One of the consequences of the COVID-19 lockdown is the effect on tenancies, affecting both landlords and tenants. Several tenants are now struggling to pay rent due to the impact of the coronavirus outbreak. Unfortunately, some tenants are forced to choose between food and bills or paying rent. Many have had to leave their home, or they had to request an early end to their tenancy because of the coronavirus crisis.
In these tough times it is necessary to know the type of accommodation and tenancy agreements. Whatever type of residence you are looking for, may it be an apartment or a condominium like The Addington Condos, get to know specific details by looking at their homepage. In normal circumstances the tenancy agreement briefly falls into the following types:
Fixed-term tenancies: These are for a specific length of time and automatically become periodic tenancies upon expiry of the fixed term.
Periodic tenancies: These are ongoing tenancies of no fixed length that can be ended by giving notice. Opting for periodic tenancy is better if you’re not sure of your plans.
Service tenancies: These are related to a contract of service between the landlord as an employer and the tenant as an employee. A separate contract for the tenancy can be neglected.
Boarding house tenancies: These relate to a grant of exclusive rights of particular sleeping quarters and rights to shared use of facilities in a boarding house for a period of 28 days or more.
All the above tenancy agreements are mostly occupied by private small and large businesses, individuals working or students, and working-class families. Acquiring knowledge about investing into properties can be a daunting task. You may need to rely on some awesome real estate investing resources to guide you through the process.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, almost everyone is facing difficulties in keeping with the tenant agreement. We discuss five different types of tenants who have been affected in this pandemic:
Students
The COVID-19 lockdown has resulted as a major struggle for students, driving many university students back home as universities have been forced to close. Unable to pay the rent many were asked to leave their rented halls of residence or privately rented rooms. Although many accommodation providers have agreed to waive or cut fees, others have refused to release students from their contracts. For students living in private apartments because of COVID-19 with all economic activities on a standstill, they cannot afford to pay their rents because they have lost jobs vital to fund their living costs during their studies.
Store owners and restaurant owners
Store owners across the globe are finding it difficult to make their monthly rent payments. The economic shutdowns and on-again-off-again re-openings have made it hard for owners to cover their rent, which can constitute the largest expense for most cases if they are located in an uptown area. COVID-19 has created an uncomfortable tension and interdependency with the landlords or real estate firms from which they rent. Everyone, after all, has their expenses and taxes to take care of.
Workers who have lost their Employment
With shopping malls, retail stores, and other small-scale business ventures remaining closed, economic activity has come to a halt as revenues have been falling fast. This has resulted in job cuts, at times swift and brutal for single earners in the family impacting massively in their monthly bills. The UN’s International Labour Organization predicts 1.6 billion informal economy workers could suffer “massive damage” to their livelihoods.
Employees with Salary cuts
As the demand has decreased, the companies had to cut the cost by slashing the salary of employees. Aviation, media, hospitality, banking, and financial sector employees have been among the worst-hit sectors. With salary cuts, the employees are struggling to meet the expenses of living in an urban city.
Millennials with their lack of saving
With the burden of education loan, the lack of experience, and lack of saving, the pandemic has the young millennial worried about the future. Companies hiring freeze have further narrowed down their options, there are lots of young fresh employees being laid off because their companies have the obligation to protect the older employees. These millennials living in the city are hit hard since the rents are extremely high and their savings are low.
Some ways to help and deal with these groups of people who are adversely affected due to COVID-19
- It’s worth remembering that we’re all in this together. A sincere talk is necessary between the tenant and landlords.Individuals should inquire about government relief for tenants and businesses. Installment of unpaid balances should be looked into and agreed upon. Both parties are encouraged to read the new legal guideline for tenants especially if payments would be deferred for a certain period of time which would protect both of the party’s interests, above all it is imperative to see the human side, not the legal or economic side.
- Employee retention should be a top priority for employers during challenging times. Mergers and acquisitions can have a significant impact on employees as the two separate entities integrate into one. Scheduling a different time for all the employees will help in providing a source of income and also keep the business running. Working from home should be presented as an option, not just to keep everyone afloat amidst the pandemic but to make sure that all the employees are safe and healthy while still having the means to work on a daily basis. This can help the employees’ well being, mental stability and be more productive on their tasks resulting in continuous revenue until it is safe to go back out again.
- Avoiding a temporary or permanent layoff should be discouraged and job sharing ways like changing full-time workers into part-time workers should be looked into. Hiring freezes may be done in conjunction with several other actions, including reductions in compensation and benefits and changes in flexible work arrangements.
- There are several works from job sites. Such windows should be encouraged and opted for during lockdown for anyone who is laid off during the pandemic.
- All the respective Governments have opened up different emergency response funds and assistance. Contacting the authority and inquiring should be taken into consideration.
Widespread business shutdowns these past six months have forced business owners and private individuals who are tenants into challenging conversations. It caused cash flow problems, income shortfalls, lease agreement not applicable to a pandemic situation and uncollected rents. Dealing with these issues should always be a balance between doing what is emphatically right in each and every scenario while making sure that laws and agreements are still being followed.