Property Management Business

bowlingo

Hi all,

A friend and I have been thinking about setting up a property management business...

I am wondering if they are actually legally regulated?

I have been an electrician for many years with a few people that work for me and know many reliable trades etc

The main area we are going to struggle in is the legal side of things i.e contracts, agreements etc

We are in Bournemouth and have the funds to give it a go

Can anyone provide me with any info or experience they have in this area?

Over the years I have had quite a few dealings with working for various letting agents ranging from big companies to very small setups...I got the idea a couple of months ago when I had one phone me of which had 9 rentals in the window, a tiny shop containing 2 desks, 2 chairs, 2 pcs, 2 phones and a filing cabinet and thought the start up costs for such a setup wouldnt be that large apart from advertising etc.

I am asuming there are a few services that are offered by the companies ranging from finding a tenant only on behalf of a client to full management including all maintenance?..I have no idea what the average fees and percentages they charge are though...possibly anything from a couple of % to 20%?

Thanks

Atidi

bowlingo wrote: »

Hi all,

A friend and I have been thinking about setting up a property management business...

I am wondering if they are actually legally regulated?

I have been an electrician for many years with a few people that work for me and know many reliable trades etc

The main area we are going to struggle in is the legal side of things i.e contracts, agreements etc

We are in Bournemouth and have the funds to give it a go

Can anyone provide me with any info or experience they have in this area?

Over the years I have had quite a few dealings with working for various letting agents ranging from big companies to very small setups...I got the idea a couple of months ago when I had one phone me of which had 9 rentals in the window, a tiny shop containing 2 desks, 2 chairs, 2 pcs, 2 phones and a filing cabinet and thought the start up costs for such a setup wouldnt be that large apart from advertising etc.

I am asuming there are a few services that are offered by the companies ranging from finding a tenant only on behalf of a client to full management including all maintenance?..I have no idea what the average fees and percentages they charge are though...possibly anything from a couple of % to 20%?

Thanks

Afaik, there are no specific legal prerequisites to operate as a property maintenance company, a property management company or a property lettings business ... which appear to cover all the areas you plan to operate within.
Obviously certain trades need to be correctly qualified, e.g. a gas engineer would need to be correctly registered.
There has been recent suggestions that a lettings agency may need to be regulated in the future, but still nothing at present.

Regarding the legal side of things such as contracts, I would urge you to seek independent legal advice on this matter - you may need to depend upon it to get paid, or even possibily avoid liabilities you hadn't considered.

Wywth

bowlingo wrote: »

...I am asuming there are a few services that are offered by the companies ranging from finding a tenant only on behalf of a client to full management including all maintenance?..I have no idea what the average fees and percentages they charge are though...possibly anything from a couple of % to 20%?

Thanks

It sounds like you need to be doing quite a bit of market research before embarking on this new venture.

1. What does the market want?
2. What is currently available in the market?
3. Are 1 & 2 currently compatible?
If not, why hasn't this been addressed previously?
If so, is there any room for a new entrant?

Pricing is also a critical part of the business plan you will need to complete.