Letting Agent requesting 10% for renewal

Tanj_2

Hi,

I rented a property through a letting agent two years ago. The tenants took a two year lease and the LA took a 10% cut. I was happy for this at the time as they were very professional and they also found the tenants very quickly.

For the last two years I have personally taken all the calls from the tenants regarding problems with the house and repaired these problems. I have also collected the rent from the tenants every month. What I am trying to say is that, apart from drawing up contracts, the LA hasn't done anything else.

The two year term is now up and the tenants want to stay another year and the letting agents wants another 10%.

I was happy to pay the initial 10%....but I am quite reluctant this time as I don't see how this 10% is justified. I rang the LA over a week ago to discuss this matter but no one has been able to give me an answer. They said they will call back, but that was last Wednesday.

My tenants are very trustworthy and they have said that we can leave out the LA and draw up contracts ourselves. Am I under any legal obligation to go with the letting agents if I want to renew the contract?

Any help will be gratefully appreciated?

Konisberg

Bizarrely, I have had the exact same experience. My tenants' original AST has come to an end and it will now run as an periodic tenancy. The EA has done nothing more but has demanded another 6 months fee at 10%. I called them to say I was always led to believe it was a finders fee and that I thought it was unreasonable to continue paying after the initial AST period had finished, though I would accepted a small fee for admin. They said they would get back to me but they haven't some three weeks later.

If anyone can shed some light, it would be appreciated, especially from a legal standpoint. The EA did say it was in their T&Cs but I don't seem to have a copy, only the AST, though I am sure it will say something like "you agree to pay for the entire period of the tenancy", which is rather ambiguous.

IveSeenTheLight

Only if the EA are looking after the lease (collecting rent, dealing with issues) are they entitles to a percentage of the rent.
Otherwise it was just a finders fee.

If you have the original lease, just draft up the same lease and have both parties sign it.

If both the landlord and tenant are happy then there is no issue

Konisberg

The EA wants to charge the percentage ad infinitum, as long as the tenants remain which seems ridiculous to me. Having said that, the one thing they are doing is holding the deposit, which I could of course handle myself by putting into a tenancy deposit scheme. When I suggested quite politely that I would have to find a way not to continue to pay them, perhaps by giving notice to the tenants, then immediately re-letting to them privately, their response was "Well what do you want to pay then?" I said I was happy with a small admin charge to cover them contacting the tenants at the end of the original lease and for holding the deposit" They said they would get back to me, they haven't yet. I am quite happy to draw up another ast privately with the tenants but in the EA eyes, they would still expect their percentage for as long as the tenants remain because they originally found them. I would be interested in any legal opinions on this.