How to go about this?? Haggling a potential landlord to include elec and basic bills?

maz_student

I am looking to rent a small 1 bed flat for about £450 a month. Ive found a good property, its in an OK-ish location close to work. Ive contacted the estate agents.
We've all heard the phrase "turn problems into opportunities" (or words to that effect)....
well....:rotfl:.... ....
Since it doesnt specify online whether bills will be included or not (the problem;)) can I haggle the estate agent to ask the landlord to consider bills to be included in the renting price (my solution;):o)? Is this a common thing to do?

How do I go about this? Ive just emailed the Estate Agents asking them to get back to me. I havent mentioned anything about bills yet.
I just want the water and electricity bills to be included.
I dont think I need anything else (I dont think there's anything else that I need...those are the only two I can think of)

Whats the best way to go about this? Shall I bring this up with the landlord when I eventually meet up with him/her? The Estate Agent may not be too fussed whether the landlord agrees to it, so when he brings it up with the landlord he might do it in a casual manner . So perhaps its better if I do it myself because I will convey how desperate I am. The landlord may not do that (i have no idea).

Any opinions or ideas are welcomed:j
Sorry if this is a silly question - im new to all of this :A

tbs624

You can ask a LA/ LL anything you want to and you should always clarify who is responsible for which bills.

You will find though that most LLs prefer not to include bills such as gas & electricity because they are not fixed costs : tenants have absolutely no incentive to keep bills low when they are not directly picking up the tab. You may have more success on the water bills or simply haggling for a rent reduction, depending on how the market is in your area.

Bear in mind that LAs act for the LL and also want to safeguard max % fees for themselves so you may have more success on haggling if you use a LL who self-manages his/her properties (try going via the local LL association).

As you say you are new to renting take a look at the "sticky" on Renting up at the top of the Board.

DawnW

As a LL, I would not agree to this - not because I am unreasonable, but because I would have absolutely no control over how much electricity was used, and perhaps more importantly, what for :eek:

You may find that you have more success negotiating on the rent, but to have any hope of achieving this you will have to do some homework. That means looking on Rightmove, local press etc to see whether the rent levels of similar properties in your area are higher, lower or the same as the one you are interested in. If they are lower, you may have a good chance of a reduction. Be prepared to show the LL / LA specific examples. If the rent for similar flats is the same or higher, it is probably about right - the market level for your area.

Don't forget you need to factor in Council Tax into your calculations!
Good luck!

gismo1554

maz_student wrote: »

I am looking to rent a small 1 bed flat for about £450 a month. Ive found a good property, its in an OK-ish location close to work. Ive contacted the estate agents.
We've all heard the phrase "turn problems into opportunities" (or words to that effect)....
well....:rotfl:.... ....
Since it doesnt specify online whether bills will be included or not (the problem;)) can I haggle the estate agent to ask the landlord to consider bills to be included in the renting price (my solution;):o)? Is this a common thing to do?

How do I go about this? Ive just emailed the Estate Agents asking them to get back to me. I havent mentioned anything about bills yet.
I just want the water and electricity bills to be included.
I dont think I need anything else (I dont think there's anything else that I need...those are the only two I can think of)

Whats the best way to go about this? Shall I bring this up with the landlord when I eventually meet up with him/her? The Estate Agent may not be too fussed whether the landlord agrees to it, so when he brings it up with the landlord he might do it in a casual manner . So perhaps its better if I do it myself because I will convey how desperate I am. The landlord may not do that (i have no idea).

Any opinions or ideas are welcomed:j
Sorry if this is a silly question - im new to all of this :A

Remember its not just Electricity & Water you will be using. I think you will probably have more luck requesting Water & Council Tax as these are fixed prices per year usually. The other costs you will have are: Telephone line, Internet, TV possibly.

ILW

Wonder if the OP has an electric car?

maz_student

Thanks to everyone's replies so far

gismo1554 wrote: »

Remember its not just Electricity & Water you will be using. I think you will probably have more luck requesting Water & Council Tax as these are fixed prices per year usually. The other costs you will have are: Telephone line, Internet, TV possibly.

hmm.. well the reason why I originally thought of water & elec. is because quite often it states that they are included in the price. I thought it would be a good idea to ask. I've done a little research by talking to people and they say that its not too bad per month, and since im quite sensible im not worried even if I do have to pay for them.

ILW wrote:

Wonder if the OP has an electric car?

No

Pssst

Why would the LL want to do this unless you paid him a huge hike in rent? Its an open ended expense for him and obviously,you will just feel free to use it as much as you like then!

clutton_2

i would NEVER offer any tenant free electricity or gas or water come to that

i would have very serious reservations about someone asking me this

if you want to pay less - then ask for a rent decrease - but be prepared for a negative answer.....