Question for LL's - Long contracts??

ilovecheese

Hi Guys

AST – England
Tenancy started 12th April 2011
Original contract 6 months, now on a periodical.

Long post! Summary of questions at the bottom!!!

Our LL owns 3 terraced properties which are all rented out. We have lived at the property for 12 months and are desperate to stay long-term, however, our LL has just e-mailed increasing the rent by £40.00 per month to £810.00

I have checked on right move and the average cost of a two bed property is £753.00. In addition to this, our property has a cesspool and oil heating which increases our utility bills by a minimum of £75.00 per month, making our property even more expensive compared to other options.

With the LL permission, we have re-decorated (to an excellent standard), sorted out the front and back gardens, re-painted all the fences, replaced the shower room floor, and done all the little maintenance jobs that come up from time to time.

I would be happy to sign a three or five contract, at our original rent, and just wondered if LL’s on here could give feedback as to whether this would be a good option for them? Or do you all dislike giving long contracts?

Would guaranteed rent for 3 or 5 years be a good option? We can (just about) pay all the bills on one salary, so if one of us lost our job we could still cover our bills, and if both of us were unemployed, housing benefit would pay (we have both worked full time since leaving school some 25/30 years ago!)

I have already sent my LL details of similar properties to rent for less money, and I am waiting for her next e-mail, but I wondered if offering to sign a long contract would sway her to looking at the long term and keeping the rent down. She would also have no void periods and no re-letting costs.

Summary of questions

For excellent tenants are 3 or 5 year contacts a good idea?
Any suggestions for negotiating the rent not to increase?
How much does it cost if you use an agent to find a new tenant?

Any help or advice would be appreciated.

Thanks

flora48

I can see your point of view but as a LL the longest contract I have done is 1 Year. This is because one never knows what is around the corner, either with the tenants or myself. Circumstances can change overnight as I know from past experience.

ilovecheese

Thanks Flora48

Another question then! If you have good tenants who look after and improve your property, would you increase their rent?

We really want to stay where we are, but the LL is making it impossible by asking for too much rent.

Is a quiet easy life (no phone calls about repairs, rent paid early every month) not worth anything???

I always though LL wanted decent tenants, but it looks like our LL is going to let us move on and then let to an unknowen quanity!

Very frustrating, but I guess I will need to start collecting packing boxes again!

DVardysShadow

ilovecheese wrote: »

... I always though LL wanted decent tenants, but it looks like our LL is going to let us move on and then let to an unknowen quanity!

Well, you made the classic mistake of doing the property up nicely for him with no assurance of the tenancy.

It is a serious failing of the UK rental market that tenancies are driven down to the lowest common denominator with assured terms of just 6 months. It means that tenants are penalised - we see here it time after time - for trying to better their lot. Rootlessness and drifting is promoted by the legislative framework.

jjlandlord

DVardysShadow wrote: »

It is a serious failing of the UK rental market that tenancies are driven down to the lowest common denominator with assured terms of just 6 months. It means that tenants are penalised - we see here it time after time - for trying to better their lot. Rootlessness and drifting is promoted by the legislative framework.

It's not the legislative framework's fault if tenants and landlords agree to 6 month terms, and if tenants decide to spend money re-decorating a property when they have no security of tenure (indeed a classic mistake)...

DVardysShadow

jjlandlord wrote: »

It's not the legislative framework's fault if tenants and landlords agree to 6 month terms, and if tenants decide to spend money re-decorating a property when they have no security of tenure (indeed a classic mistake)...

[Yawn] Reading what you imagine again. I said nothing about the legislative framework being responsible for tenants deciding to spend money in on redecorating.

In fact I am making the opposite point. That the legislative framework ensures that tenants are not stakeholders to the extent that it is worth their while to actually do any meaningful decoration other than do some magnolia just before they leave.

ilovecheese

Hi again

I know it is not advisable to decorate at your own cost when you are a tenant, but just because I rent, it does not mean I don't want to live in a nice house!

I just want a long-term let with a LL who is reasonable - is that too much to ask?

Going back to my orignal post:

How much to LLs pay an agent to find a new tenant?

Thanks

jjlandlord

DVardysShadow wrote: »

[Yawn] Reading what you imagine again.

It is a serious failing of the UK rental market that tenancies are driven down to the lowest common denominator with assured terms of just 6 months. It means that tenants are penalised - we see here it time after time - for trying to better their lot. Rootlessness and drifting is promoted by the legislative framework.

Sure, I'm completely dreaming...

Turnbull2000

Sorry OP, but you've made a big mistake in improving a rental property without a long-term (e.g. 5 years) contract in place. There's little you can do if the landlord decides to cash in on your improvements by either selling or hiking the rent.

If you want a property that's furnished to your liking and maintained to a high standard, you really need to buy your own home or rent at the premium end of the market. A rented property should only be considered temporary.

theartfullodger

New tenant find?? With other fees maybe 1/2 - 1.5 month's rent. If managed 10-12% of rent. And they need no training, no regulation, no qualifications...

How much more £££ would you be willing to offer LL for the security of a longer let??



How much less £££ would you expect LL to offer for the security of a longer let??

You appreciate if you need to move as you got-sick/lost-job/met-new-partner/family-crisis you'd still be 100% responsible to pay the rent to the end of the initial fixed term??

nrsql

The landlord probably doesn't want you to leave - will take a long time at £40 a month to cover any void.
You could say that you can't afford the increase at the moment - maybe ask for a 2 year lease increasing after the first year? Maybe increasing by £10 every six months? Or just say no and bluff it out.

Being cynical it sounds like the property is a lot better now than when you moved in so should command a higher rent.