becoming a landlord

[flipnflap]

I'm in the process of buying a 1-bed flat which I intend to rent out. I've not done this before. To any of you who have, I'd like to ask: Do you recommend I use a letting agent or find and manage the tenant(s) myself? It seems that, if I use a letting agent, I have to pay them a lot to find me tenants. Although I can do this cheaply through an ad myself, I can't so easily vet applicants and their credit record. Even if the agents get me tenants, do I still have to chase those tenants if they don't pay the rent? Any pitfalls you can warn me about?

[Kathyan]

I would recommend getting a letting agent. We had one when we let our property and they were brilliant. I would also recommend that you get insurance as well, just in case the tenants do a moonlight or won't leave when you ask them to. This will cover legal fees and loss of rent if something should go wrong. I think we paid something like 10% fees for the letting agent and about �11 per month for insurance, but this was about three years ago. We were very lucky with the tenants we had, the rent was always paid on time and they left the property in good order when they moved out. Good luck!

[Annlinda]

I wouldn't touch a letting agent with a bargepole. I manage property myself and charge resonable rent with long term tenants. Some people ask top rate and get tenants that can't really afford the rent so do a runner. You can choose your tenants and go by your gut instinct whether they will be reliable or not. Why cant you easily vet tenants and their credit worthiness? All you have to do is write to their bank and say that they have applied to rent your property and ask if they are credit worthy.

[selby70]

Hi I have let out a flat I had for over 3 years, I put an add in paper and did it myself, as when I was looking to rent a place the letting agent wanted a lot of money of me just to get ref. You can judge people for your self and you can get the ref for your tenant yourself. I did that it only takes a phone call or a letter. The person that bought my flat tried to let it with a letting agent he could not but I got him a tenant with an add in the local paper and a good tenant. I would definetely do it myself if I was to do it again. Good luck anyway

[Twenty20]

if you dont know the law regarding tenancies (i.e. what to do if the tenant doesnt pay the rent, damages your property, wont leave at the end of a tenancy etc etc) then you may be better off paying a reputable agent. Look for one that is a member of a recognised trade organisation such as ARLA.

If you do know the law, then you'll save money by not using an agent.

You can do credit checks yourself through reference agencies. These start at about �15 with the more comprehensive report costing about �30.

If you use an agent then, initially at least, they should chase the tenant for rent. However, if it goes past this stage and you have to go to Court, then this is down to you as the agreement is always between landlord and tenant.

There are plenty of pitfalls with letting if you dont know what youre doing.