Letting renewal fees

poi

Hi

How much can a lettings agent charge a tenant for renewing a residential tenancy?

Your Move, Basingstoke, are charging £100+VAT, which seems very high for printing off a new tenancy with new dates, so I rang round other agents, and £50+VAT seems to be the norm.

As I have no choice over the agent, my landlady having chosen them, there seems to be nothing I can do about this other than move house, not a realistic option.

I rang the Basingstoke office, and they basically told me they can charge what they like. I have their head office address, but I though I'd check here before writing.

Any ideas?

EmmaJ_3

Ours didn't charge us any fee at all for the tenancy renewal. Our initial agency fee was £200 inc VAT though.

poi

I didn't think agency fees were allowed any more.

As they get a cut of the rent, I don't see why they should be allowed to charge for anything else. It's not as if they do much.

scrummy_mummy_2

I wouldn't call their bluff if I was you...they may take it as sincere Notice to quit and you'll make yourself homeless!

Agencies can charge what they like for their services (infortunately) and when you agreed to rent the house through them (as they are acting on behalf of the LL) you agreed to pay their fees...check your small print, so you are contracted to them for those fees upon renewal.

Thus....you only have 2 choices really.
1. Pay
2. Move

You can try negotiating but they'll probably adopt the 'We won't negotitate with terrorists' approach and refuse...might be worth a shot though.
Money for old rope in my opinion!

I think agencies are (generally) slackshod, lazy, ill informed, non service orientated, bottom feeding, bloodsucking vampires who trade off the misery of others.......which is why I don't use them!
I manage my properties myself because I can keep the fees down for my tenants AND myself. It is a win win situation.
I only charge the tenants what I get charged so to set up a tenancy which is £35.75 per tenant applicant for referencing, plus the deposit protection fee of £few quid, can't rember exactly how much! £14??...(I'm with TDSL through the NLA so I can also positively! control the refund of their deposits)
I manage their tenancies so we don't have to re-reference or re-protect their deposits by issuing a new Tenancy agreement, so I generally transfer them to statutory periodic agreements at the end of their first 6 months.

pinkkaz

If I were you I wouldn't do anything, and let it go onto a rolling tenancy. When I was renting I always refused to pay these absurd fees - the agency soon changed its tune when I started backing out.

speedtwin

They are proberly charging the landlord as well. You could ask the L/L if you could deal with them direct and cut out the middleman.