Every landlord or owner of private residential property in the UK, who’s looking to find a tenant, goes through the same conundrum – is it better to hire a letting agent or do the entire job themselves? Before deciding what to do, one should know what is the job of a letting agent.
Letting agents in the UK often offer different levels and types of services, so it is a good idea to know how much you wish to be involved with your property’s management and maintenance. Depending on your needs and requirements, rest assured, there will always be a service that you can benefit from.
So, what is the basic job description of letting agents in the UK?
Helps You Find a Tenant
This is the most basic service level offered by a letting agent. After you give the ‘go-ahead sign,’ your letting agent will post an ad for your private residential property. It will be highlighted to tenants as an available rental property. So, the letting agent is responsible for finding a suitable tenant.
For this, he or she will take good professional photos of the property and upload them on different websites where people look for properties. They will also design floorplans and advertise necessary information of the property on all the platforms where the most traction is guaranteed. Additionally, they also:
- Arrange and even attend viewings (especially if their client is not available or not in the country),
- Conduct references and Right-to-Rentchecks,
- Draw up the tenancy agreement,
- Create an inventory.
Once a tenant is found who agrees to move-in by a certain date, they stand behind as all the major work is done. The rest is up to the landlord.
Collects Rent on Your Behalf
There are some cases when the landlord cannot collect rent from their tenants, which is where the letting agent comes in the picture. On your behalf, your letting agent will collect and even handle all the legal requirements of protecting the security deposit and rent collection from the tenant.
In addition, the letting agent will make sure all rent arrears are paid in full. They will serve notices to the tenant (in case of non-payment of rent or other issues) and will offer advice of what you should and can do in case a tenant continues to not pay rent.
Some letting agents and property management services even provide insurance that helps protect in come in case there are rent arrears due on the property.
Manages in Your Behalf
Depending on the situation, the letting agent can take complete control of the property management. This means managing all aspects of letting the property, which also include the services that are offered such as finding tenants and collecting rent.
They will be in touch with the tenant throughout the duration of the tenancy, organize maintenance of the property, conduct inspections, check-in and check-out as well as oversee any deposit disputes.
You can find a good letting agent or property management service, but do you know what are they obligated to do?
A service fee is charged by letting agents who provide the above-mentioned services, which means your letting agent will be bound by contract to place your needs and best interests first, even before a tenant.
Additionally, a tenant is also charged fees for services received from the agent… in turn, they receive a duty of care but can at any point contradict the best interests of the landlord.
What does this mean? This means that a letting agent cannot offer advice to a tenant regarding any aspect of the tenancy or the agreement, if it compromises the landlord’s position.
How Much Can You Expect to Pay in Service Fees?
The cost of a letting agent varies greatly depending on the property’s location and the quality of assistance you seek. Rather than charging a fixed fee for the entire contract time, agents frequently charge a percentage of the monthly rent. How much should you budget for? Depending on the service, agent fees can range from less than 10% to more than 20% of the rent.
Depending on the area and the managing agent you choose, full property management can cost anywhere from 12% to 20% of the entire rent. The normal fees imposed by Savills, which has over 100 branches across the UK, are listed below as an example.
- Letting, tenancy renewal and receiving rent: 15% of the total rent (minimum overall fee of £1,800 in London, or £1,200 elsewhere)
- The above plus property management: 20.4% of the rent.
The above fees include VAT. Think before you make the decision of hiring a letting agent or property management service. Can you do it all alone? If not, then hiring a good one might help lessen your burden.
