Property Management Agents.

londondealer

Just a quickie.

I own a couple of rentals and the management has been handed over to a local property management agent.

The property management agents have written to me asking me for copies of the AST. They took over on the 1st April can they ask for the information retrospectively or does it have to be for future ASTs?

Many thanks!

lighting_up_the_chalice

londondealer wrote: »

Just a quickie.

I own a couple of rentals and the management has been handed over to a local property management agent.

The property management agents have written to me asking me for copies of the AST. They took over on the 1st April can they ask for the information retrospectively or does it have to be for future ASTs?

Many thanks!

They just want the legal documents that determine the terms and conditions they are managing. I'm not sure they could provide as complete a service as you are paying them for without it.

londondealer

I just wasn't sure they were legally entitled to have them for existing ASTs. The reason it's been handed over to the property management agents is because of the problems with some of the tenants including mine!

lighting_up_the_chalice

I'm not sure of their legal entitlement, but without it they would struggle to serve notices or enforce the terms of the tenancy... Which is kinda what the "management" part entails.

londondealer

Oh hang on I'm such a numpty. Sorry I own the flats and I manage the tenants. This company that's been appointed has done so on behalf of the residents committee to deal with complaints and disputes.

lighting_up_the_chalice

londondealer wrote: »

Oh hang on I'm such a numpty. Sorry I own the flats and I manage the tenants. This company that's been appointed has done so on behalf of the residents committee to deal with complaints and disputes.

I see. I guess it would depend on the terms of your lease (assuming the flats aren't free-hold).

However, a responsible landlord would want to do all they could to mitigate the impact of bad tenants. After all, at some point you are going to want to re-let your flats. Not easy if the block (and the landlord) has a "reputation".

londondealer

yes very true. thank you.

i have a share of the freehold.

lighting_up_the_chalice

Then check the terms of that share. That will indicate the authority allocated to a residents group. Frankly, I think you may need the help.

olly300

londondealer wrote: »

yes very true. thank you.

i have a share of the freehold.

You still have a lease.

I think the property management company wants to check whether you have copied the lease terms about noise, nuisance, fire safety etc into the tenants' ASTs.

That way if a complaint is raised directly with the tenants they can't claim they didn't know.

Some management companies write letters addressed to the resident/occupier if it involves nuisance, noise, fire safety etc but addressed to the owner if it involves maintenance.

You need to check your leases to see if there is a clause covering this request, and also need to check the minutes of the freeholders' meetings to see if this action was agreed by the other freeholders.

Fire_Fox

So you are a leaseholder of a couple of flats, and also own a share in the freehold. You let the flats and your shorthold tenants sit on the residents' committee. Management of the freehold has been handed to an outside entity and they are dealing with the residents' committee. Is that correct?

If so technically no the managing agents likely have no right to the ASTs, however they also have no direct contract with your shorthold tenants so what exactly do you leaseholders/ freeholders want or expect them to do? Freeholders or their agents can only 'sanction' the leaseholders, then the leaseholders in turn 'sanction' the shorthold tenants. If your tenants breach covenants in the long lease you are liable for that. Freeholders don't directly 'sanction' shorthold tenants so their agents generally don't either.

AFAIK anyway.

londondealer

FF all correct but my tenants do not sit on the residents committee, the committee is made up of owner occupiers. In all there are 52 flats on the site. There is a real divide between the owner occupiers and renters. As you can imagine like in many flats there is a Real divide between the two groups.

Because of the ongoing problems with certain renters it was then decided to hand the day to day management over to this local property management company who took over last month.

My tenants have been harassed and picked on the guy just wants to be left alone his not a soft touch and won't be pushed around which is why there has been this ongoing conflict. I had a meeting with the propert management company two days ago, who basically have told me they want me to serve notice on the guy and his family and they would even fund it.