Many landlords have been practising the art of cautious optimism for the past few months - crossing their fingers and hoping for the best.
Since the COVID-19 restrictions commenced, residential property landlords have been through three end-of-month payment cycles. Sufficient time to judge the impact of COVID-19.
The impact on landlords would obviously vary depending on the exposure of their tenant mix to industries most affected by shutdowns. Landlords with a tenant mix skewed towards, e.g., healthcare workers and pensioners, would be faring better than those skewed towards hospitality workers.
The current staged reductions of restrictions is no guarantee future problems will not emerge with tenancies. A resurgence in COVID-19 cases and the ultimate withdrawal of support measures such as JobKeeper payments are factors which could still impact residential tenancies. Tenants who have so far resisted requesting assistance may ultimately make requests if their employment prospects do not improve.
It remains unclear whether the Qld land tax rebate will be extended beyond 30 June. For those eligible for this rebate, it is conceivable that circumstances allowing them to access the rebate could arise only after 30 June.
June 2020
© PELEN 2020
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