"TOGETHER
AND FOREVER AS LANDLORDS TOGETHER SUPPORTING EACH OTHER"
We Will:
- Source the Best Tenants
- Report the Worse Ones and
- Communicate by E-mail About Those To Avoid
To be a part of this community you must register
here and report/check your prospective tenants.
Purpose of this site
This site is set up primarily for the benefit
of Landlords, Letting Agencies,and Management Agencies.
It is unfortunate that despite the efforts of landlords
and agents, there are still large numbers of tenants who have no
compunction about abusing their rights, refusing to pay their rent
or dragging it out as long as possible, costing the landlord months
of unpaid rent and then leaving the property and going onto another
unsuspecting landlord, but not before vandalising the property,
(usually just before a court order) costing the landlord thousands
of pounds with very little prospect of recovering any of his cost.
In extreme situations there are instances where particularly inexperienced
landlords find themselves with the risk of loosing their property
altogether because the rent was not there to meet the mortgage repayments.
The Focus of This Site
To focus on the problems that arise between landlord/tenant.
By looking at the frequency and nature of these problems conclusions
will be drawn about:
- The risks of letting
- How the risks can be managed
- Whether prospective landlords have anything
to fear
Many other questions should be addressed, in particular:
- Do letting agents and other services provide
value for money
- Do landlords get ‘job satisfaction’?
- Do landlords get peace of mind
Why is this important to landlords?
Firstly, private landlords need to
protect their investment. Prior research will assess the impact
of income groups, of prospective tenant, use of managing agents
and several other variables, as well as management techniques of
landlords themselves. This will proceed into best practice.
Secondly, many organisations including
landlord associations, and insurers offer services - mostly at a
price - to the landlord, marketing for these services exploit’s
a fear of difficulties. More data on the actual level of problems
will assist landlords to make a decision about the help they employ
to manage their property.
Thirdly, thousands of new landlords
have emerged in recent years. Standards are rising along with market
forces, but rented sector is still seen as providing a lower standard
of accommodation and that landlord themselves only want the money
with little regard for their tenants. A greater knowledge of the
behaviour of landlords and their tenants will have positive benefits
for the landlord generally.
Finally, surging house prices have
led to worries about the effect of such housing for the first time
buyers and to ‘key workers. This may lead to owners taking
the decision to let property that would otherwise be unoccupied,
making a small but welcome contribution to the housing process.
Some landlords are typically buy
to let owners, owning between one and three properties, others may
have inherited a property, or decided to let their own home during
relocation.
The Challenge
How do you find the right tenant in the first
place?
If this is the issue I would say that you should not be too much
in a hurry to rent until you find the right person/s.
Most landlords will leave that up to somebody else but ensure that
whoever you chose in your quest for good tenants, that person is
honest trustworthy and experienced in this field. I find that most
times you know this by doing your own research and talking with
the individual.
For the landlords who prefers to find the tenant himself, research
is vital, referencing properly i.e. Work reference (get a payslip
or P60 or HM revenue and custom recent tax assessment), Bank reference
(last 2 months bank statement), Character reference from previous
landlord (although you may be given reasons why this was not possible,
you should try and write to them anyway) Proof of ID must also be
obtained and the best proof is a copy of the passport - which will
then give conformation of date of birth, permission to reside in
the uk and offer a true likeness of the individual’s identity.
Finally, get a utility bill or council tax statement
to prove the individual lived at the address he gave you as his
previous residence. For students you should always get parents guarantees
where possible.
The Contract
It should be crucially important that you use a formal
Assured Short-hold Tenancy agreement
(AST). This is the foundation of any agreement between both
parties and should be for 6 month or 12 months with a notice requiring
possession at the end of the tenancy, normally issued at the beginning
of the tenancy (but dated one day after the AST).
*In the contract of tenancy the landlord/managing agent
should add a statement which makes it clear that the tenant accepts
the fact that his/her details may be added to the tenancy database
at the end of the tenancy. In all circumstances this statement
must form part of any Tenancy agreement between Landlord/Management
Agent and Tenant (example available at the resource centre).
An inventory is vital and should cover everything. Most letting
agencies will organise these documents on behalf of the landlord,
and where management of the property is involved they will make
regular visits to the property to ensure everything is fine for
tenant and the landlord.
* Essential statement
The Tenancy
The property offered must be clean and structurally
sound and we suggest you take photographs at the beginning
of the tenancy. All furniture must be up to acceptable
standard. Electric wiring and appliances must be safe and all gas
appliances must be in good working order and serviced regularly.
An annual gas certificate provided by a qualified gas service engineer
should be current. Smoke alarms must be fitted throughout the accommodation
and should not be removed at any time during the tenancy. Apart
from being a legal requirement these fitting these safety equipments
also show that the landlord cares about the well being of his/her
tenants.
Add your good
or bad tenants to our database.
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