House-proud tenant rewarded with improvements
Tenant Jocelyn Burgess has been renting landlord Kylie Beehre’s home for the past 13 years.
According to Burgess, she and her sister were paying just under $200 for the three-bedroom Clayton Rd home with garage, when they first took on the tenancy.
“Since then I’m pretty sure our rent hasn’t even increased $100,” Burgess said.
“I’m currently studying to be a nurse so have really appreciated the fact our landlord hasn’t given us big increases.
“We’ve watched the area around us grow and grow and know we are lucky to be where we are and paying the rent we do. We’re so close to everything I believe we’re getting more for our money now than we were 13 years ago.”
Burgess described herself and her sister as house-proud people and said they treated the home as their own.
“We’ve done a bit of maintenance outside and keep the place tidy. When something needs to be done inside we call Melissa and she gets it sorted quickly.
“I’ve been with Melissa since before we moved into this house and she’s been really good to me.”
Last year Burgess met her landlord for the first time. “She told us she was happy with how the property was being looked after.”
Beehre said Burgess was a great tenant.
“She’s very house-proud and has always looked after my little property like it is her own,” Beehre said.
“We’ve had the place recarpeted and painted and cut down a few trees to allow more light into the home — little things to make living in the place nicer.
She said she was happy with the amount of rent being paid.
“We’re all human and I don’t see any point in ripping someone off. If I look after Jocelyn, with the help of Melissa, she looks after my investment and we all win.”