Changes in the Privacy Act 2020 affect how we can collect, store, use and dispose of someone’s personal information. From these changes, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC) reviewed its Guidelines for the Residential Property Management Sector.
Whilst landlords (and property managers) can request the information required to support a tenancy application, such as proof of the ability to pay rent, there is one excellent piece of information that you can provide a potential landlord/agent to show what a good tenant you have been, and what a great tenant you will make in the future to help your tenancy application stand out.
This piece of valuable information is your current rent ledger, and you can simply ask your property manager to send this to you, which you can then use to support your tenancy application. The rental ledger should show the address of the property that you are renting, the period your have paid your rent for and the frequency of the payments, and most importantly it will show your rental payment history. This is the evidence that you have paid your rent on time, every time. The OPC is recommending that landlords/agents request a copy of the previous rent ledger as a great way, and a straightforward way for all parties, to verify the tenant’s rental
payment history.
However, what if you are paying your rent late? Or if you have received breach notices? Late payments, even by one or two days, shows up on your rental ledger. In some software, reminder notices and breach notices are also recorded, which may limit your ability to secure another rental property. You will want to ensure that you have the best rental payment history possible, so that you don’t miss out on securing your next rental property.
Our advice is to ensure that your rent is always paid on time so your property manager can give you a glowing reference for your next rental.