Originally from Newcastle, Amy and Laura were feeling overwhelmed at finding a home to rent in Sydney’s Inner West when they approached URA. When it came to finding a property, they really didn’t know where to start: what area to look in, what their budget could secure, and just how on earth they could commute from Newcastle, NSW (and later Scotland in the UK!) to attend inspections and compete in the bustling Sydney rental market. They also were apprehensive about applying for properties with pets, given they had not one, but two dogs in their growing family.
At URA we work with clients like Amy and Laura to overcome obstacles such as distance, logistics, and lack of area knowledge, to find them their perfect new home. While they were living a few hours away and travelling overseas, we attended inspections on their behalf and liaised with local property managers and agencies to find a good fit.
“At first we thought that renter’s agents were just for celebrities, or big companies who needed support in moving top-paying execs and their families from one country to another! But once we had the initial phone chat with Terry, we realised she helped people like us all the time,” said Amy and Laura.
As with all our clients, Amy and Laura had a list of non-negotiable deal breakers, and desirables which made the search a little tricky, but of course… not impossible! Close to public transport: check; dog-friendly property: also check; but air-con and off-street parking, not so much. That’s the thing with Sydney rentals… sometimes it’s about prioritising your deal-breakers and finding a perfect middle ground. You can read more about the importance of being flexible on either time/budget/location is this blog post.
“After some great chats with Terry and Justin, they helped us to understand the realities of the rental market and also helped us figure out which areas we could be flexible with… we needed to find a property by a certain date, so the timeline wasn’t something we could budge on, but we didn’t mind which suburb of the Inner West we were living in, which meant we didn’t need to blow out our budget either,” said Amy and Laura.
The girls found their dreamy Newtown hideaway, a white terrace house on a quiet leafy street just a stone’s throw from public transport (and everything the Inner West has to offer!) Justin attended the final inspection, liaised to have some (very) out of date and worn-down wardrobes removed from the property, an extra lock installed, and the couple moved in to make the house a home.
“Working with URA was an absolute dream from start to finish! The communication was excellent, and we felt the team really had our interests at heart. We were able to attend some of the inspections alongside Justin, which was great as he could show us the kind of things he looks out for, with his wealth of experience in property. We felt like we had someone on our side, a secret weapon almost!”
