Consumer Affairs defines a rooming house as follows: a building in which there is one or more rooms available for occupancy on payment of rent in which the total number of people who may occupy that room or those rooms is not less than 4.

To be deemed a Class 1B, 4 or more rooms are required to be occupied (up to 9 rooms per property). It is possible to rent 3 rooms out only, which means the property won’t need to be registered as a rooming house, however we don’t believe this is maximising the potential of rooming house property investment.

No, all rooming houses Fox First Real Estate manages are registered rooming houses.

Fox First Real Estate predominately manage properties in Melbourne metropolitan, however we service Victoria wide also.

For every 10 tenants, a minimum 1 toilet, 1 bath or shower and 1 wash basin is acceptable.

A rooming house room is required to be at least 7.5 sqm for singles & 12.5 sqm for couples.

The maximum number of rooms in a rooming house property is 9 rooms, up to a maximum of 12 people. I.e. some rooms can have couples.

The Landlord is responsible for paying all usage and outgoings including: internet, electricity, gas, water and gardening. The Landlord is not responsible for paying the Tenant’s contents insurance.

The Landlord is responsible for the maintenance of the garden.

A Landlord is not required to supply linen to Tenants. It’s also not recommended as there are regulations to abide by should a Landlord provide linen.

Each Tenant is required to pay two weeks rent as their bond. This bond is registered with the RTBA as per all residential tenancies.

The most common lease periods Fox First Real Estate manage are 12 months. 12 month lease periods helps filter through longer term tenants, and generally means there is less turnover. Some leases are less, either 3 or 6 months.

Registered rooming houses without disabled access were registered as rooming houses in advance of May 2012 before the new rooming house legislation. Investors with rooming houses in advance of May 2012, were required to register in advance of the new legislation or convert their properties to comply. Those that did not register their houses were required to convert their rooming houses in accordance with the new legislation.

There is house insurance available for rooming houses.

There are many variables that apply to the speed of which all rooms of a rooming house can be rented out. Variables include: Location, listing the rooms at the right market price, the time of year as there are peak periods to consider, the facilities that are on offer to the tenants and finding the most suitable tenants. The process generally takes just 1-3 weeks.

Yes, we have a primary cleaner who conducts the cleaning for the majority of the rooming houses we manage.

We recommend a weekly clean for rooming houses.

The Cleaner’s role is just to clean the common areas. The tenants are responsible for the cleaning of their own rooms.

Government authorities inspect rooming house properties. Generally, there are 3-4 inspections per property annually, this includes: a Health Inspector from the local Council, a Building Inspector from the local Council and Consumer Affairs.

Yes, all Council and Consumer Affairs inspections are managed as part of the Fox First Real Estate property management service. There are no additional costs associated with Fox First Real Estate managing these inspections on the Landlord’s behalf.

A Landlord can inspect their rooming house at any time in common areas only. Should a Landlord need to inspect a Tenant’s room, 24 hours written notice needs to be offered to the Tenant in advance of the inspection.

Tenants must abide by the house rules as set out in their welcome pack. To receive a copy of the welcome pack, please email us.

Yes, each tenant has a key to enter their locked room.

Tenants can have friends stay until 11:59pm, tenants cannot have anyone stay overnight.

All rooming houses are smoke free. Smoking inside is a breach of the house rules.

A landlord is entitled to request an additional $30-$50 per week as this helps to cover the utilities the Landlord pays on behalf of the Tenants.

A Landlord can have all rooms occupied by couples as long as the total number of people is a maximum of 12 people per property and the rooms are a minimum size of 12.5sqm.

To date, the most expensive rooms are leased out at $390 per week. This is possible when all the variables offer great value to the tenant, i.e. Location, facilities, local amenities, size of the rooms, rooms that have ensuites and the general cleanliness of the property.

The application process to place new tenants is very important as dynamics are essential for harmonious living.

Fox First Real Estate manage the property as required by the Landlord. Most of our Landlord’s prefer Fox First Real Estate manage the property in its entirety from leasing out the rooms, assessing Tenant’s and their likely dynamics within each household as well as managing all urgent and non-urgent repairs including general maintenance of the property from Cleaners to Gardeners. Fox First Real Estate can also manage all outgoings associated to the property.

The fees vary from property to property. Fox First Real Estate offer competitive rates and superior service.

Rooming houses are in most cases more profitable than normal residential rental properties. We have converted residential houses into rooming houses that return 4 times more rental return. There are variables that need to be considered, however. To find out more, please contact us.