1. Rental Management - the basics 2. Skills Development Grant 3. Check with your bank



RENTAL MANAGEMENT - THE BASICS There are millions of rented homes in South Africa. They range from rooms in retirement homes, through suburban flats and houses, to millionaire mansions. They all have one thing in common: they are subject to the Rental Housing Act, which has been in operation since August 2000. Despite the fact that the Act has been in place for nearly four years, there are evidently a lot of letting agents and property managers who are still not familiar with the requirements. As a service to them - and to the landlords and tenants who are their clients - we highlight what we consider to be the most important aspects. Agreement of Lease: • can be written or unwritten • if the tenant wants it in writing, then the landlord must oblige • if there are any "house rules" applicable to the property, the landlord must give the tenant a copy - it's regarded as part of the lease • if the property is rented fully or partly furnished, the landlord must give the tenant a list of the furnishings (and the tenant should make sure that everything is actually there) - it's also regarded as part of the lease. Deposit: • the landlord may ask the tenant to put down a deposit as security against damage which may be caused to the property during the tenant's occupancy, or for keys etc which the tenant may lose • the amount of the deposit must be stated in the lease agreement • if an estate agency is managing the property on behalf of the landlord, it must put the deposit into its trust account • if the landlord is managing the property directly, he must put the deposit into a bank account of its own • interest accrued on the deposit belongs to the tenant, and the landlord/agent must give the tenant a written statement of the interest whenever asked to do so. Tenant moves in: • before the tenant moves in, he and the landlord (or the landlord's agent) must jointly inspect the property, and compile a list of existing damage and defects • the list is regarded as part of the lease agreement. Routine inspections: • the landlord (or his agent) is entitled to inspect the property from time to time - he must, however, arrange each inspection with the tenant, in advance • if damage is found, the landlord (or agent) is entitled to ask the tenant to repair it. Payments: • rental is payable on due date as stated in the lease - there is no "seven-day period of grace" as many people seem to believe • the landlord (or his agent) must give the tenant a written receipt for every single payment received. Tenant moves out: • three days before the tenant moves out, he and the landlord (or the agent) must jointly inspect the property, and compile a list of damage and defects • any damage or defects that were not on the original moving-in inspection list are presumed to have been caused during the tenant's occupancy, and the tenant must therefore pay for the repairs. Repairs and refund: • the landlord's right to deduct the cost of repairs from the tenant's deposit is subject to there being both (a) a moving-in inspection report compiled jointly by both parties, and (b) a moving-out inspection report compiled jointly by both parties • if either of the inspections was missed out, or if either the landlord or the tenant carried it out alone, without the other being present, then the landlord is not entitled to deduct the cost of repairs from the deposit, unless the tenant agrees to it. We cannot emphasise how important it is for both the moving-in and moving-out inspections to be carried out, and for both parties to conduct them jointly, and for written inspection reports to be compiled on both occasions. If these steps are not followed, and the tenant damages the premises, the landlord may have to refund the full deposit plus interest, and then sue the tenant in court for the cost of repairs. The IEA regularly holds workshops on rentals. They are presented by experts inthe field, and we encourage all letting agents to attend them. Enquiries: phone 021 531 3180. SKILLS DEVELOPMENT GRANTS It's skills development levy grant time again! If your estate agency pays skills development levies to the Services SETA (which it must do if its payroll is R250 000 or more per year), then it can recover up to half the levies by applying for grants. How do you go about it? First, you pay the levies every month. Secondly, you send the SSETA your Workplace Skills Plan for the year (which runs from April to March). This is a form which you can obtain from the SSETA: simply fill in the details of your employees and agents, and the training you plan to provide them with during the year. The form comes with instructions for you to follow. Then, you provide the training during the year (e.g. you send your agents to IEA courses), and keep a record of it. Finally, at the end of the year, you fill in an Annual Training Report form and send it to the SSETA, to show what training you have actually provided. You still have time to send in your Workplace Skills Plan for the current year (April 2004 to March 2005). If you sent in one last year, then it's time for you to send in your Annual Training Report for the past year (April 2003 to March 2004). The deadline is 31 July 2004. IEA Western Cape is available to help you through the process. Call Vivien Marks at 021 531 3180 for further details or advice. CHECK WITH YOUR BANK! Principals: does your bank have all your firm's details for the records which it must keep in order to comply with the FIC Act? As you may have read in the newspapers, in July the banks will have to freeze the accounts of any of their clients whose identities have not yet been verified. Your firm is a client, so your business and trust accounts could be affected. We recommend that you make sure that your bank has all your firm's verification documents on file. If it doesn't, give the bank whatever it needs, to avoid possible problems with your business and trust accounts four and a half weeks from now.