Property 101: Households can now insure rental bonds

A financial product allowing renters an option to pay rental bonds off in instalments is being offered through BondSure.

Tenants can apply online to have rental bonds up to $5,000 paid on their behalf by BondSure, to be repaid over 6 or 12 months.

Australian lawyer and insurance entrepreneur, Michael Wood, created BondSure and said recouping bonds can also be a real nightmare for some tenants when accidents or disputes over cleaning put the bond in jeopardy.

“BondSure aims to help address these issues by providing consumers with a viable alternative to paying a bond by cash or credit card, and is the only product on the market that helps tenants protect their bonds against financial erosion,” he said.

“BondSure is a compelling alternative to Payday Lenders which we believe have been exploiting the residential bond market by offering loans to consumers with comparison rates of over 150 percent and repayment terms as small as four weeks in some instances.

The bond can be taken without the insurances and the insurances without the bond. The insurance can be continued if the lease runs longer than 12 months.

Former general manager of CENTURY 21 Australia, Paul Mylott, has been appointed chief executive officer. He said the insurance component of BONDSURE will lead to less bond disputes for tenants, property managers and landlords

“BondSure utilises identity and credit check providers and an online credit worthiness assessment to qualify  tenants, which is an aspect of the product that we expect will be warmly received by landlords,” said Paul Mylott.

“Estate agents need only register once, providing bank details for the bond transfer, and then check the rental address inserted on the site at the time of signing the lease. Otherwise it’s all done by the tenant and BondSure.

Click here to find out more.