Renting but need a place quick!

jamie11 · 12 August 2011 at 5:06AM

flappy_mcwarbucks wrote: »

(i only deal with landlords, i never, ever deal with letting agents. they're all thieving scum).

That's a very nice sentiment (not). What about the helpful and honest letting agents answering questions on this thread alone? Are they scum as well?

Don't tar everybody with the same brush.

birduk · 12 August 2011 at 10:07AM

4 weeks is probably the right amount of time to be honest. We still have 4 weeks to go until moving date and haven't found anywhere yet. Last time I moved, it was through an agent and it was easily done in two weeks.

It only takes a couple of days to do the checks required (a week max) and your application will only take a day to fill in. Landlords don't want voids so they are happy for you to move ASAP. Many viewings are also conducted after the last tenant has moved out, so they do want to get someone else in sooner rather than later. It will only cost money for it to sit there empty. Most places I see up for rent are available NOW rather than in a months time.

Good luck and don't just go with the first place you see. There will be more properties available next week. Don't panic.

flappy_mcwarbucks · 12 August 2011 at 6:56PM

jamie11 wrote: »

That's a very nice sentiment (not). What about the helpful and honest letting agents answering questions on this thread alone? Are they scum as well?

Don't tar everybody with the same brush.

Well, it's not meant to be nice.

I have yet to meet an honest letting agent. They take the people that can't afford to buy, and rinse them for everything.

to get into a 1 bed flat for £650pcm, i had to fork out over £1900. and only £1400 was for the flat! So £500 for the letting agent for: retention fees, contract fees, credit and "Personality" checking fees, and my personal favorite: insurance (which insures you for !!!!!! all, as it's for the landlord, not the tenant)

Sorry, but when people take the !!!! like that, they deserve to be called scum.

Benji · 12 August 2011 at 7:36PM

flappy_mcwarbucks wrote: »

to get into a 1 bed flat for £650pcm, i had to fork out over £1900. and only £1400 was for the flat! So £500 for the letting agent for: retention fees, contract fees, credit and "Personality" checking fees, and my personal favorite: insurance.

Yes, and you AGREED to all these fees. You were not forced to use this agent, nor accept their fees.

I do accept that those fees were high - but the flip side of that is hat you cold have found an agent with lower fees, or a property with a lower deposit requirement, but you chose that flat with that agent. If it's any consolation, don't forget youll get £750 of it back at the end of the tenancy - so the £1900 experience will have only cost you the agents £500.

theoretica · 12 August 2011 at 9:36PM

If you tell the letting agents when you want to move in hopefully they wouldn't show you properties which won't be ready. Or put a note on gumtree with what you are looking for, when you want to view and move, what you want to pay and see who replies - I did it this way with under 4 weeks and it worked fine.