Offers on rented place

pizzarelli7348

Me and other half have got a flat for rent at £575. It has gone onto the market today and agent has said there has been interest (unfortunately all people with pets, not ideal as we have recarpeted the place!).

The agent said people nowadays make offers!
This is new to me , I remember when we rented a place 10 years ago we went with the price letting agent was asking.
I am wondering how much should we accept, and how long should we wait before dropping the price.
If somebody offered £550 tomorrow should we give the place a week at full price to see if another tenant comes in at a higher price or go with the £550?
ALso just as I have started the thread, pets were a definitely not for us bearing in mind it is a first floor flat with no garden, but the agent said two ladies with a small dog were keen in the flat and were thinking of making an offer. Should we reconsider allowing people with pets to move in?

Fire_Fox

There is no right or wrong answer, depends how long you are happy to have an empty property for. Do you need the consent of the freeholder for subletting or to permit pets? Many long leases have covenants about one or both. Can the dog exit the building without going into the communal areas? Indoor cats are cleaner and less likely to invoke complaints from the neighbours than dogs.

pizzarelli7348

Subletting and pets are both allowed

Fire_Fox

Personally I would stick with indoor cats or smaller pets but insist on a larger damage deposit to cover any possible damage to carpets from claws, maybe six or eight weeks. Dogs can cause you grief with barking, toileting in the common parts if they are not taken outside often enough, dog hair and dander for allergic neighbours, fleas when the tenants move out. I would question anyone having a dog in *most* upper floor flats especially if they work full time.

pizzarelli7348

thank you firefox. The two ladies both work and have this little dog, I have spoken to the agent and he has turned them down.
Shame, if it was not for the dog they would have been ideal!

Werdnal

If you let to pets, consider taking a higher deposit to cover extra cleaning and possibly de-flea treatment at the end. No matter how much people love and care for their pets, accidents happen and there have been many posts here in the past about tenants moving into property previously rented to pet owners, only to find flea infestation which LL has to clear! My cat (regularly flea treated I may add) was put to sleep on 22 August, and I found a live flea in my house last week!

As for accepting "offers" I have never heard that as a standard practice in 12 years of letting. It is up to you really - how competitive is the rent you have set, are there similar properties at the same level, are there plenty of rentals in the area? I always feel a slightly lower rent may secure long-standing, loyal tenants. You could hold out for the higher rent, and find you have voids as tenants don't stay longer than the initial term and move on.

It all depends on your circumstances, how keen you are to get it filled and how much rent you feel you need to cover your expenses. Don't however feel pressured by the agent - they work for you remember, and they are only leaning on you to sign up tenants to get their cut of your fees - to them, any fee is better than no fee at all, but its up to you if you feel the same about your rent!

pizzarelli7348

I have consulted three different agents and they have said the same, nowadays people make offers on rented places!

thelem

I've been living in a shared house in Brighton for five years, and must have had 15 or so housemates in that time and many times that number in viewing, but I can only remember one person offering a lower price than was advertised, to which they got a firm no. A few times we've had two or three people say they were interested in the room on the same day, and it's been up to us to choose who we prefer.

But Brighton has a strong market, your area may be different.

pizzarelli7348

we are in hastings, certainly not as strong as brighton, the agent said "we need to be carefulk who we put in the flat!"

Fire_Fox

pizzarelli7348 wrote: »

thank you firefox. The two ladies both work and have this little dog, I have spoken to the agent and he has turned them down.
Shame, if it was not for the dog they would have been ideal!

That is alarm bells for me unless the dog went to work with them, dogs can be quite noisy or destructive when bored and left alone and certainly can have toilet accidents. If they don't treat their dog right I tend to wonder if they would treat the property right.

Flea infestations are a nightmare and are expensive to get sorted professionally - I once bought an infested house and the pros came out three times over the space of several months. :eek: We had to suck it up but I'd have been all over the landlord if it had been rented. Probably would have had Environmental Health in!

pizzarelli7348

just an update on my post

a couple with two children went to view the flat and they like, they made an offer of £550. There is a little but...we know them! As the letting agent was describing them I was thinking "we know them, my son and their daughter go to the same school!".
They are nice, decent people, they would treat the place right and pay the rent on time, my only doubt is "is it going to be awkward mixing friendship with business?"
Please advice us! Any experience on this?