Tenants moving out, re-letting help!

G_M

You can get an agent to do as much or as little as you want, and negotiate their fee accordingly. If they won't negotiate and insist on their 'package', take your business elsewhere.

What do you actually want an agent to do?

* find prospctive tenants?
* vet and select?
* set up contract?
* take and/or register deposit?
* undertake inventory? EPC?
* arrange gas report?
* manage keys check in? Gov leaflet etc?
* collect monthly rent?
* arrange repairs?
etc etc

It's a complete pick and mix. Much can be done from a distance. Much can be done if you have a local friend/relative willing to do some short-term jobs (eg viewings). Much can be done at a distance if you know local contractors (gas report, repairs etc)

But the bottom line is that letting can vary from almost running on auto-pilot, with reliable long-term tenants to staggering from crisis to crisis with nightmare tenants, or short-term ones. You need to be prepared for both scenarios.

To add to the link in post 2 above, if you're going to get personally involved, see

* Tenancies in Eng/Wales: Guides for landlords and tenants This thread is intended to provide information to both landlords and tenants relating to Assured Shorthold Tenancies (ASTs) in England and Wales.

Topics covered:

* Repairing Obligations: the law, common misconceptions, reporting/enforcing, retaliatory eviction & the new protection (2015)

* Deposits: payment, protection and return

* Ending/renewing an AST: what happens when a fixed term ends? How can a LL or tenant end a tenancy? What is a periodic tenancy?

* Rent increases: when & how can rent be increased?

* Repossession: what if a LL's mortgage lender repossesses the property?

* New landlords: advice, information & links

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

Cakeguts

You are going about this completely the wrong way. Letting property is a business. Letting a house that someone used to live in is often not the way to do it. Not all properties are good letting properties. Often houses that someone would buy to live in are not the kind of property that tenants are looking for. If you want to let property you need to do a lot of research on the lettings market that you want to operate in. You then select a property that is what the tenants in the part of the lettings market that you work in are most likely to rent. It might not match what you would consider a good property to live in but that doesn't matter because neither you or your parents are going to live there. You should be able to let the property easily. If you can't then it isn't suitable as a rental property.

mimiduck

What city is the flat in? It might help then to see if there are some other agent (better than foxtons of course)

EdwardB

apeskin wrote: »

I'm trying to help my elderly parents re-let their old house. They previously used foxtons (despite my warnings!) and obviously had a terrible time with them. In fact, if possible we want to really avoid the use of agents and all their sneaky fees, period.

Fast forward a year and a half later. The tenants have given in their two month notice as they're off to buy themselves. The issue we've now got is how to re-market the property and get new tenants. Obviously this is a massive subject, but here's a couple of caveats. None of us live near where the property is based any more, so doing viewings is going to be difficult. But if we can do it as much DIY as possible that would be perfect (from the photos to perhaps a gumtree ad?) though then there's the references etc that we've never done before.

Ultimately it's a quite an awkward situation as the rent of the property pays for the place they current live, and covers a significant portion of their income post retirement.

Are there any good online-only agents that might meet our needs?
Thanks

Not sure if I can recommend another site as every time I do I seem to get a message from the forum team telling me off, so if these moderators have a problem they can please delete it. I have no affiliation to the site I am recommending, I am recommending it to help OP.

The site I am referring to is http://www.propertyinvestmentproject.co.uk

It is a hilarious landlord blog, but also contains a huge resource for both landlord and tenant alike

For your situation this post is helpful

http://www.propertyinvestmentproject.co.uk/blog/landlord-advice/finding-tenant-guides-for-landlords/

He has a page on Online Letting agents somewhere and some of them do additional services such as viewings, although in his latest blog post he suggest Landlord always do it themselves.

http://www.propertyinvestmentproject.co.uk/blog/landlords-should-process-take-their-own-viewings/

I think in your situation with it being far away you either find a good local agent who has excellent reviews on AllAgents site and on Google or you do it yourself.

As you are far away this means being organised, doing all the referencing upfront, doing telephone interviews, you can even do credit checks and get insurance by some of the sites mentioned on that site.

The comments on each page of that site have as much value as the site itself.

Thus far you had a decent tenant but you could get a tenant from hell if you do not do this properly. I think it is perfectly feasible to do it from a distance but you have to line your ducks up.

Check the online marketing sites like Zoopla and Rightmove for rents for your size of property, also look at LHA rate. He suggests charging just under the market value, in current market I would charge over the market value, I think it is always a balance, charge too much and they will not stay long, charge too little and you get the dreggs of tenants applying.

I like openrent you do need to word your ad to filter out the numpties but that is the same for any interview process.

EdwardB

Cakeguts wrote: »

You are going about this completely the wrong way. Letting property is a business. Letting a house that someone used to live in is often not the way to do it. Not all properties are good letting properties. Often houses that someone would buy to live in are not the kind of property that tenants are looking for.

All properties have potential tenants and every property has to be lived in by somebody. Of course what changes is the decor and all that personal stuff. Need to get rid of those and magnolia the lot, do not get emotional, be Sarah Beeny.


If you want to let property you need to do a lot of research on the lettings market that you want to operate in. You then select a property that is what the tenants in the part of the lettings market that you work in are most likely to rent. It might not match what you would consider a good property to live in but that doesn't matter because neither you or your parents are going to live there. You should be able to let the property easily. If you can't then it isn't suitable as a rental property.

With respect that is like the old Irish joke when the bloke stops and asks for directions and is told "Well you do not want to start from here"!

He OP is where the OP is, they may have their reasons for not selling, they may not want to pay stamp duty when if they wait they will get inheritance tax only if above threshold.

I agree it IS a business, but any property can me made to be suitable for letting. The issue here is distance and whether to use an agent. That is what the OP is asking for help on.