Holding deposit

little_mascara88

Hi all,

My fianc! and I viewed a flat just over a week ago and decided it was exactly what we wanted. We went to the letting agent, filled in the forms and paid a holding deposit of £300. They said they'd get back to us after "ringing our employers" to check if we worked where we said we do.

I just wondered if anyone could confirm what the holding deposit is for. It was my understanding that they would take the flat off of the market whilst they checked our information, have I got this right? However, one week on, we have heard nothing back from the agent and the property is still on their website. How long does this process usually take, and how long should I give them before I chase them up on this?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

hcb42

i would have chased them 5 days ago...

jamie11

I just wondered if anyone could confirm what the holding deposit is for.

You would forfeit the deposit if you changed your mind. If they do not accept you for their reasons, whatever they may be, then it should be refunded in full.

Werdnal

Were you given copies of anything when you paid the deposit, or of the forms you completed? You should atleast have a receipt for the money you've paid.

It is common for an agent to keep the property "live" but they should advise anyone enquiring after you have "reserved" it, that it is under offer. They obviously don't know whether you are going to pass you credit checks etc, and if you don't, they want a back-up plan of other interested parties.

Ring them and ask whats happening.

BTW, there is usually more to it than phoning your employers. They will do a full reference, contacting anyone you have mentioned on the form, and check out your credit history, so it does sometimes take a few days, but you should have heard something by now.

little_mascara88

Werdnal wrote: »

Were you given copies of anything when you paid the deposit, or of the forms you completed? You should atleast have a receipt for the money you've paid.

It is common for an agent to keep the property "live" but they should advise anyone enquiring after you have "reserved" it, that it is under offer. They obviously don't know whether you are going to pass you credit checks etc, and if you don't, they want a back-up plan of other interested parties.

Ring them and ask whats happening.

BTW, there is usually more to it than phoning your employers. They will do a full reference, contacting anyone you have mentioned on the form, and check out your credit history, so it does sometimes take a few days, but you should have heard something by now.

Thank you all for your replies.

I've just rung them now and they said that references and everything has back fine and we're on track for our intended move in date. The landlord of the property we've applied for is laying some new carpets etc ready for us. Apparently we should have had an admin letter come through to let us know this a few days ago, which we haven't received (but as we regularly have post stolen from our communal letter box, one of the reasons we want to move out, I doubt we'll see this).

What a relief!

G_M

If the carpets and any other work are what you expect then either
a) view the property again before signing to check the work's been done or
b) if the work is promised to be done later - get that promise in writing.