Question for Landlords about Northwood

emsie85

Hi there

Just wondering if anyone has rented out a property through Northwood and left them for another letting agent? Was it much hassle?

Our local branch has been awful and we need to get rid!

thanks

foxy-stoat

You need to read your contract you signed up to if you want to move to another agent.

I was going to let my place out with them, but their terms were so unreasonable I decided not to go through with it.

G_M

* Letting agents: how should a landlord select or sack?

emsie85

thanks for the link G_M

thanks for your reply foxy-stoat, I'll have a proper look through. I really didn't read it properly when I signed up as they seemed our only option as we were moving abroad. Now we've been back a while we've realised how shocking they are. I did notice a while back in the contract it said that we would have to sell through them if we were selling, so now I'm concerned about what else I will find in there.

You were good to read it through properly and you had a lucky escape... ah hindsight

Pixie5740

Is this one of the guaranteed rent schemes where Northwood is actually your tenant and then they sublet the property?

D_M_E

I think you find that a lot of the terms in the Northwood contract contradict their terms of membership of the TPOS scheme.

Also note that one of the directors of Northwood joined TPOS as one of its directors, but I don't know if he also severed his connections with Northwood at the time.

theartfullodger

I spoke with my local Northwould.. I asked about this "guarantee" & what if they, that local franchise, went bust: and they said ah yes, another branch would take over: Great, says I, can I have that in writing?? No: Can I have a copy of the guarantee?? No: But you can come in & read it:

£5 to an agreed housing charity if the guarantee is legally worthless if that franchise goes bust.

Must go & see the branch... (I need to get out more..)

emsie85

yes this is the guaranteed rent scheme. on top of all the problems we've had, we've recently discovered we can't even change to another landlord insurer than the one they provide due to the subletting thing

I can't see anything in the contract about moving to another agent, I don't know why I'm so worried I just feel like they will have some hidden clause somewhere with lots of £££. We probably can't keep the tenants unfortunately, but if we can we will

Pixie5740

That's because you won't be moving to another letting agent. Northwood are your tenant not your letting agent.

emsie85

thanks pixie yeah that makes sense now

D_M_E

Northwood are the tenant and you have agreed to subletting. Did you also make any stipulation as to who they could sublet to?

As you have found, it's not easy to find landlord insurance which covers subletting.

You also need to be aware that Northwood will not accept a s21 to quit and they have terms in the contract which allow them to put in tenants even after you have told them you want the property back.

I had a solicitor carefully read their contract and serve them with the correct notice as laid down and written in the contract and they just ignored it and put another subtenant in, and the solicitor also served the correct notices required by whatever tenancy/property laws applied - he has over 30 years experience in such things - it then took over 6 months to get them and their subtenants out. Our solicitor advised us that we had to go and live in the property or we might never had had our property back and I've heard we were not the only ones in the same situation.

Yes, the guaranteed rent looks great, particularly if you are 2000 miles away as we were, but if you want the property back they will move heaven and earth to thwart you for as long as they can.

As I said above, they are a member of TPOS - The Property Ombudsman Scheme - and, if you read the terms of TPOS and compare them to a Northwood contract, many of the Northwood terms contravene the TPOS terms.
I had no end of trouble getting rid of them and they lost me the sale of my property, and it cost a lot of money I didn't have to move back in 2 years early.