Should LA re-reference tenants?

minkymankymoo

Hi all,

I am about to rent out a cottage I have lovingly renovated for the past year. The cottage is next door to my own home so I am going to do the management (brother is a builder, other brother is an electrician, know just about every trade in the locale so don't want to pay out money for nothing), but I have got a LA to do a tenant find. They have found a family who would like it and I am meeting them this week.

The prospective tenants have been renting another property just down the road from mine through the LA for the last year and so have passed all their referencing checks 12 months ago. By all accounts the chap is still in the same job. My question is, should the LA now perform a whole new set of reference checks? Because I imagine I will still be paying the same fee (70% of first months rent). If I were the tenant I wouldn't want to have to fork out again, but as the landlord I want to be sure they are still good prospective tenants.

Any advice?

:-)

moromir

Frankly I would be demanding they were treated/referenced as if they'd just walked off the street and into the office and enquired.

BitterAndTwisted

Why are they looking to move after only 12 months?

Have you spoken to their current landlord? They might have had their reference checks carried out a year ago but how stringent were they and how much discretion did the current landlord exercise?

scottishblondie

My current tenant had been living in another property managed by my LA for the last 6 months (LL decided to sell up), but they still ran a full credit check. She actually failed it, despite passing with flying colours 6 months ago. A lot can change in a few months.

I decided to go ahead after finding out the circumstances and taking a bigger deposit, but if they hadn't run another check I never would have known. I'd much rather be able to make an informed decision than relying on out of date info.

G_M

Why not do the checks yourself?

You can contact employer to check he still works there etc

You can contact current landlord

You can use:

ParagonAdvance (Tenant referencing provider – there are others. Use Google) Letsure

Have you read

New Landlords (information for new or prospective landlords)

minkymankymoo

Ok, so the reason they have given the LA that they want to move is that the rooms in their current newbuild are too small (I know this is true, I've been in one of the houses on that little estate) and that they don't think much of some of the people on the estate (I can totally believe this part, I wouldn't want to live their either).

I will totally demand all the reference checks again then, if I'm paying for it out of my fees, I expect it. To be honest the LA hasn't said anything about checks yet anyway, I am meeting the prospective tenant on Weds night just to introduce myself and discuss a few things, so I guess we will take it from there. Their tenancy is up in a months time so I guess they are using this as a good time to upgrade?

twink22

Off topic but do they know you will be living next door? We weren't told by the LA that the LL would be our next door neighbour and its caused us a great deal of stress, we would never had rented it had we of known, and the LA made sure we paid a large non refundable deposit before they told us!

minkymankymoo

GM - I am using a LA partly because I don't want to have to do any checks myself. I have let other properties before so I know they're not always worth the paper they're written on anyway (one bad tenant put me off using a LA for a good few years!). I will check with his employers though, and try and speak to their current landlords, and hopefully the landlords before that (am aware if tenants are bad, current landlords are liable to give a glowing reference just to get rid).

minkymankymoo

Twink - I have made it very clear to the LA that they MUST tell and prospective tenants that I live next door, and is the main reason I am meeting this family on Wednesday, before things go any further with checks etc. I totally understand many people would not want to live next door to their landlord and that is fine, but if they don't want to live next door to me, then I definitely don't want to rent my place to them!

G_M

minkymankymoo wrote: »

GM - I am using a LA partly because I don't want to have to do any checks myself. I have let other properties before so I know they're not always worth the paper they're written on anyway (one bad tenant put me off using a LA for a good few years!). I will check with his employers though, and try and speak to their current landlords, and hopefully the landlords before that (am aware if tenants are bad, current landlords are liable to give a glowing reference just to get rid).

??

Which? Makes no sense! Either pay an agent to do it, or do it yourself. Why pay an agent and then do it yourself!!??

If the checks are "not worth the paper they are written on" then why do them at all?

Plus: The ParagonAdvance check, for example, will give you the same info as your agent (who may use.... ParagonAdvance .

It will cost you £8 or £35 depending on search type, if you do it.

If agent does it, they will charge you ... £50? £80? and also charge the tenant.... £80? £150?

minkymankymoo

I mean the credit reference checks. I had a tenant before who 'passed' the credit reference checks and within a few months it conspired she had about £20k of debt. This is what made me think they can't necessarily be relied on.
As I understand it the reference checks will be included as part of the 70% of the first month's rent which is the one off payment for they tenant finding service, so I will make sure they are done. I don't see the point in me paying twice and doing them off my own back as well. I am not aware of what the LA charges the tenants for any referencing.
As for making a phone call to the tenant's employer or previous landlord, I guess I was thinking this was maybe better done by myself, or at least a follow up call secondary to perhaps their written reference, by myself, but maybe I am wrong.