From the Desk of the CEO - Coronavirus Alert
As we all know there has been considerable discussion on the Coronavirus and certainly a concern for us all. Fortunately living in Australia we have great health professionals and a solid system which no doubt will be stretched in the coming months.
In the press etc there has been regular warnings of how to handle personal hygiene to protect the spread of this virus and most steps are simple. Our challenge in providing services to our clients whether they be a tenant, landlord, buyer, seller or tradie is we don’t know your personal health situation and as you would be aware we are entering people’s homes every day as part of our services.
As a company we have started to implement a number of strategies to protect our staff and clients. An example of that will be our inspection officers for rental inspections wearing protective hand wear for opening doors of properties etc and aiming to minimise the time spent in properties. Our interview offices are being regularly cleaned after each appointment and within the office we are ensuring meetings are not held in a room of more than three people in given spaces for staff. There are also readily available appropriate hand washes for all staff within the office environment and we will continue to build on these protections best we can over time if needed.
Now in terms of our external activities as an agency we would appreciate help in the following areas so we can maintain our services, privacy and effectiveness. Various services will be affected differently but if you can help in any of the following areas, it will be appreciated.
Tenants if you have just returned from overseas and are in quarantine please let our team know and what date that period expires so we do not schedule appointments during this time eg inspections. If you believe you may have the virus or in the middle of testing for the virus please let us know and again we can reschedule appointments. The quicker we find out your situation the better for all parties.
As a tenant who may be breaking lease means we will be potentially bringing people through. We will be asking them not touch doors etc best we can and we will aim to ensure we have manageable numbers through to control the viewing.
Landlords as you can see we have asked that tenants communicate with us more to avoid unhealthy situations. This may affect timetables of our inspections but we expect it to be very low but we will do what is in the best interests of everyone’s overall health. Vacant properties we will treat in similar management as mentioned above for tenants in terms of managing the viewings.
Please let us know if you are unwell so we do not bother you in difficult times, we can only work on the information you provide to us.
Buyers you may have an offer on a property which needs you to return for final inspection or for trades to visit for building inspection etc please be patient as owners may have family challenges because of the virus however we have not seen any as yet. We just need to be aware more than ever that things can and may occur to owners. On the other hand if you contracted the virus or are being tested we need to ensure we can work around your situation as well and effectively communicate with all parties involved.
Sellers as mentioned above we need to know your circumstances to work with you if there is an indication you or your family have the virus as well. Home opens we will be working towards private inspections more in the future but will still hold home opens where we can but will monitor traffic best we can through your property. Our staff will be in contact to ensure timelines are clear for appointments etc so if you need to cancel you can.
Trades we ask that you let us know if you are not available to work due to the virus or anything else which you may see you may not be able to provide a service we have requested in the short term for a client. At our end we are aiming to ensure the safest possible environment for you to complete work as you will see in the above statements to everyone. If things need to be rescheduled we will have to work with it best we can but everyone’s health is our prime focus. We appreciate your help in this matter.
To everyone, we have touched on a few things we see may present small challenges and they will be small if we all communicate effectively. Hopefully this virus disappears or clears quickly for everyone’s sake but in the short term we have to make sure we take care of each other in a respectful manner.
Please, if at this time of receiving this email you have family or yourself suffering with this virus we wish you a quick and healthy recovery.
– Written by Milton Rendell, CEO/Managing Director – Real Estate Plus Group