Pat Taylor Realty Ltd Licensed (REAA 2008)

311 Manukau Road, Epsom, Auckland. Ph 623 3000. rentals.epsom.nz@raywhite.com, www.rwepsom.co.nz

abodePat Taylor Realty Ltd Licensed (REAA 2008)

April2012

Thanks for your support! We couldn’t have achieved it without your help!

Bev Saxon New Start

Property Manager

Martin Donnelly Property Manager of the Year

Harry Gedye-High

Support Person of the Year

Epsom Property Management Team of the Year

A dead duck?A woman brought a very limp duck into a veterinary surgeon. As she laid her pet on the table, the vet pulled out his stethoscope and listened to the bird’s chest. After a moment or two, the vet shook his head and sadly said, “I’m sorry, your duck, Cuddles, has passed away.” The distressed woman wailed, “Are you sure?” “Yes, I am sure. Your duck is dead,” replied the vet. “How can you be so sure?” she protested. “I mean you haven’t done any testing on him or anything. He might just be in a coma or something.” The vet rolled his eyes, turned around and left the room. He returned a few minutes later with a black Labrador Retriever. As the duck’s owner looked on in amazement, the dog stood on his hind legs, put his front paws on the examination table and sniffed the duck from top to bottom. He then looked up at the vet with sad eyes and shook his head. The vet patted the dog on the head and took it out of the room. A few minutes later he returned with a cat. The cat jumped on the table and also delicately sniffed the bird from head to foot. The cat sat back on its haunches, shook its head, meowed softly and strolled out of the room. The vet looked at the woman and said, “I’m sorry, but as I said, this is most definitely, 100% certifiably, a dead duck.” The vet turned to his computer terminal, hit a few keys and produced a bill, which he handed to the woman. The duck’s owner, still in shock, took the bill. “$150!” she cried, “$150 just to tell me my duck is dead!” The vet shrugged, “I’m sorry. If you had just taken my word for it, the bill would have been $20, but with the Lab Report and the Cat Scan, it’s now $150.”

What happens when a property becomes uninhabitable?

April2012

This week we were faced with the dilemma about what occurs when a property becomes unexpectedly uninhabitable. We have only faced this on one other occasion. In that situation the property was razed to the ground as a result of a kitchen fire when a tenant turned her back on fat in a pan. There was no doubt that the house was certainly uninhabitable! The home was later rebuilt and is once again in our portfolio, as good as new.

However this situation was somewhat different and not quite as clear cut. Water began seeping into a Freemans Bay cottage in the bad weather. The seepage became a flood, requiring a carpet cleaner in fairly constant attendance. Our plumber and drain-layer then came on the scene. Seeing the tenant cooking toast in the wet kitchen sent shivers up our plumbers spine! Martin was also in close attendance. The water was coming from a steep neighbouring section at the rear of the section. The council in its wisdom deemed that it was the owner’s problem, not theirs. The decision was made to place a pump in a hole which had been dug in order to minimise the damage being caused to the interior of the house. Martin sought instruction from tenancy service and was informed that a letter had to be written by a knowledgeable person deeming the dwelling uninhabitable

The letter to the tenant to vacate the property was then issued. In a situation such as this we needed to invoke Section 59, relating to Destruction of Premises. The tenant was issued with the letter giving 7 days notice to vacate.

The tenant in turn can give two days to vacate, although in this situation we waived the notice period. The tenants were very obliging and co-operative given the unfortunate loss of their home.

They found short term accommodation and left their belongings in the bedrooms which were dry. The pump is still at the property still pumping away day and night and the owner has arrived from the deep south. The property has been in the family for three generations. He has taken over the decision making. It is always difficult when owners live at a distance. We know he is going to have to write some large cheques to remedy the situation. He greeted Martin with a great Southern “bear hug” and a warm thank you. This is an example of Martin’s service which many of you experience on a daily basis. It is not surprising that all your references and testimonials saw Martin as the sole recipient of the National Ray White Property Manager of the Year awarded recently. Well, all’s well that ends well. We are trying to relocate the tenants and expect to re-let the property when the owner completes his repairs.

Please don’t confuse Olive Taylor with Mary Taylor!The path to Olive Taylor’s door is a canyon of decomposing junk, years’ worth of packaging piled almost as tall as the 87-year-old herself.

It’s little wonder, then, that these are the first ever pictures from inside the home of the Brighton hoarder - who used to be a housekeeper for the Royal Navy.

Inside, her semi-detached house is anything but ship shape, with bags of rubbish lining the stairs and a six-foot high wall of junk rendering the downstairs completely out of bounds.

Mrs Olive Taylor has turned her garden into a junkyard, earning eviction threats from the local council. She says the rubbish is intended for recycling and has made tens of thousands selling scrap metal.

Perhaps our tenants aren’t so bad after all!

Gender Balance across Agent RolesRecent REAA figures offer a breakdown of genders across licence type.

Recent RentalsMt EdenHouse conversion, large and sunny two bedroom unit, somewhat dated, delightful backyard, not Grammar Zone, includes water + lawns.

Our figure (per week) $400

MREINZ Statistics Median Price $415

GreenlaneLarge four bedroomed villa with ornate ceilings, off street parking and carport, recently redecorated.

Our figure (per week) $750

MREINZ Statistics Median Price $560

St LukesStandalone 3 bedroomed house which shares a section with a block of flats, worn and somewhat dated.

Our figure (per week) $510

MREINZ Statistics Median Price $677

PonsonbyCute refurbished villa in lovely order, three bedroomed, two bathrooms, small sunny yard.

Our figure (per week) $950

MREINZ Statistics Median Price $710

SandringhamRedecorated three bedroomed standalone townhouse, new carport and drapes, double garage, pleasant but small backyard.

Our figure (per week) $580

MREINZ Statistics Median Price (4 bdrm) $495

ROW LABELS COUNT OF LICENCE NUMBERAGENT 2020Female 567 28%Male 1453 72%BRANCH MANAGER 520Female 170 33%Male 350 67%SALESPERSON 10157Female 5106 50%Male 5051 50%IN TOTALFemale 5843 46%Male 6854 54%

Compiled by REINZ 1 BEDROOM 2 BEDROOM 3 BEDROOM 4 BEDROOM

Median Price Price Range No. Let

Median Price Price Range No. Let

Median Price Price Range No. Let

Median Price Price Range No. Let

City Centre $339 $299 - $396 302 $420 $360 - $500 233 $600 $500 - $703 37

Ponsonby $330 $252 - $386 25 $475 $411 - $610 25 $710 $650 - $837 15

Grey Lynn and Westmere $320 $210 - $360 19 $482 $365 - $512 12 $677 $565 - $780 10

Mt. Albert and Pt. Chev $240 $177 - $275 20 $375 $350 - $415 23 $560 $480 - $672 15 $605 $600 - $620 6

Sandringham $270 $232 - $310 15 $370 $337 - $410 53 $495 $427 - $550 33 $630 $580 - $660 15

Mt. Roskill $277 $190 - $305 8 $380 $300 - $400 17 $470 $390 - $540 18 $540 $435 - $583 7

Mt. Eden $280 $260 - $326 53 $415 $365 - $470 48 $585 $487 - $650 28 $630 $600 - $750 15

Epsom $280 $235 - $338 33 $420 $385 - $450 51 $620 $550 - $675 30 $750 $717 - $1225 5

One Tree Hill and Ellerslie $260 $240 - $295 16 $382 $340 - $410 42 $495 $443 - $583 37 $560 $507 - $650 13

City Bays $325 $281 - $352 7 $480 $420 - $540 26 $700 $596 - $757 19 $820 $712 - $1212 15

Remuera $315 $290 - $575 6 $400 $375 - $492 23 $662 $600 - $800 14 $922 $590 - $1350 6

Meadowbank $325 $302 - $350 11 $380 $350 - $450 32 $565 $525 - $620 22 $700 $587 - $775 8

Glen Innes, Panmure and Mt Wellington $257 $210 - $295 14 $340 $307 - $365 48 $437 $400 - $465 42 $525 $466 - $667 11

Plumbing & Property Services

Your Plumbing Maintenance Specialists

A family run company with over 50 YEARS experience

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www.weplumb.co.nz

Pat Taylor Realty Ltd Licensed (REAA 2008)311 Manukau Road, Epsom, Auckland. Ph 623 3000. rentals.epsom.nz@raywhite.com, www.rwepsom.co.nz

Residential Rental Review February2012