Wanted - Eglu Cube Mk1 Roosting Bars

[counturchickens]

We've managed to buy a new house (at auction) with a much larger garden, which has been a dream for some time. We are in the fortunate position that we might not have to sell our current house and could rent it out. Given the current housing market this might be more 'sensible' but I don't know how much we want to be landlords with all that entails. Does anyone have experience of renting out a property, and/or using agents to manage the property? I do know we are very lucky to have the choice!

[Olly]

Congratulations, that sounds great.

 

If you use agents, they will take a percentage of the rent - however, they should also prepare the letting agreement, 'vet' the tenants for you if required, and sort out a lot of the day to day stuff. You can do it yourself - and keep all the rent - but you'll have to find your own tenants, keep on top of the paperwork and be prepared to deal with everything from dripping taps to broken windows.

 

If you are letting a property you'll need to have gas and electrical certificates to confirm that it's safe for occupation, and you will need to redecorate it every few years which probably means having a gap when there's no tenant. With the best will in the world, rented properties don't usually get looked after in the same way that you'd look after your own home, and so decorations, curtains and carpets tend to wear out more quickly.

 

If you can afford to do this, I would definitely do so because property is still gaining more value (in most areas) than money in a savings account. Just keep a 'cushion' for emergency repairs and don't forget you'll have to pay tax on the rental income as well, although you can deduct maintenance costs.

 

There's a website for ARLA which has some information on, I think you have to be a member to get some of the more detailed stuff but this might give you some food for thought.

[counturchickens]

Thanks Olly, sensible advice. I am very excited about the new house as I will be finally able to get a wir,and more hens!

[lillybettybabs]

I rent mine out through an agent and it does take out the hassle if there are any repairs that need doing

as the agents will deal with that as-well as collecting the rent and vetting the tenants.

I would advise making a small portfolio for the property with photos of every room and front/back of the

house and after every tenant has moved out go round yourself to make sure they have left it as it was before

they moves in ( decor,carpets cleaned etc); do this before they get the deposit back.

[HarrisonFamily]

We had to rent out our property as we couldn't sell, I ended up renting to a family in the village who I didn't know personally but lots of people in the village did and recommended.......After 9 months the rent was no longer being paid and it is a very painful process to evict a tenant which end up costing a lot of money as everything is in the tenants favour...when they left the house was a mess, We now have new tenants who are lovely and redecorated and the house looks great

 

As long as you have enough money to cover the mortgage & evict this could take up to 6 month (worse case ) renting in the long run should be a good idea.......

 

I found http://www.rla.org.uk/ very useful....

[Olly]

Just thought of something else I should mention - the agents will indeed sort out minor repairs, but be warned as they won't be as tight on costs as you would be!

 

The agents we use had a clause that they could spend anything up to £100 - we deleted that, because my brother (this is a family property) is a builder, and we'd rather have the option to do minor repairs ourselves. It's horses for courses - some people would rather not have the hassle of sorting things out but it could cost you more, if you are located nearby and if you or your OH are handy enough to fix things.

[Patricia W]

We rent out a house and started by using a letting agent. Never again! I may have been unlucky, but we now do everything ourselves. I get advice and all the legal forms from a great website, Landlordlaw. I can' t recommend it highly enough. I use the internet to advertise or search for tenants and I can do all the credit checks etc this way too.

 

My son moved to Australia, used a letting agent paying full management fees for his house, but when the tenants did a moonlight flit, the agents washed their hands of the matter. I am sure there are good letting agents, but they aren't any near me!

 

It is very easy to do it yourself as long as you follow some very simple rules. Good luck!

[dancing cloud]

Having tried and struggled to find a house to rent a house with my pets, I'd suggest considering renting to someone with animals.

 

You could charge a higher rent, as there is so little competition and ask for a higher deposit, just in case there is any damage. I found somewhere that was ok eventually and would certainly have been prepared to pay more to keep my furries and featheries with me

[RedReader]

Hi,

 

I've been renting my house out for 6 years & have had no problems with the tenants & the agent. I managed to negotiate a lower rate for the management fee but the agent takes care of everything including finding & vetting the tenants (the people in the house currently have been there for 5 years). As I live 70 miles away from the property I thought it was worth paying for the peace of mind that I have knowing the agent will deal with any maintenance problems.

 

They will always contact me to approve any work that needs doing & when the boiler needed replacing last winter I was able to pay for this over several months rather than all at once - this wouldnt have been possible if the agent did not have a good relationship with the plumber.

 

The agent also provided me & the tenants with an inventory of the property (including pictures) so if/when they leave they know the state the house should be left in. I am happy for there to be animals in the house but needed a bigger deposit for that & a clause for the carpets to be deep cleaned when the tenants leave.

 

Sorry but Ive gone on for ages about it but to sum it up it works for me to use an agent!

[counturchickens]

Thanks for the suggestion about allowing pets. We don't have carpets at all downstairs, so this might be more practical for us anyway. I thinks I would prefer to use an agent, so have been looking at arla approved ones. Going to have a couple round next week.

[Chicken shack]

What can I add to what has already been said. We have had really GOOD tennants and reallly BAD ones and I mean Bad. One tennants partner attacked my husband with a knife and punched him. He was fine(husband that is). The man was arrested and found guilty of actual bodly harm. 8 police cars attended the scene it was like something from a soap. Property has been flooded. Drug dealers have rented. We have had 3 evictions. Great stuff.

 

1 Treat it as a business and don't take problems personally is top of my list.

 

2 Use a good agent.

 

3 If the rent is not paid serve notice asap. Don't listen to excusses. Don't evict using the unpaid rent as the reason as the tenant can pay a small amount and the whole proccess has to start over. Evict because you want the property back. Can take up to 6 months.

 

4 I always ensure the house is to a standard that I would be happy to live in and make good any problems as they arrise.

 

5 When I have good tennants I have never put the rent up while they are living there. They may be paying less than the market rent but if they have to move due to the increase the cost of setting up new tennents is far more than you would get in rent. The property could also stay empty.

 

I have had the same tennants for many years now and they are trying to buy their own property. I wish them luck. I am not a career landlord more an accidental one. They have asked if they can stay on as it is taking longer than they expected. They were due to move out in August. As long as they pay the rent that is fine by me. I must stress I have no contact with them, this is all arrange through the agent.

[counturchickens]

Thanks chicken shack, more good ideas. We will be 'accidental ' landlords too. We really just need to cover the motgage, so I just need to find a good agent now!