Implications of a long term rental pre-payment

Yardahed

New poster on MSE - hoping I can get some advice.

I am looking to rent out my house. I've appointed an agent to manage the letting process but I will manage the property once we have a tenant as I will only be living 2 minutes from the house.

The agent has found a prospective tenant who has, without us even suggesting anything about pre-payment, offered to pay 24months of rent in advance. We don't know why he wants to do this. He says he will be based abroad for some of the year in a tax haven with the house being used by friends and family when he is not there.

Can anyone give me any advice about this, please? I'm wondering why he would make this offer, and I'm curious as to what implications this has on the rental contract, particularly regarding break clauses and our eviction rights.

jjlandlord

Walk way. In fact, run.

If the agent hasn't expressed concerns and the need to be cautious then I would also consider that perhaps a more professional agent is needed.

Yardahed

Agent is advising us to be cautious. We are all wary.

Why do you recommend running - what do you think this guy's motives are?

Guest101

I think they may be looking to start an indoor garden centre....

jjlandlord

Yardahed wrote: »

Agent is advising us to be cautious. We are all wary.

Then why are you even considering it?

You seem to be new to letting and you plan to manage the property yourself.
You should only consider applicants who seem as safe as can possibly be.

tamiami

The point that bothers me is the friends and family using it when he is not there- how many friends and family?


If he wants the house but is abroad for some of the time then that seems ok, but not to let others use it when he is not there. Not unless you take a massive security deposit to cover damages. He could be sub letting to anyone.

LEJC

These friends and family....that would worry me....how many,how often....no there are too many possibilities


decline this offer and wait for a more conventional tenant

Guest101

There is no friends and family.

The tenant could rent and have whoever he wanted there as often as he liked if he just paid monthly and no-one would be the wiser.

It's going to be a cannabis farm, why are we even debating if these 'friends' exist - well they might do, but only to look after the harvest.

He's offering between 12-16k upfront, why not just buy a house with that kind of money saved up?!

Yardahed

I already rent out another property (a flat) so I'm not entirely new to it. Interestingly, that flat is in a university town and it is quite common for international students to pay a year's rental in advance. So, ironically, had he offered a year's rent, rather than 2, we would have been less suspicious.

The reason why we haven't run a mile yet is because my OH is wanting to check out this guy's references. I personally think that that is too late and I want to present him with a list of what the possible dodgy motivations that this guy may have. I also want to to know if we can easily evict him if he does pay in advance. OH is a bloke who likes to be given a list of reasons why - rather than me just saying that I've got a dodgy feeling.

I'm also wary of the friends and family thing. I agree it lends itself to additional wear and tear as people who are just visiting have no idea how a property works and are more likely to trash it. I'm also mindful that the garden may not be tended to whilst he's away.

Yardahed

Guest101 - I'd be surprised if he was doing a farm. He certainly doesn't look the type (I know, I know, books by covers etc). He's in his 60's - he has the demeanour of a captain of industry if you know what I mean. He's looking to pay a hell of a lot more than what you've quoted. It's a very big house.

It is odd though that he seems to have given us quite a lot of information. Surely he didn't need to tell us the thing about his comings and going and that of this friends and family because we wouldn't necessarily have been any the wiser. He doesn't know that we are planning to remain living locally.

Guest101

Yardahed wrote: »

Guest101 - I'd be surprised if he was doing a farm. He certainly doesn't look the type (I know, I know, books by covers etc). He's in his 60's - he has the demeanour of a captain of industry if you know what I mean. He's looking to pay a hell of a lot more than what you've quoted. It's a very big house.

It is odd though that he seems to have given us quite a lot of information. Surely he didn't need to tell us the thing about his comings and going and that of this friends and family because we wouldn't necessarily have been any the wiser. He doesn't know that we are planning to remain living locally.

1: I doubt very much that a cannabis farmer would turn up in person, full rasta outfit with a footlong spliff in hand.
2: Ok so even more money, and therefore more suspicious as to why he wouldnt buy somewhere...
3: Stay in the area or not, you still couldnt turn up willy nilly, so pretty much irrelavent.