A young Aussie landlord has hit back at the 'brutal' comments she received after revealing the 'unglamorous' side of being an investor.
As a whole, people have very little sympathy for landlords, particularly given the ever-rising costs of renting and the dire state of some rental properties.
But one woman wasn't expecting the savage backlash she received when she complained about the difficulties of being a landlord.
Big Brother Australia contestant, Estelle Landy, recently took to TikTok to share her struggles with two of the rental properties she owns.
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In a seven minute video, she said: “I’ve been crying my f***ing eyes out all morning, because I have been pushing s**t uphill for two years, three since my mum died, with these properties.”
The 36-year-old claims that the tenant in one of the properties owes her 'thousands' in unpaid rent. She also says that he refuses to pay his water bill and won’t have the bill transferred into his name.
She said she was told she couldn’t cut off water to the property as it is an essential service.
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Meanwhile, the tenant in her second property has allegedly 'destroyed' the place, pulling doors off hinges and ruining paintwork and carpets by smoking.
She explained that, while she has submitted applications with VCAT to have the issues resolved, the process is tedious and she has been struggling to keep up with the costs of owning the homes in the meantime.
And, unfortunately for Estelle, due to repairs needed on the properties, she has been advised that she can't sell them until the tenants move out.
Estelle was left shocked at the video's response, which has racked up more than 670,000 views and 3000 comments, with the majority of viewers being less than sympathetic.
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One person wrote: "The sweet sweet tears of a landlord."
Another commented: "Imagine hoarding resources and then crying on the internet about it."
And a third said: "You can't have ur cake and eat it too..."
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Speaking to news.com.au, Estelle has hit back at her critics, saying that while she understands many renters are struggling and that there are certainly 'greedy and exploitative' landlords out there, there are people on both sides of the property divide that are suffering.
She said: “There is a lack of tolerance to empathise with anyone else who is perceived to have ‘more’, which is strange because we are certainly part of the ‘hustle generation’ but we aren’t allowed to hustle too hard or we will be cut down.
“I don’t know if people fully understand the costs for owners," she continued. "I do not believe that the tenant should bare the cost of the owners property. I think it comes back to a fair and reasonable arrangement that is not exploitative.
“We see a lot of landlords passing on the costs directly to the tenants while not even keeping property to minimum living standards.
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“The whole system needs a shake up. People are terrified, and rightfully so, of their futures because they are so uncertain with all things relating to basic living needs.
“I hope that our Government steps in and starts looking at what is a broken system, I hope that people can have some respite from what is a complete financial crisis.”
Bec Oakes