NRAS APPROVED PROPERTY MANAGER TRAINING

NRAS APPROVED PROPERTY MANAGER TRAINING

WHAT IS NRAS AND HOW DOES IT

WORK?

WHAT IS NRAS?

• Stands for National Rental Affordability Scheme

• A Federal Government initiative to increase the number of affordable rental properties

• Gives the investor a grant ($10,660.00 pa for 10 years) if they meet NRAS criteria:

• Brand new property

• Rent at 80% of market rent

• Rent to eligible tenants

• Limited rental increases.

• Only properties approved by the Government are eligible to be in the Scheme.

HOW DOES AHC FIT IN?

• Affordable Housing Consulting (AHC) is an approved NRAS participant

• We have NRAS allocations throughout SA, most them have already been sold but less than half are “Active”

• Our NRAS allocations are matched to properties and sold to investors through selling agents

• We are required to train our property managers

HOW DOES IT WORK?

Tenant

Leases from Investor, pays 80%

or market rent

Commonwealth Government

Pays 75% of the annual

incentive through refundable

tax offset

State Government

Pays 25% of the annual

incentive via AHC Trust

account

Property Manager

Acts as the tenant, investor

and AHC interface

Ensures eligibility of the

tenant and that the rent rates

comply with the Scheme

Property owner

Leases property to eligible

tenants under NRAS guidelines

for 10 years

Developer

Identifies allotments to be

included in the NRAS proposal

Affordable Housing

Consulting

Managed the NRAS

obligations and deals with

the government. Distributes

the tax offsets and state

contributions to investors

Affordable Housing Consulting Operating Framework

HOW DO PROPERTY MANAGERS FIT IN?

• The property manager together with AHC ensures the dwelling meets all eligibility criteria

• Essential role – maximising client’s payment

• The property manager must be trained in understanding NRAS and how to manage NRAS properties

• Government (FaHCSIA) requires specific information to be reported annually. AHC requires it throughout the year to minimise the risk of an ineligible tenant

PROPERTY MANAGERS ROLE (NRAS)

NRAS guidelines 10.2

• Assess initial and ongoing tenant eligibility and hold appropriate documentary evidence (described later)

• Manage determination of market rents for dwellings and the rents charged to tenants

• Report through approved participant (AHC) on compliance with tenant eligibility, rent levels and other regulatory requirements under the Scheme

• Retain for five years the documentary records necessary to establish such compliance

REPORTING TO AHC

DSS require specific information to be reported• Property managers are required to submit this information to AHC on time or

they may affect the owner’s annual NRAS payment amount

• The timing & nature of the required information may change with short notice

• FaHCSIA may require extra information to be provided and maintained by the tenant

• Documents should be provided to AHC within 15 days of the event or by 30th April whichever is sooner

• The NRAS year ends 30th April and information for ALL NRAS properties must be provided to AHC before this date

• If information is correct, complete and received by AHC on time, it can be submitted to FaHCSIA by 13th May for clients to receive their payment by 30th June

• Late information will result in the payment being delayed by 12 months

NRAS ALLOCATIONS

The below diagram outlines how NRAS allocations are allocated.

Agent

• Signs NRAS

Contract

• Forwards to

AHC

AHC

• Matches

dwelling

type

• Confirms

with client

Developer

• Updates

AHC on key

milestones

Client

• Pays Est. fee

• Confirms

any missing

info

AHC

• Confirms

valid

contract

DWELLING AVAILABLE FOR RENT

The below diagram outlines how NRAS allocations become active and available for rent

What we need:• Certificate of compliance and Notice of Completion Letter from the Developer (checked by DSS)

• Independent Valuation from the Property manager (checked by DSS)

• Date that the property is available for rent

• Property considered “active” at this point

• Client is entitled to NRAS incentive from active date & this is the NRAS start date

• Tenant not required for a property to be active

• If it will take more than 3 months to find a tenant please contact AHC

Developer

• Confirms

dwelling is

completed

• Forwards

COC

AHC

• Advised PTM

• Requests Info

PTM

• Provides

Valuation

AHC

• Makes

property

active with

DSS

• Advised

Client

INDEPENDENT VALUATIONS

• Property manager organises the valuation on the owner’s behalf

• Valuations must:

• Be based on the conditions upon which the dwelling will be rented

• Be completed prior to occupancy of the dwelling

• Not use other NRAS properties for rent rate comparisons

• Match the allocation type

• NRAS rent is based on 80% of this independent valuation

AVAILABLE FOR RENT

• Tenants must not move into a property until it is “Available for Rent”:

• The dwelling must have a certificate of compliance

• Independent market rent valuation has been obtained

• The property meets the requirements of the state’s landlord, tenancy, building, health and safety laws and regulations

• The property is fully decorated including paint, floor coverings and window treatments

• The property has appropriate security and safety features including locks & smoke detectors

AVAILABLE FOR RENT CONT…

• The property has appropriate landscaping

• Property manager understands their role & will perform the role required as outlined in the NRAS training provided by Affordable Housing Consulting

• Property manager understands random audits by AHC or the Australian Government may be undertaken to verify compliance to NRAS rules

• Failure to comply with the requirements of the Scheme may impact on the Participant’s right to receive an incentive which may result in an allocation being revoked if conditions are not complied with.

AVAILABLE FOR RENT TIPS

• The valuation can be ordered from 1st inspection to avoid delays. Check with the Property Developer

• If the client is unhappy with a valuation, a new one can be ordered before the lease starts

• COC & valuation are checked by DSS

• Commonly asked question - why there was a delay from COC to available for rent

• We require the street number to activate a property

MARKETING AN NRAS PROPERTY

• The property can be advertised for rent before or after it is available for rent

• The property can be advertised as full market rent (NRAS discount applied when lease is signed) or at the discounted NRAS rent

• If promoting with NRAS, a website with more information can be useful:• www.nras.com.au

• www.environment.gov.au/housing/nras/about.html

• Always advise AHC if and when a client wants to sell their NRAS property

NRAS APPROVED PROPERTY MANAGER TRAINING

NRAS COMPLIANCE AND SETTING

RENT

COMPLIANCE

The below diagram outlines the NRAS compliance process.

Tenant

• Provide proof

of income

• Complete

Tenant

Consent form

and TDA

PTM

• Double check

Proof of

Income and

TDA

• Completed

lease in NRAS

Centre

AHC - Ongoing

• Double

checks all

documents

• Enters details

into DSS

reporting

system

AHC – Year end

• Submits

claims to DSS

• Advises

clients

NRAS RENT CALCULATIONS

• Independent valuations must be obtained before the NRAS period starts and at the end of years 4 and 7

• Rent is set at 80% of the independent valuation in years 1, 5 and 8

• Rent in other years can be increased by the relevant years CPI index.

• Rent can only be increased once every 12 months for each tenant.

• Any increase in rent must be supported by a desktop valuations/comparison.

COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENTS

• Essential that compliance information is correct• Tenant eligibility to income limits

• Rent is set at or below 80% of market rent

• Rent is not increase by more than CPI

• What we need:• Copy of the lease

• Copy of poof of income documents (POI)

• Copy of the completed tenant consent form and demographic assessment (TDA)

• Agent check & declaration

• Advice when tenant breaks lease

• Other changes to lease or household

NRAS INCOME LIMITS

• Household income limits are indexed annually on the 1st May

• Eligible tenant’s incomes for 12 months prior must be equal to or less than the initial income limit when they become a tenant

• Household incomes can increase by up to 25% (upper income limit) before eligibility is affected

PROOF OF INCOME

• The property manager must assess tenants for NRAS eligible income

• Income is based on the gross household income

• For NRAS purposes, a household is considered to be:All persons ordinarily residing in the dwelling. The Department therefore requires all persons who ordinarily reside in an approved rental dwelling to have their income included as a member of the one household, in accordance with the income limits. (G 10.4.3)

• The owner of the property cannot be a tenant

• The tenant must supply the landlord or property manager a written statement of their gross income for the previous 12 months

PROOF OF INCOME Continued…

• Property managers are required to obtain sufficient evidence to satisfy themselves that the tenants are eligible for the purposes of the Scheme (G 10.2)

• Property managers should not offer the property to potential tenants who refuse to supply requested information

Examples of proof of income

PROOF OF INCOME ASSESSMENT

GUIDELINES• Examples of proof of income, which DSS deem acceptable are:

• Copies of payslips, Notices of assessment from ATO, Letters from employers, Statements from superannuation funds, Statements from Centrelink, Statements of dividends or rents paid, Other proof of income as appropriate

• Adults (18 years and over) with little or no income should supply a tax return or statutory declaration

• Non-Australian residents that do not have any of the above proof of income should supply 3 months bank statements showing regular income payments and/ or a statutory declaration specifying how much income they receive and the income source

• Please show workings for calculating income

TENANT DEMOGRAPHIC ASSESSMENT

• Tenant demographic assessment (TDA) is a requirement of the Government

• It must be signed by the tenant(s) and the property manager to allow AHC to forward information to the Government

• Specifies the income as discussed above

• Property manager must check TDA for sensibility & ensure that it is fully completed

HOUSING STRESS

If a tenant is spending more than 40% of their income on rent, DSS may ask us why tenants are in housing stress

Some reasons include:• Other income (needs to be declared & reassessed)

• Someone else is paying for rent (needs to be declared & reassessed)

• Someone else is paying for food or other expenses (needs to be declared & reassessed)

• No car because they work near home – walk or catch public transport, reduced insurance etc

• Recently received an income increase that is not reflected in income for previous 12 months

LEASE CHANGES OR RENEWALS

• At each new lease, each lease renewal or every 12 months, the property manager must reassess the tenants eligibility

• All new information (lease, POI, TDA & agent check) is required by AHC within 14 days of the lease start date or by 30th April whichever is sooner

RENT INCREASES

• Rent cannot be increased on a tenant unless they have lived in the dwelling for 12 months or more.

• When conducting a rent review a desktop valuation/comparison must be conducted.

• You can only increase the rent by the lower of:1. the CPI index for the current NRAS year

2. The value of the desktop valuation

• If a tenant is paying more than 80% market rent, AHC will require, a rent adjustment to be performed and:• Proof of the corrected rent

• Proof of a credit for the overpayment

CONTINUING ELIGIBILITY

• Property managers are required to monitor the eligibility of the tenants throughout the year

• Eligibility should be reassessed prior to the offer of a lease renewal

• If the household makeup changes during the year, you must notify AHC, assess the eligibility of the new household structure and provide all documentation to AHCwithin 15 days of the change

INELIGIBLE HOUSEHOLD INCOME

• NRAS guidelines state:• Tenants whose income exceeds the relevant upper limit for their household type for two

consecutive eligibility years cease to be eligible tenants

• NRAS owners will not receive NRAS incentive payments with ineligible tenants in the dwelling (Appendix 2)

• If it is discovered prior to lease renewal that tenants are no longer eligible the owner may choose to not renew the lease, or renew for 12 months (maximum)

• Please contact AHC if you have any questions or worries about the eligibility of a tenant

LEASE BREAKS

• If a lease is broken the property manager must:• Notify AHC the date the lease ended (via email)

• Re-let the property to eligible tenants and provide all necessary documenation to AHC

• Note the number of vacant days on the agent check & declaration

KEY CRITERIA

• The annual NRAS payment is affected if:• The dwelling is vacant for more than 91 days in an NRAS year

• The tenants enter the dwelling with an income greater than the eligible limit

• The rent is greater than 80% of market rent

• The tenants has an income over the eligible limit for two consecutive years

NRAS APPROVED PROPERTY MANAGER TRAINING

NRAS CENTRE

NRAS CENTRE

• NRAS Centre’ is an online application designed by Affordable Housing Consulting to increase the level of communication between property managers, investors and Affordable Housing Consulting.

• This tool will help to ensure compliance with government regulations and assist in giving comfort to Investors that their National Rental Affordability Scheme incentive payment is secured each year.

• www.nras.com.au

NRAS CENTRE TASKS

• How to upload a valuation

• How to request a property for activation

• NRAS Centre Traffic lights

• How to establish a new lease

• How to renew a lease

• How to break a lease

• How to upload additional documentations

• How to change the rents

• Where to upload desktop valuation/comparison report

• How to run reports in NRAS centre

• How investors/owners can use NRAS centre