Looking to rent a flat in London - please help and join the hunt if you want :)

czerniacha

devotee wrote: »

Much nicer area and not as far as Ealing http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-to-rent/property-19853959.html

Oh, this one is lovely, but available in April next year?

devotee

czerniacha wrote: »

Oh, this one is lovely, but available in April next year?

Oops sorry, just noticed! !!!!!! they are advertising it now? Might be worth a call to the agent....

czerniacha

Gosh, that's harder then I imagined! I've spent the whole morning calling agents and was only able to set up two viewings for tomorrow! Most flats are gone very quickly I guess I have to look AND call on a daily basis and see if I can find something nice...

climbgirl

Oh yes, flats move VERY quickly in London, especially the good ones. You have to try and be the first people to see it if you can. The way to do it is try and befriend an agent - call them every day and ask them if there's anything new and let them know that you're keen and serious. If you can get them onside they'll show you things first to get rid of your calls

Take your references and bank statements and payslips to every viewing with you so if you like a place you can move on it immediately. Have the cash ready sitting in your bank account to put down the deposit and take it off the market straight away. If you need to move money around and it takes a few days, someone else might get in there. You may not need to use them, but it helps to be prepared in case you find the right place!

And be prepared to compromise on something. I don't think the perfect flat exists in London so work out what you're prepared to be a bit flexible on.

czerniacha

Hmm... in terms of references: do they need to be written? or do I just provide my landlord's number? I never did any of it... I was renting from our friend for couple of years and our current landlord never asked for any refs. I'm sure he'll be happy to provide us with them but do they need to be written?

Bank statements, payslips and cash no problem

climbgirl

We've always had to give contact details (phone and email) so they can call directly.

It's not that hard to write yourself a glowing reference and sign it in someone else's name!

Just take the contact details with you so you're all set to go.

prudryden

Can you get a current or past employer reference with a statement of income? Worth a lot to a potential landlord. Landlord reference is OK, but some LL's can be a bit sceptical of previous landlord's comments. Have you tried all the agents in Ealing? There are about 55 in the West London area (not all do lettings however). Many of the letting agents e.g. Winkworth's, are located near the stations i.e. Ealing Broadway, Ealing Common, West Ealing etc. Best of luck to you.

devotee

My friend owns this agency http://l-d-b.co.uk/site/go/home, not sure if he has anything in your range, but ask for Dominic and mention my name, Natasha, and see if he has anything coming up soon.

czerniacha

So, we've seen two flats on Saturday.
The first one was awful, nothing like in the pictures(partly the current tenant's fault but I don't see it getting back to 'nice') however we liked the area... (Acton/Shepherd's bush)
The second flat was much nicer, only 5 mins away so still a nice area... Three potential tenants(one didn't like the windows and left after two minutes, the other one looked grumpy all the time so no idea what he thought) at the same time viewing it... We liked it(not a big WOW but we could imagine living there for a while...) and of course the agent said to hurry up and call him same day... I didn't as I wasn't sure so he called me (at that point I think I got a clue what their tricks are) I told him I need more time to think and to call me on Monday... And he did(in my books it means nobody else was seriously interested). We discussed some details i.e. price, what council tax(a lot!band D) etc. he said it can be un-/furnished and we wanted it furnished. At the viewing there was the tenant's furniture but he said the owner can provide furniture.
Anyway after some more negotiating he asked what furniture we want and I told him(after three pieces he stopped me) but then limited me to bed and sofa as it would be easier for the landlady(?) and said min. 2 years if we want it furnished as she has to buy the furniture and if we move out quickly she might have to throw it away... I also offered for her to give me her budget and I'm happy to search for second hand furniture but all that we need and the ones we like(I imagine new bed and new sofa won't be cheap)...
So in the end I told him we are fine with 2 years minimum and the rent we agreed on but either way we need it furnished... he didn't get back to me in the last 24 hours so I take it's a no? or is it one of his tricks?

Either way I keep looking, can't do any viewings during the week as I finish work quite late and my bf is on call... I have one viewing booked for Saturday but I suspect it might be gone until then... I'll try to get some more viewings for the weekend anyway and hopefully we find something soon...

czerniacha

Ok, I think we have found it!

After viewing 5 flats we made an offer today... We decided we can't find anything better in our price range and location. So it's gonna be quite good size(we were expecting to see something tiny but it is actually spacious) 1 bed flat at 996GBP a month and I think under 100GBP council tax(that's what the agent said - ca.1100 a year) it's in Acton(close to High Street) and my friend lives just round the corner!

So if everything goes well now we'll move in October - we decided to stay here one more month to make sure I have my new job secured... All my energy goes towards the job hunt now

So thank you guys for all your help and support! you are brilliant!