First-time renting questions - employment check and application fees.

YBNB

Hi MSE'ers.

My girlfriend and I are planning to rent a property shortly. I've never rented before. We have a couple of viewings early next week and there are a couple of things that I'm wondering about.

Firstly, the Employment Reference - my girlfriend is self-employed; I am full-time employed, but by a German company, and my work is based in Germany. I can provide a copy of my contract (in German) and payslips, but I'm not sure whether this will adversely affect our passing the relevant checks.

The second is regarding the application fees (for credit check, employment check, references etc.). The agent we are meeting with next week is saying that if we want to officially apply for either of the properties, we will have to hand over the application fees immediately, namely £140 for the first applicant and £40 for the second. The agent will undertake these things, and only then will we be put forward to the landlord as potential tenants.

It strikes me as a bit odd that we would have to shell out £180 - if the checks and things come back ok, we are still potentially out of pocket to the tune of £180 if for any reason, the landlord doesn't fancy us as tenants.

Is that figure (£180 combined for joint applicants) normal/reasonable?

Is it reasonable for us to shell out that much even though the landlord might not want us as tenants?

Many thanks to all who find time to reply - it is appreciated.

G_M

1) Different agencies and LLs will have different attitudes. Some may find a German language contract that they can't read, and /or a self employed person a problem. Others may not.
a) ask! Get a clear answer before handing over any cash
b) offer to provide a translation
c) provide accounts for last year's declared self-emplyed income

2) Fairly normal. The credit checks cost money, and referencing takes time = manpower = costs. However agencies also use this activity to make a profit (they are a business after all!), and so the amount they charge will vary. Shop around agencies.
As a LL I rarely use agencies. I don't charge for my time when checking referencies, and use a credit vetting service the price of which a) I pass on to the applicant at cost (£15-£30 depending which service) and b) I refund if the tenant moves in.
If the tenant 'fails' the vetting process, I don't refund, otherwise I could be running up huge costs if several consecutive applicants all fail.

YBNB

Many thanks for replying and helping, G_M.

I'm not sure we have the option to shop around for agencies - the agent responsible for both searches is strongly implying that they will undertake the searches themselves. As you say, they're in business to make money and probably wouldn't take kindly to us saying we'd like someone else to do the credit checks, I don't think.

Thanks for providing some clarification, though.

ceh209

Personally, £180 seems actually very reasonable given some of the costs I've paid before!

However I would say talk to the agents before you give them any money. Discuss your situation and they should be able to tell you whether it will be a problem or not (the German and/or being self employed). If they say you'll probably fail from the outset, then at least you know where you stand.

G_M

YBNB wrote: »

Many thanks for replying and helping, G_M.

I'm not sure we have the option to shop around for agencies - the agent responsible for both searches is strongly implying that they will undertake the searches themselves. As you say, they're in business to make money and probably wouldn't take kindly to us saying we'd like someone else to do the credit checks, I don't think.

Thanks for providing some clarification, though.

My suggestion was to shop around for alternative agencies, not to ask them to use a different search company (which I agree they will not do).

This would mean finding a letting agent which has lower search/admin/registration fees, although of course they will have different flats on their books. You could also look for landlords who do not use agencies (local papers, internet sites etc)

If you are set on this particular flat, you will have little choice.

snapping_crocodile

The only fees I ever had to pay were the administration fees for setting up the tenancy agreement, and a credit check. I would say shop around various agencies and see what others charge, and dont make a rash decision to hand over the money whilst carryoing out the viewing and then live to regret it. Sounds a bit odd to me that you have to pay per person to even be considered for the tenancy :eek: Surely it is the LA responsibility to ascertain this through the credit check, and references from previous LLs if available?

YBNB

G_M wrote: »

My suggestion was to shop around for alternative agencies, not to ask them to use a different search company (which I agree they will not do).

This would mean finding a letting agent which has lower search/admin/registration fees, although of course they will have different flats on their books. You could also look for landlords who do not use agencies (local papers, internet sites etc)

Gotcha. Thanks for clarifying.

G_M wrote: »

If you are set on this particular flat, you will have little choice.

Quite.

Are there any internet sites I've missed when looking for private landlords, operating outside of agencies? (I am aware of the potential pitfalls when not using an agent and the attendant protection but also that the benefits might well outweigh the pitfalls).

So, any internet sites that operate like small ads where I might find private landlords offering flats? I've done a Google search but not found any useful sites.

LeeSouthEast

My girlfriend and I went to view a property last month. We liked it very much. Got discussing fees and they wanted £200 for each of us. I just laughed. The poor guy looked very uncomfortable and said that this could be 'negotiated'. I continued to laugh as we both walked out.

No one tries to stiff me and gets away with it.

bristol_pilot

You can save yourself all these fees and a whole lot of hassle by renting directly from a landlord. Agents just rip off landlord and tenant alike. I have never paid a single penny in agency fees. A credit check is a particular joke - you pay rent in advance, so they are not offering you credit! They only do the credit check so that they can charge the fee! Don't be a mug - rent direct. Plenty of private landlords on gumtree, in the local paper or even in the newsagent's window.

bristol_pilot

G_M wrote: »

1) If the tenant 'fails' the vetting process, I don't refund, otherwise I could be running up huge costs if several consecutive applicants all fail.

This may be fair enough where the LL is charging the tenant cost price for the checks (although I would argue that it is always unreasonable to carry out a credit check where credit is not being offered - it is not an 'ability to pay the rent' check!), however a well-known scam is for agencies to run very profitable (to them) credit checks against dozens of potential tenants knowing full well that they have no intention of offering most of them the tenancy (they simply tell the tenant that they failed the credit check and pocket the fee).

LeeSouthEast

Renting privately isn't a problem. Indeed this is the exact route I went with with my ex. However, some properties (usually the nicer ones!) always seem to be agent-only, in my experience.