Urgent advice for novice landlords!

boboli

We are having to rent out our house as we can't sell it and new to all this. We move out next week and have it on with 2 letting agents but not rented it yet. Price is right (lower than supposed market rate) but tenants for our level of rent just aren't out there.

I posted it on gumtree last week and we think we've found someone. Person is self employed, has made an offer of £1000 instead of £1100 a month, will pay up for 6m and see how we go after that.

They will give us up front £200 from first month's rent to take off market and then £800 into a tenancy deposit scheme.

What do we do for references in this situation? Also, not happy about the deposit arrangement being proposed. I wanted 6 weeks deposit - this is normal isn't it? Should we be asking for any guarantees after the 6m if she's still in it?

Any advice appreciated!

Fire_Fox

For references direct them to your letting agent. I wouldn't be doing a DIY bodge for someone who trawls scammer-packed Gumtree looking for naive novice landlords and claims to be self employed so conveniently won't have any payslips or employer reference. Why are you negotiating on deposit?
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=41160642&postcount=12

After the six month fixed term your tenant will go onto a statutory periodic tenancy, you cannot force them to do anything else so cannot start imposing new terms and conditions at that time. What guarantees are you on about?

shyammy21

I would get the proposed tenant to pay for a guarantor as part of your reference check (employed by a company, earning over whatever the afforability matrix says, and lives in UK). Also if he is self-employed, you should insist on accountans reference. In this situation as a novice, I would get an ARLA regulated lettings agency involved to help do the leg work.

G_M

New Landlords (information for new or prospective landlords)

The above post includes links for tenant vetting.

DannyboyMidlands

Person will stay looooong after the initial 6 month arrangement, will not pay you any more money and you will have to go to court to evict.

Buy 6 months accomodation - get 6 months free.

DannyboyMidlands

"tenants for our level of rent just aren't out there"

Then you are asking for too much rent. Better to knock a couple of hundred pcm off the rent in order to find decent, long staying tenants in my opinion.

boboli

thanks for the advice and links to other info, it's really helpful.

We've decided to refuse this tenant, stop using gumtree and stick to letting agents until we're more clued up.

G_M

boboli wrote: »

thanks for the advice and links to other info, it's really helpful.

We've decided to refuse this tenant, stop using gumtree and stick to letting agents until we're more clued up.

Sounds sensible.

But please, please, take note of the advice on the post I linked you to:

Be very cautious appointing a letting
agent. The right agent is as important as the right
tenant. Are they members of ARLA or
similar?....

FireWyrm

It sounds as though you are expecting the Agent to pick up all the 'issues' that you are unaware of.

Please be advised that the tenant (at all times) has a contract with YOU, not with the Agent. If YOU screw up, YOU pay the price even if the Agent was incompetant. As a newly minted landlord, it's an important distinction and one you should pay close attention to because there are tenants out there who can and will exploit your every mistake.

I strongly suggest you begin a crash course in the law surrounding tenancies with particular reference to your obligations to that tenant.

As a former tenant myself who has fallen foul of unscrupulous agents, I can assure you that although I'm perfectly law abiding, I'm a lot more militant now that I know the rules of play - I wont be caught out again....and I'm a 'nice' tenant.

Werdnal

Have your agents asked you all the right questions? Such as:

Have you got consent to let or change to a BTL mortgage?

Have you got consent from your buildings insurance or changed to a LL based policy?

Have you got a Gas Safety Certificate?

Are you aware of the tax implications of letting?

But above all, the most important question you need to ask yourself is:

Are you financially able to support the cost of letting and associated repairs, voids, missing rent etc, and cover your own living expenses?