abuse continues to another member of the forum, who he asks “are you a closet f-g?” before saying he is a “big f-g” himself, before telling them to “f--k off”.

Mr Entwistle said Queensland’s tight rental market had given property managers ammunition to treat tenants however they see fit.

“I personally think it has a lot to do with the fact that our rental stock is so low and people are struggling to find places to live, and they progressively have to accept worse and worse services to the point where property managers have the capacity to hold their power over tenants,” he said.

“I think it’s a sad state of affairs we’re in right now and I would question PRD Toowoomba’s discernment in having someone who is capable of making such unhinged statements on their payroll.”

Mr Betheras apologised for the exchange hours later.

Mr Entwistle said the behaviour was “incredibly disappointing”.

“I stand by what I said in the public sphere that I forgive him completely, and I’m not going to hold any grudges against him (because) I don’t know what he’s (personally) going through,” he said.

Mitchell Betheras took to Facebook to apologise after a display of awful comments to two Toowoomba community members.

“I would just say that PRD Toowoomba cannot trust someone like Mitch to be stepping inside intimate home settings and speaking with people in such a personal, invasive way because it requires such a high level of trust.

“If you can’t trust your property manager to act professionally and respectfully in a way that is reflective of your company on a public sphere, then what can you expect in a private face-to-face encounter where there’s no camera’s or no one looking over you.”

Mr Betheras told News Corp Australia he had already issued an apology and would not be making any further comments.

PRD’s Brisbane head office said the comments were “serious and concerning” and confirmed the organisation had started an internal investigation.