Albo’s tenant is crying poor after getting handed his eviction notice – but PETER VAN ONSELEN reveals what he conveniently forgot to mention during his TV whinge-a-thon

Far be it from me to defend Albo for the treatment he receives from one of his investment property tenants, but the man now beating up the Prime Minister is clearly a whiner.

The fact that he has always been a Labor voter is purely coincidental.

Reports emerged that the Prime Minister had approved an eviction notice for Jim Flanagan, the tenant of a three-bedroom Dulwich Hill investment property that Albo bought back for $1.175 million in 2015.

Today it’s probably worth more than $2 million, and I think the Prime Minister wants to reap the financial reward. The booming real estate market may be a political problem for the government, but if investment properties dominate your financial portfolio, it has its advantages.

Mr Flanagan has lived in the property Albo owns for more than four years and has previously praised the Prime Minister as a fantastic landlord.

The bar owner and musician (photo) is not happy that the Prime Minister is deporting him

Of course he did: when the pandemic hit, the then opposition leader cut Mr Flanagan and his then partner’s rent from $900 to $680 – and he hasn’t increased it once since.

Not once!

Whether Albo’s move was a political twist or not – he was widely praised for his actions at the time – doesn’t really matter. Its real-world impact was that Albo helped his tenant, just as he called on other landlords to do.

The property is now earning half of what it could be, and has been well below rental averages in the Dulwich Hill area for years.

According to my calculations on the back, Albo has saved Mr Flanagan at least $60,000 over the years on what the market rent of that property could have earned the Prime Minister as part of his investment portfolio.

If Mr Flanagan had not been able to afford such increases he would have been forced to move years ago. It is now clear that he has become accustomed to enjoying the lifestyle of a property that he pays peppercorn rent to live in, compared to what he should be charged.

Albo has been extremely generous to this man.

But when the Prime Minister’s personal circumstances changed – he needs to finance a lavish wedding and select a new marital home for when he and his fiancée Jodie Haydon tie the knot and enjoy a post-political life – the lucky tenant started dating the Prime Minister. to swear. in the media.

Talk about self-interest!

Mr Flanagan, the small business owner of a bar, says he is going through a tough time and felt the need to ‘denounce’ Albo’s actions.

Call what exactly?

The Prime Minister has the right to sell his own property. He has been renting it out for years at well below market value. When the pandemic hit, he cut the rent by 25 percent and has left it there ever since. He gave this guy 90 days notice when legally he only had to provide a fraction of that time.

Talk about biting the hand that feeds you.

Pictured is the restaurant Jim Flanagan owned with his former partner when he first started renting one of the Prime Minister’s investment properties

Mr Flanagan owned The Sausage Factory with his then partner before running a bar

Would Mr Flanagan give free drinks to customers at his bar who arrive and tell him they are having a hard time? I highly doubt it.

He’s exactly the kind of guy you know was in a band growing up. He probably had long hair too, all before he “got serious” and opened a bar.

All I can say after defending Albo on this is that you reap what you sow: the modern Labor Party relies on the handout mentality that has fueled this man’s resentment at being blindsided by the reality of the changed circumstances from the Prime Minister.

This is what happens when that attitude permeates society.

Hopefully, the lived experience Albo faced in dealing with Mr Flanagan’s justified stance will give him pause for thought the next time he makes a public policy decision or comment addressing this growing problem in Australian society.