Policy: Private Inspections for Short-Term Stays

Company Position:

Property Providers’ vision is to “Help People Live Better” by being Sydney’s most flexible residential rental company. This vision is driven by three core values: Passion, Performance and Partnership. Importantly, we seek profit not through dollars and cents, but through the pursuit of creating meaningful long-term partnerships that have a strong foundation of mutual investment, respect, risk and commitment. We have created the following policy considering what is in the best interest of all parties that may be involved in a property (i.e. existing tenants/guests, owners, agency prospective tenants/guests) and in the spirit of respect and partnership.

Document Purpose:

The purpose of this document is to clearly communicate Property Providers’  policy in relation to prospective guests requesting private inspections/viewings for properties in our Short-Term rental portfolio and/or that are looking to stay for less than six months.

Background:

Everyone’s time is valuable – as is their privacy.  Property Providers agree that it is important for people to view a property in person if they intend to live in the property as their permanent/principal place of residence for periods of six months or more. On the other hand, when people are looking for temporary housing or accommodation, the situation differs notably.

We believe that there is a significant difference between a primary residence rental/long-term lease versus temporary accommodation/short-term stay where a property is being used as a holiday let or a temporary home away from home.

We have tried to take a collaborative, fair and commercial approach when it comes to requests for private property inspections and has formulated a set of guidelines that make sense whilst taking into account the sensitivity of interrupting existing guests/tenants or owners occupying a property.

Importantly, Property Providers (and our owner clients) invest heavily in developing property listings that can be trusted for their accuracy. This often includes two or three times more photos than a typical rental/sales listing, as well as the inclusion of “Home-Truths” videos, floor plans and staff/customer reviews. Lastly, we have carefully crafted our brand star rating system that gives more clarity to the customer in terms of what type of property/experience quality a customer should expect if they are to select a certain property.

Over the years, we have learned the value of high standards. This is because we have a discerning clientele who understand and are prepared to pay for quality. In this regard, we feel passionate about “telling it versus selling it” and feel that there are plenty of photos and often videos and floor plans to justify having the confidence to decide if a property is appropriate for a guest stay or not.

Policy Objectives:

To deliver a premium guest experience and to be clear as to under what circumstances a guest viewing may be appropriate and inappropriate.
To balance the goals of and minimise disruption to the agency, the owner, and existing property residents/occupants.
To use time effectively by focusing on real opportunities whilst eliminating tire kickers, time wasters, and noisy neighbours.
To use technology and other assets (video, images, etc.) to effectively answer questions and to enhance clarity, comfort and confidence.
To further support our company values and guiding principles.

Agency Policy:

Property Providers will entertain and schedule a request for a private inspection under the following guidelines:

The potential booking or commercial opportunity must be for a stay longer than 12 weeks (3 months) or higher than $30,000 in tariff value.
The prospective guest agrees to input a pending reservation (which holds the property) which displays all the fees and charges. The guest will be required to pay a minimum of $165 booking fee via credit card prior to scheduling or attending an inspection.

If the booking moves forward, the booking fee is included in the original quote. If the booking does not move forward, the $165 is forfeited.

The prospected guest shall give reasonable notice (i.e. a minimum of 48 hours or at least one working day’s notice) and viewings will be conditional on existing occupant approval.
The inspection itself will take place during regular working hours.
If the meeting needs to be rescheduled within 24 hours of the planned inspection there will be no charge to the guest. If the potential guest cancels/reschedules within 24 hours, the agency reserves the right to charge another booking fee for the rescheduled viewing.
A Property Providers’ team member will wait for up to 20 minutes at a particular property for people to arrive for a private inspection. If more time has expired and the prospective guest or delegate has not arrived, the inspection is considered cancelled/abandoned and the booking will automatically be cancelled and the booking fee forfeited.
Only one viewing will be considered. Therefore, the people inspecting the property agree that all decision makers (or stakeholders) will be present or available either in person or by phone/Facetime during the given inspection.
The prospect understands that the agency is unable to hold a property without payment of a significant deposit. After a deposit is paid, the guest will have up to five working days to make the first accommodation payment instalment. Should the guest cancel between the time the inspection has occurred and the first instalment payment, the security deposit is forfeited (keeping in mind that the property has been off the market for several days and a subsequent booking could have been secured) i.e. there is a cost to holding a property off the market.
Any post-inspection changes to the original booking and its associated dates are considered a booking amendment or cancellation according to our Terms and Conditions.
The agency reserves the right to refuse an inspection if the property is occupied by another guest.

Rationale:

The above policy:

Provides guidelines that effectively qualify people and allow the agency to focus on prospective guests who are serious and who value time.
Is designed to minimise disruption (and costs) to exiting occupants i.e. tenants, current guests or owners.
Is balanced, commercial and fair.
Leverages agency intellectual property (images, videos etc.) which is there explicitly to provide clarity, comfort, and confidence through the booking process to prospective guests.

Effective Date: This policy is effective October 1, 2022. 