Thinking of Managing your Own Property?

Be aware of what’s going on behind the walls of your rental property with this useful advice...

Benefit fraud, sub-letting, on-going damage, drug rings and even brothels have all been discovered hidden behind the disguise of what at first appeared to be a ‘good’ tenant. So, how would you know if something untoward was happening in your rental property?

Tenants with untoward motives for securing a rental property will often target private landlords who find the tenant themselves – therefore it is extremely important to vet all potential tenants in order to minimise the risk.

It’s important to remember that the majority of the time these types of people will target private landlords because it’s easier for them to secure a property, plus the landlord is less likely to do the regular inspections that an agent would.

Vigilant visits!

Once the tenant has moved into the property, it is vital that you carry out inspections to assess that the tenancy is running smoothly and the property is being utilised within the rules of the tenancy agreement.

Inspections throughout the tenancy are essential, without them it would be almost impossible to know what’s going on inside a property – and, if something untoward was happening, key indicators are likely to be noticed during the inspection.

Inspections are also useful in terms of assessing the condition of the property.

Some tenants don’t even contact us about repairs – and it is during the inspections that the need for these is revealed.

Smoking can be an issue too and, if a tenant has been smoking in the property, it is usually very obvious at the inspection.

At Belvoir Kingston we visit the property after initially approximately three months after the move in date and then every six months thereafter, this ensures that we allow the tenant privacy so that they do not feel as though we are intruding into their home however at the same time it allows us to check the condition of the property and how it is being kept by the tenant.

Regular inspections can also help establish a good relationship between you and the tenant and help you build trust in one another.

No entry!

If a tenant won’t commit to an inspection, there may be a reason why!

If the tenant would/could not commit to a date and time, after several attempts, we would assertively but politely suggest that we use the key to enter the property to undertake the inspection in their absence.

Run Itself!

Don’t ever leave a tenancy to run itself, regular communication will always bring to light changes or concerns within a tenancy and proactive management enables you to deal with problems as they arise.

What would you do?

Do you really want the hassle of dealing with inspections? Extending your tenancy? Do you want your tenant to be calling you about repairs and jobs?

Are you happy with your tenant calling you at any time of the day or night to report a minor repair or small query? Are you able to liaise with your tenant and trusted tradesman and keep your tenant updated constantly? Although we contact you to report a repair, once we have the go ahead from you, then we will liaise with the tenant and contractor to get the repair completed as quickly and as smoothly as possible.

What would you do if your rent wasn’t received? We would know on the exact date if your rent was not in our account, we would contact your tenant to find out the reason. We have several ways in which a tenant can pay their rent, these are: standing order, debit or credit card, call into our office, directly in to our bank and finally a member of staff collecting it direct. If we are unable to contact your tenant, we will try to make contact with them on a daily basis, we also call down to the property but we will stay within in the law as not to be seen to harass your tenant.

Are you willing to perform regular periodic visits to your property? We will do this twice a year and for many reasons, we like to check in with the tenants to see what their plans are for the future, to make sure there is no visible malicious damage being caused to your property, to check for signs that the property is not being used for illegal activities and to also spot repairs or damages that the tenant may not have noticed or reported.

Do you want your tenant knowing your contact address? When we manage the property, we do not give them your details unless they request this in writing, legally we have to do this within 14 days (but this very rarely happens)

Do you have the resources available to keep yourself updated with the constant changes in the law surrounding property and tenancies? We have ARLA, NALS and Central Office Legal Department updating us we also attend numerous courses throughout the year.

Would you be willing to do your own move outs with your tenants? We meet your tenants at the property and run through the inventory to check that the property is in similar condition to how it was given it to them. Our staff have been on many courses to deal with this, so that we can handle any confrontational situations, work out correctly how damages will be charged, overcome any objections and we will also inform utility companies of the meter readings and of the tenants forwarding address.

Who would deal with all of this whilst you were on holiday or unable to due to personal circumstances? We are open 6 days a week throughout the year to ensure that your property is managed efficiently and effectively.

At Belvoir Kingston we take the hassle and stress out of letting. With our managed service we deal with all faults and repairs and we carry out regular inspections allowing you to enjoy the benefits of your rental property without the hassle. Contact us today for more information on our services; all of our fees are totally transparent with no hidden costs. Have piece of mind that the letting specialists are taking care of your rental property and relax in the knowledge that you wont be receiving calls from tenants at all hours of the morning!.

Let. us do all the work!

Belvoir!

Be Aware of Bad Agents; Always Choose Carefully

It is important when choosing which letting agent to let your home from, that you research the company and check that they are a fully qualified traders and members of NALS. If you choose a rouge trader then like this story reveals your money may not be safe and you may end up out of pocket and homeless.

Here at Belvoir lettings all of our staff are fully NALS qualified and we are registered members of NALS. We are also associated with SAFEagent a recognised association for professional letting agents.

Follow the link below to read the full article of one rouge trader:

http://www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk/news_features/Letting-agent-is-jailed-after-fraud

Let. us do all the work!

Belvoir

Kingston upon Thames

15/01/2015

Sole or Multi-agent, which is more successful?

Last week I was talking to a friend whose flat in Kingston is up for rent. It’s a lovely flat but when she pulled out her phone to show me her advert on-line,I was surprised to find that she had instructed four local agents! Why so many? Well she was certain that more agents would mean more competition (everyone keen to earn their fee) and that more people would see her property. Right?

Will more people see her flat? No, not really. Over 90% of people find their next home online. Agents know this and so are signed up with a least one of the big two portals. By engaging four agents, her advert will be seen by the same number of people, they’ll just see it four times. And instead of attracting interest that’s actually more likely to look a little desperate and put people off.

Will agents work harder to let her flat? Again, unlikely. After the initial flurry of interest and viewings, an agent faced with the choice of devoting time and effort to a multi-agency property where they have a 1 in 4 chance of earning their fee, or a property where they are sole agent, will invariably choose the latter. Or worse, in order to get across the line first, they may take short-cuts with the tenants they introduce!

My advice? Firstly, review the adverts. Which agent had taken the best pictures and written the best description to attract tenants? Secondly, what was her 'gut feel'? Which agent did she believe would offer her the best service both initially and over the lifetime of the tenancy? Once she'd weighed up the alternatives and decided which agency came out on top, it was a simple to contact the agent and instruct them for a month on a sole agency basis.

What was not so simple was cancelling the agents she had not selected!!

January 2015

About Us

First and foremost, we’re a Lettings Agency. Once you’ve bought the property, we want to manage it for you(!), or help with just finding you a tenant. With that considered, it’s very much in OUR interests that you buy something that’s sensible and lettable – we don’t want you buying a dud, or something where the figures don’t stack up!

There’s some mutual gain here. As such we can help in a number of ways:

We’ll Give You Tip Offs!

We keep a close eye on the housing market, and run an email list of decent buys that materialise. These cover the whole market – from repossessions, to cheap DSS bedsits, to family houses in nice suburbs – there’s something for everyone. Sometimes you can even buy with a tenant in situ, which means you pick up rental income from day 1.

Some Estate Agents will also tip us off when they get a property they need to sell quickly, and landlords can pick up a good deal as a result. There’s no charge for this service – just email jason.ou@belvoirlettings.com and ask to be put on the list.

 

We’ll Act as a Sounding Board

When you’ve not bought investment property before, it can be daunting. What area? What type of property? What type of tenant? How much work needs doing? You quickly end up in a situation where you have 5 different estate agents constantly phoning you and swearing blind that their deal is the best one you’ll find!

 We’re more than happy for you to come and see us for a chat about the options. Show us what you’re looking at and we’ll tell you what we think of the deal, or suggest alternatives. Or just ping us an email with a link. You’ll get an open and honest assessment of whether the deal on the table is as good as it sounds. Again, we don’t charge for this and we don’t pressure people into purchasing anything. If you want to come for a chat, email   jason.ou@belvoirlettings.com

Some people come and see us once, go and buy something, and don’t use our lettings service, which is fine. Others come and see us on repeated occasions for advice during their search for a property. This is fine too, but we kind of hope these people will use us to let the property once they’ve bought it. When we’re giving our time freely, and on repeated occasions, it’s quite frustrating to find the purchaser has let the property through another agent who bullied them into it, because they weren’t strong enough to say no!

We’ll Formally Source Property For You

We have a number of landlords who like to invest, but don’t want to do the legwork, go and see properties, or even visit Kinggston themselves! In this scenario, we can source properties for you - we need a defined set of criteria, so we understand what you’re looking for, but thereafter you can leave us to do the legwork. We do charge a finder’s fee for this service, payable on successful completion of a purchase.

Landlord Tips For Winter

Its only the start of cold weather, but we already have forecasts that its going to be a chilly winter! Here are some tips for landlords to keep in mind and prepare themselves for the frosty time of the year;

Turn me on!
Firstly, It’s a good idea for agents or landlords to write to tenants to request that they try putting on their central heating as soon as possible to make sure it is working, otherwise at the first really cold snap everyone turns on their central heating and, when quite a few are not working, it puts a strain on contractors and consequently lengthens response time.

Cheap Day return
As we enter the colder months it’s important to remind tenants that if they are planning to be away from a property for a few days they should keep the central heating on a low setting to maintain a temperature of between 12-15 degrees Celsius in the property and if possible, they should also leave the hatch to the roof space open. This can help avoid frozen or cracked pipes.

AWOL
If a tenant intends to stay away from the property for more than a few days, then we advise that they turn off the water supply, and shut down and drain the central heating boiler and associated pipe work, it’s important to take advice before attempting to carry this out.

Fencing
Is the property’s fence going to stand up to the winter wind? Check your fence panels and trellising for signs of wear and tear and repair and replace where necessary. It only takes one weak panel to potentially bring down an entire fence!

You old boiler!
Make sure the boiler is serviced on a regular basis (usually once a year. As winter approaches bleed all of the radiators and keep the boiler pressure up too.

Frozen taps
Did you know that outside taps can sometimes be the cause of problems in winter? If you can, it’s advisable to fit an isolator to their stopcock in order to give your tenant the option to turn them off during really cold weather.

Why don’t men read instructions?
It’s important for tenants to know how the boiler system in the property works and they should familiarise themselves with the operating instructions and, if they are unable to find the operating manual, they should contact us (with the make and model) and we’ll try and find a copy for them.

Life in the Gutter
Clear out the guttering to avoid water logs and leaks, fallen leaves and moss can clog guttering and lead to rain water overflowing into the infrastructure of the building. Check for leaks and cracks in the guttering too

Quick thinking Batman
Reacting and acting quickly is essential when maintenance issues arise. Don’t be tempted to ignore a problem thinking that it’ll clear itself up come spring. Winter maintenance issues tend to escalate as the season progresses and the cost to fix them is likely to rise 
too!

No batteries required?
Batteries running out in a remote control digital thermostat can cause the heating to fail and Batteries should be checked regularly and replaced (using the instruction manual) when necessary.

Lofty ideas
Good insulation is key to keeping a property as snug as possible. Ensure the loft is adequately insulated to help avoid losing heat through the roof – and make sure the pipes are lagged too, especially those that run through the loft space and are vulnerable to sharp drops in temperat

Extractor advice
Check that bathroom extractor fans are working and that they are cleaned on a regular basis as this is important in order to help prevent any moisture build up in the bathroom when tenants are having a hot shower or bath.

Call 999?
Have you got a plan in case of an emergency? It’s wise to prepare in advance, perhaps investing in a portable heater and electric urn in case a tenant is without essential services to the property. Supplying bottled water can be useful for tenants with no running water due to frozen pipes too.

Condensation – a big drip?
Although they won’t completely prevent mildew and condensation, adequate heating and ventilation in the winter months will assist in keeping the problem down.

Empty homes
If your property is currently vacant, it is essential that you or your agent visit it regularly to inspect for winter maintenance issues. Check for leaking windows and damp walls, plus (if you haven’t switched off the water) try the taps to make sure the water is flowing. Frozen pipes left unnoticed in an empty home can result in extensive damage and expensive bills.

Rental Price For YOUR Property

When investing in property, it’s easy to get it wrong. Before I was a lettings agent, I bought a newly built 1 bedroom flat because that’s what everyone else seemed to be doing. I still have it – mainly because no one is going to take it off me for the price I paid for it!

You live and learn. But it’s important to remember that you make your money when you BUY a property, not when you sell it. If you buy at the wrong price, it’s more or less impossible to rectify that going forwards unless a rising property market saves you.

If you buy sensibly, you can also expect to sell sensibly if you ever need to. Try to avoid:

• Simply overpriced. Once you’ve established you can buy a nice 2 bedroom property in a given area for £X, don’t pay £X + £5,000 for one because you’re impatient. If you overpay at the point of purchase, you’re playing “catch up” regarding the value of the property from day 1 ....  So DON’T overpay!

• Needs work, and this isn’t reflected in the price. DON’T be put off by properties that need work, as these are often the best buys. But DO ensure this is reflected in the price. If it’s £X for a nice one, its £X minus £5,000 for one that needs a kitchen and bathroom.

• Unrealistic rental price. If you’re buying in an area where flats rent for £1550 per month, don’t expect yours to rent for £1800 per month on the basis that it’s just been painted – expect it to rent for £1450 per month if you don’t paint it!

• Lacking key features. If you’re buying in the suburbs to attract the family market, don’t buy the one house on the street that has no garden, or no parking. Families want gardens!

Tenancy Agreements

I recently had a landlord who wanted to write his own tenancy agreement. Apparently he'd done it that way for years! Clearly this is a landlord's prerogative - it's their house at the end of the day, and many landlords operate without an agent using either a tenancy agreement they've written themselves, or no tenancy agreement at all. However it made me wonder why he'd chosen to use a lettings agent at all - it's a bit like me engaging an accountant because I don't have the expertise in a particular area that they do, and then not taking the advice I'm given and deciding I know best.

Unsurprisingly, the tenancy agreement he gave us was pretty poor, and showed a complete lack of understanding of what's legal and what isn't! When your property is rented by a limited company, you use a contractual tenancy agreement, which gives the landlord far greater flexibility to write whatever clauses he likes as long as both parties agree. When your tenant is an individual (99% of tenancies), you use an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST) which is governed by legislation, leaving far less flexibility for landlords to insert random clauses. Examples include:

1. The Housing Act says what notice periods must apply by law to an AST. The landlord can't simply overwrite this by getting the tenant to sign something.
2. The responsibility for arranging the annual gas safety certificate is the Landlords, not the tenants, irrespective of what the tenancy agreement says. You can't simply amend the law by mutual agreement!
3. The tenant has a legal right to the 'peaceful enjoyment' of the property, and this right carries more weight than the landlords right to inspect the property or visit the property. From a landlords perspective, this can be frustrating, but it's legally correct.
4. The tenancy deposit must be registered in accordance with the rules! Again, you can't include a clause that bypasses this requirement. 
5. Generally, and as with all contracts, there's such a thing as an unfair clause. For example you can't insist on the tenant sweeping the patio once a week! Just because you've got your tenant to sign acceptance of an item, if you end up in court over the matter later, a judge could still find in your tenants favour on the basis that the clause in the tenancy agreement was unfair. 

Surely one reason for using a lettings agent is to ensure that the tenancy is set up correctly, and as such any later problems are minimised? If you're using an experienced ARLA lettings agent, you'll find we all have slightly different tenancy agreements, but the clauses in them all come from:

1. our professional bodies, who update us on changes to legislation and
2. our experience of managing thousands of tenancies over the years. 

We are constrained by legislation to some extent, our standard tenancy agreement has evolved over the last few months, learning from experiences and mistakes, to protect our the landlord (our client) as much as the law allows. 

Inventory

A landlord will often ask if he really needs an inventory. "It's unfurnished, yes? So there's nothing to list" is a response we often hear. However an inventory doesn't just record things that are in the property, it also records the condition in which the property has been given to the tenant, which can be really important when the tenancy comes to an end.

The reason for this is that the law now assumes the tenancy deposit belongs to the tenant. If a landlord wants to claim on a deposit, he must be able to prove that the condition of the property has changed during the course of the tenancy. If there's no record of the property condition at the start of the tenancy, its more or less impossible for a landlord to claim the condition has changed at the end. It has been this way since new deposit rules came in in 2007.

For this reason, a landlord without an inventory is on weak ground. I had a landlord with a 2 bed apartment who insisted they didn't need an inventory - the property was unfurnished and they had never had one previously. The tenants didn't trash the property, but they did cause damage to a couple of carpets that the landlord wanted replaced. The tenants however claimed the carpets were in poor condition at the start of the tenancy and as such hadn't been damaged by them. When the deposit dispute went to adjudication under the new rules, the adjudicator was unable to decide which party was correct and as such awarded the full deposit to the tenant by default. The landlord thus had to pay for his own new carpets. 

To further enhance the landlords position, good inventories these days are done with a video camera. This eliminates the potential for argument over what a written inventory actually means. "Painted door with small mark towards bottom" is ambiguous. A video showing exactly what that small mark looks like can't really be argued with! We introduced video inventories in Kingston this year. They cost the landlord a bit more, but since their introduction none of our landlords who has taken one has ever lost a deposit claim to a tenant. As such there's an argument they are money well spent.

Deposits

An unfortunate tale here, but one in which all landlords should be interested. It shows the challenges we (landlords and their agents) face on a daily basis, and also demonstrates why some 'accidental' landlords become so fed up with the whole process so quickly. With my lettings agent hat on, this is the sort of thing we often get a lot of criticism for, when in reality it's completely outside our control.

At the end of the tenancy, there's often a dispute between landlord and tenant regarding the allocation of the deposit. We encourage both parties to negotiate and ultimately encourage landlords to settle - for reasons that are clearly visible below. Since 2007 all deposits have to be registered (by law) and if landlord and tenant can't agree at the end there's an 'independent' adjudication process. Here's something that happened to a landlord in Northampton.

• The tenant had taken on a modern 3 bed property in very good order. It was decorated magnolia throughout.
• During the course of the 18 month tenancy, he had painted the whole place white, despite there being a crystal clear clause in the tenancy agreement prohibiting this. There was no need to redecorate - just personal choice. 
• The paint job was patchy in places (more coats required). And he had splashed emulsion on the woodwork in every room.
• There was a tenancy deposit of about £800. The landlord sought the whole deposit on the basis that 1) they'd breached the tenancy agreement and 2) they'd made a right mess in the process.
• The tenant disputed the landlord's entitlement to any of the deposit.
• The adjudicator gave just £150 to the landlord, leaving him to foot the rest of the bill himself. 
• The full adjudication (with personal details removed) is viewable here.

From the landlords perspective, this is an absolute nonsense - the property has been fundamentally damaged by the tenant, but the award against the tenant is only £150.00. For the record, the tenant didn't pay the rent either and whilst this was eventually recovered through the courts, the costs of the proceedings were practically the same as the amount awarded. Whilst it's quite right that a landlord shouldn't be able to run off with a tenant's deposit, we now appear have turned full circle and ended up in a situation where a tenant can do pretty much what he wants and get away with it! Organisations such as Shelter who argue tenants need more protection really should be treated with a degree of skepticism!

Insurance

Over the years, one of the most common things I've seen landlords misunderstand is the extent to which they are insured. Of course, they don't realise this until the point of claim, and by that point it's too late. The situation isn't helped by insurers using very similar terms to describe very different things. I've tried on a number of occasions to simplify this for my landlords but given that problems still occur, I've clearly not been that successful! I'm hence going to give it another go here. Equally, we (Belvoir) sell insurance and it's actually really good. We've always tried to not be pushy regarding this, but I'm going to sell the benefits here as I'm aware of how many landlords choose rubbish cover and regret it later.

Buildings Insurance

• "Landlords" buildings insurance is not the same as buildings insurance on a property you live in yourself. "Landlords" buildings insurance has an element of public liability cover in it. So if a tenant falls downstairs and makes a claim against you, your "Landlords" buildings insurance will cover you, whereas a normal domestic policy won't.
• Some policies also cover "loss of rent". This will be following an incident such as a flood or a fire. It's unlikely to cover rent when a tenant doesn't pay it.
• A cheap policy will exclude cover for any damage the tenant causes, or anything their pets do.

Belvoir's buildings insurance policy is comprehensive in terms of what it covers - you can't buy it on the high street - it's available to our landlords only and includes:

• automatic contents cover (up to £5,000)
• cover for up to 120 days of the property being unoccupied.
• damage by the tenant.
• damage by pets.
• following an 'incident', loss of rent and the cost of re-letting.

Rent and Legal Expenses Insurance

• Often referred to as Tenant Default Insurance.
• Covers you if the tenant doesn't pay the rent. 
• Covers your legal / court / solicitors costs in getting rid of that tenant. 
• Carries on paying 75% of the rent for 2 months after the eviction and whilst you relet.

Belvoir's Rent and Legal Expenses Insurance is again very good quality cover - it does exactly what it says with very few restrictions. Common areas of misunderstanding are:

• "I can get a cheaper policy elsewhere". Actually you can get a free one if you search hard enough, but if you think you're comparing apples with apples, you're being optimistic. You get what you pay for, and as anyone who's needed to claim will testify, £130ish per annum per property is cheap. 
• "I'm already covered under my buildings policy". Possible, but highly unlikely. Your buildings policy will pay your rent following an insurable incident (eg a fire). It won't pay simply because your tenant hasn't.
• "But my tenant's been OK so far". A couple of landlords cancel cover each year for this reason. But then what if the tenant loses their job, or the couple in the property split up and one moves out? It's like saying you don't need cover for flood because it's not raining at the moment. 
• "If they can't pay the rent, they'll just have to leave". Yes, but it can take several months to make that happen if the tenant isn't co-operative. And the costs of eviction from someone like Landlord Action can be close to £1000, and in the meantime 4 months of no rent at £600 a month is £2,400. Evicting a non payment tenant is not a cheap business. 

Expectations

I have already said that everything rents. Whilst we can’t predict the future, we can only see the demand for these properties increasing when you consider:

• The population continues to grow, but not enough housing is being built.
• The number of single person households continues to increase, and the number of families occupying 2 houses (due to marital breakdown) increases also.
• The amount of money required to purchase a property is more than many people can afford. This is resulting in an increased demand for ‘family properties’ as people increasingly turn to rental to meet their long term housing needs.

Condition of Property

We mention it again, because it’s important. Tenants would rather live in a well presented shed than a dilapidated palace! This doesn’t mean you have to spend a fortune on improvements, just make sure it’s clean, neutral, and the kitchen and bathroom are modern.

Size of Property

A 4 bed house will rent, but there’s always most demand for smaller units – studio or 1 beds close to town or 2 or 3 bed properties in the suburbs. There’s an increasing demand for 3 bed family properties out of town. People who rent don’t want hassle so are generally more concerned with the practicality and ease of a property, rather than having something they can fall in love with.

Price of Property

The bottom end of the market is in particularly high demand. A nice room in a shared house will cost about £600PCM including bills, but some people want their own space and don’t want to share. For that reason, anything you can offer to the market that’s inexpensive (under £600 plus bills or under £700 including bills) will always rent well. It doesn’t matter if it’s tiny as long as it’s self-contained. Landlords who cut larger properties into selfcontained studios do particularly well.

Housing Benefit

There’s massive demand for properties that accept tenants in receipt of benefits, particularly 1 beds and 2 beds. The Local Authority waiting list is currently in the thousands

Leasehold

Some landlords seek to avoid flats, or other leasehold properties. There are valid reasons for this, namely:

• There’s a monthly service charge to factor in, which will negatively affect your return.

• There’s a lease that’s depreciating, and if you need to renew it, there’s an associated cost.

However, some Landlords make good money out of leasehold units. That’s because they are careful about what they buy and factor in the associated costs. They would argue:

• Leasehold properties usually cost less than their freehold equivalents to start off with.

• If the property has a long lease, this is unlikely to ‘bite’ you during your period of ownership.

• Leasehold properties tend to be more modern and as such in better internal order.

• Leasehold properties rent just as well as freehold ones. Many tenants like the ease of renting a flat.

Landlords: Rent hasn't arrived? Here's what you do

We've been contacted by a number of landlords in the last week who have stopped receiving money from their lettings agent, without reason. The agent is also not returning phone calls, and their shop is shut. Clearly the agent  in question has stopped trading, or is very close to doing so, but where does that leave the landlord, and what should he do?

From a tenancy perspective, I'd recommend the landlord do the following:

• Contact the tenant, and tell the tenant to stop paying the agent with immediate effect. This will stop any more money going missing.
• Either appoint another agent and give the tenant the new agent's details, or give his own bank details and contact details - effectively managing the tenancy themselves.

What other problems could the landlord face?

• Where is the tenancy deposit? If the agent has it, or rather doesn't have it, the landlord could have a problem, as he would be liable to his tenant for the full value of the deposit.
• Where is the gas safety certificate for the property? This is really important. The landlord may have a copy, or there should be a copy in the property. If a copy can't be found, the landlord is better off instructing a new certificate himself. I can help with that if required
• Where is the inventory? If the landlord wants to make a claim on the tenancy deposit, he'll need a copy of this.
• Where is the tenancy agreement? The landlord or tenant may have a copy. Legally the tenancy can exist without it, as a tenancy agreement can be verbal. However to prevent disputes between landlord and tenant it's worth getting a new copy signed if one can't be found.
• Does the agent have a set of keys? A landlord should try to recover these.

What can a landlord do to recover the money he's lost?

• Assuming the tenant has paid the agent, but the agent hasn't paid it on, the landlord needs to take some legal advice. I suspect the prognosis isn't good.

What can a landlord do to stop this happening again?

Quite simply, use an agent who is a member of SafeAgent  www.safeagents.co.uk/ All members must have their client accounts checked on a regular basis and also have to carry Client Money Protection Insurance - so if the agent is experiencing financial problems, any loss suffered by the landlord is insured.

Should I take a tenant in receipt of benefits?

Most landlords who have been renting property for a while will have been asked this question, and my staff  get asked on a daily basis whether a given property will accept people who are receiving benefits. Quite simply that’s because there’s huge demand for properties that will accept benefit claimants – Local Authorities in Kingston Council have ‘waiting lists’ running into the thousands which continue to grow. It is a specialised area of the market, and one that you must not enter casually. However for some of our landlords it is a very lucrative market, and they are now buying to meet the tenant demand.

These tenancies can work well, but it’s really important that the landlord understands in advance how these tenancies work, and what the pro’s and con’s are. I’ll go through these below.

Should I, Shouldn't I?

The main question Landlords should ask is ‘do I need to accept Housing Benefit Tenants to rent my property’?, For the vast majority of Landlords, the answer to this question will be no – there will be a large enough supply of good quality private tenants happy to pay the rent you want. As such you’ll stick to the private market as it is, statistically, less hassle. Landlords generally need to consider a tenant on benefits :

• if their property is in an area where there’s low demand from private tenants, or
• if the local market is such that there’s a shortage of private tenants generally.

What are the advantages?

If your property isn't in the best area, there are many!

• You can get a premium rent for your property – Local Authorities have a set ‘scale’ they pay against, based on the size of the property, and not based on the area. As such if you've got a property in one of the poorer areas of town, you’ll get more for it with a Housing Benefit tenancy than with a private one.
• In many cases the Council will provide a guarantee bond instead of a deposit. This is usually capped at 1 months rent, but in certain instances can go as high as £6,000. The bond scheme with Kingston Upon Thames works well, and pays out.
• Housing Benefit tenancies statistically last longer – if you’re claiming benefit and you want somewhere nice to live, the world is by no means your oyster! As such when tenants get somewhere nice, they tend to stay longer.
• In certain areas of town, a housing benefit tenant may be a safer bet than a private tenant – a single parent with children is always going to be entitled to funds, whereas a private tenant on low income and in / out of work, may struggle more to pay.
• More often than not, we can arrange to receive direct payment from the Local Authority, which mitigates the likelyhood of the tenant not paying.

What are the disadvantages?

There are a few here also. It's important you understand these in advance.

• Rent is paid in arrears, not in advance.
• Local Authorities make 13 rental payments a year instead of 12. You still get the same amount of rent annually, only in smaller chunks.
• Without wishing to over generalise, tenants often struggle to deal with issues that arise (such as their benefit entitlement being changed) and deal with this by ignoring it, or burying their head, rather than coming and telling you.
• If the Local Authority overpays housing benefit, they will take it back from whoever they paid it to. As such if we’re getting direct payment for your tenant, and the LA subsequently decides the tenant wasn't entitled to that money, they will deal with it by simply taking the money back – that's democracy for you!
• Local Authorities aren't geared up to communicate with landlords, and very much see the tenant as their ‘customer’. If the tenant's entitlement to benefit changes, you can bet the local authority won’t tell you – the first you’ll know is when the money stops coming in. As such Housing Benefit tenancies can take a lot more management.
• If you want to / need to get rid of your tenant, you can bet the Local Authority won’t help you – you’ll very much have to rely on the court process unless your tenant is happy to play ball!
• As an agent we lose a little bit of flexibility on which tenant we let to – the Council doesn't like to see us making arbitrary decisions, and rejects any form of 'discrimination'.
• The secret to success is hence understanding the above and managing it. If you get a reliable tenant, and a relaxed landlord, it can work really well and deliver a great yield for the landlord. If you get an unreliable tenant and an inflexible landlord, problems can ensue!

As such there can be problems with accepting tenants in receipt of housing benefit. It’s not a market that suits everyone and if you’re the sort of landlords that treats their rental properties as extensions of their own home, it’s not the market for you. That said, you can pick up a cheap property in one of the less upmarket areas of town and rent it for good money. We have a number of landlords who operate successfully in this market and I have a couple of places myself that I let out to tenants in receipt of benefit. Nearly all of us get our fingers stung occasionally. However all of us come out ahead overall. 

Can't sell it, should I rent it?

One of the main sources of new properties to the rental market over recent months has been from people who can’t sell their property for a price they are happy with, so rent it instead. These properties are usually popular with tenants as by their nature, they tend to be family properties in nice areas. As such finding a tenant isn’t usually an issue. However if you are an ‘accidental landlord’ the overall success of letting your property depends to a large extent on your understanding and acceptance of what being a landlord involves.

What do I need to do before I can rent my property?

The vast majority of this will be covered by a competent lettings agent when they visit to appraise your property. Getting a couple of ARLA agents round will identify key points that come up again and again – these are the ones that really need your attention.

• Switch your buildings and contents insurance to a Landlord specific policy. Your insurer won’t pay out if you haven’t told them the property is rented.
• Get the relevant safety certification sorted out for your property. Again a competent agent will assist you with this.
• Sort out any little imperfections that you know exist in the property, and that you put up with yourself – once someone is paying you money to live there, they won’t put up with it like you did. Cupboard doors that don’t quite close properly are a classic example!
• Think health & safety! A small pond in the garden may have been fine whilst you lived in the house alone, but is not fine if your tenant has 2 small children. You must protect your own interests by dealing with issues such as this.
• Clean it! This isn’t always the easiest thing to get across to someone who’s lived in a property, but look at it this way – if you pay for a professional clean before the tenant moves in, you can expect the property back with a professional clean done too.

Will I be satisfied with the rental experience?

We find that ‘accidental landlords’ are often less satisfied with the whole rental experience than people who have bought property specifically as an investment. To an extent this is inevitable as renting the house is not ideally what they wanted to do. To make it work, your expectations need to be realistic:

• Detach yourself! Although you may have lived in the house for 10 years, at the point you rent it you need to make a bit of a mental adjustment – the property is no longer your home and is now a commercial investment! If anything it’s someone else’s home. The key thing for you is making the investment pay.
• Be flexible. Although you may love your flowery green carpet, this isn’t something that will necessarily appeal to a tenant. Don’t be offended if your agent politely suggests changing things like this – they only make suggestions like this because they know if will enable them to find YOU a tenant more quickly.
• Accept that a tenant rarely cares for a property quite as well as an owner. You should not expect damage, but you should expect wear and tear. If you rent to a family with young children, spills, scuffs and scrapes are inevitable – this is part and parcel of renting a property. In particular tenants rarely maintain a garden like an owner does – if you’ve spent the last 20 years developing prize winning flower beds, don’t be surprised when the tenant doesn’t share your enthusiasm!
• Don’t drive by every day and worry! If they don’t cut the front garden or clean the front windows quite as often as you did, you can’t insist on them doing this, unless they are fundamentally neglecting things. What matters is that the property is returned to you at the end of the tenancy in the same condition it was given, minus reasonable wear and tear.

What does an agent do?

Most ‘accidental landlords’ choose an agent to manage their property, rather than doing so themselves, as they don’t have experience of letting, and don’t know much about tenancy law. It’s always a good idea to get a couple of different ARLA agents round and listen to what each has to say – in that way you’ll get a flavour of what each can offer. Remember that finding a tenant is the easy bit – the skill is in looking after the property on an ongoing basis. You’ll find ARLA agents are better geared to do this than estate agents who have opened a lettings department.

Don’t make the classic mistake of choosing the cheapest unregulated agent in town. Your rental property is one of the biggest financial commitments you’ll make in your life, and you want some assurance firstly it’s being properly looked after, and secondly that you have some redress if it isn’t. 

Buy to Let - Top Advice for Landlords

If you’re lucky to find a good deal, you need to get it bought quickly before someone else steals it. I’ve seen people buy property in 7 days and I’ve seen it take 7 months. Sometimes (usually if there’s a chain) it’s out of your control, but often the length of time taken to purchase a property is something you can influence through the decisions you make.

Mortgage Companies

We all want the best rate, but in a competitive mortgage market you should also pay attention to which mortgage companies lend easily. A good mortgage broker will know this and you should take their advice. I know from purchasing myself that lenders such as The Mortgage Works move at pace and can get an offer out in 10-14 days.
 
Alternatively Barclays / Woolwich ask LOTS of questions and seem generally more reluctant to lend. From personal experience I’d favour a good rate with an easy lender rather than an excellent rate with a difficult lender, every time.

Surveyors

If you want additional reassurance regarding a property, a survey is important but you must be realistic regarding what that survey will show. The surveyor won’t want a situation where you accuse them of missing something at a later date – so they’ll mention everything! You need to be realistic that, for example, most Victorian properties will
have a “higher than average damp reading”. Don’t panic when you receive the report - when you get a list of problems, you need to ascertain if there’s anything on that list that doesn’t apply to every other house on the street.

Conveyancers

The best conveyancer is not the cheapest. You can buy conveyancing online for £99 but we’ll all still be here in 6 months whilst they look for the paperwork they’ve lost. A good conveyancer will get the deal done quickly - if you don’t have one, we can recommend a couple. Also, don’t forget your conveyancer works for you. Often people allow the conveyancer to set the pace of the transaction. You should be telling your conveyancer you’re looking for a quick transaction before you instruct them and chasing them regularly. People who do this purchase properties more quickly.