The lettings market has changed so much over recent years. With the huge uncertainty in the world of investment and pensions at present, more and more people have turned to the property and lettings market as an alternative form of investment.
Whatever situation you are in, Maxwell Valentine Lettings is committed to giving you peace of mind and taking away the worries and concerns that arise from letting your property, enabling you to enjoy the benefits.
I have a property to let. Tell me how the process works..
Our first point of contact will be to arrange an appointment to view the property with you. A number of factors will be reviewed when looking into the amount of rental income of the property, these include location, size of the property, current demand and condition.
You will then need to let us know your preferences on smokers, pets, children and professional persons are. Property can be let furnished or unfurnished. Demands however remains firmly towards unfurnished properties.
Finding a tenant
The most important part of renting out your property is finding a suitable tenant as quickly as possible. Maxwell Valentine Lettings focuses on a wide range of key marketing publications.
We ensure that all properties are displayed on our website on the same day as instructions are received and in addition to this, all properties are advertised on additional property websites such as, Findaproperty, Right Move, Gumtree, etc.
If required all viewings to your property can be accompanied by a member of our team.
Once a tenant agrees to rent your property, a holding deposit is taken together with referencing fees. An independent Specialist Company will collect all necessary references and will then feed back to us on their suitability. Each tenant is assessed on the following criteria:
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Employment reference
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Previous Landlord reference (where applicable)
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Search of public records for evidence of previous address and credit score
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If a Tenant is required to provide a guarantor they are referenced separately and will be obliged to sign a guarantor’s agreement.
Once we have finalised all the details of the tenancy, we will arrange for the Tenant to sign the Agreement and collect one months advance rent along with the balance of the security deposit, prior to the keys to your property being released.
LEGAL ISSUES
Safety regulations are legal requirements for letting residential property. Non-compliance with these regulations carries substantial fines and possible imprisonment and is decided by the Courts. At all times, both a landlord and their agent have a duty of care to the tenant. There are four key areas for consideration
Gas Safety
It is a Statutory Requirement that all properties that have any Gas appliances are tested annually. The tests cover general operation and safety, inspection of combustion, Pressure test, vent check and flue check. All checks must be undertaken by CORGI registered engineers. A written record must be kept and made available for inspection by any tenant. These inspection records must be kept for a period of not less than two years.
Energy Performance Certificate
A new regulation introduced in October 2008. All properties available to let must have this certificate in place prior to marketing, failure to comply results in substantial financial penalties.
Electrical safety
There are a number of regulations relating to electrical safety. The law requires that all equipment supplied is safe. In practice, the only effective way to ensure compliance and tenants safety is by employing a competent person to test the equipment before the property is let. Instruction booklets for the operation of electrical equipment should be supplied.
The simplest way to deal with the regulations is to instruct Maxwell Valentine to arrange the necessary inspections through our approved contractor.
Consents
If your property is mortgaged you will need to obtain consent from your Bank or Building Society prior to letting. If your property is leasehold, you will also require consent from the Head Lessor, Freeholder or Management Company.
Insurance
You will need to advise your Insurance Company that you are renting the property and ensure that you comply with any conditions imposed. This applies to both buildings and contents insurance. Your tenant should also have contents insurance in place. You are not responsible for their possessions.
Tax
Income tax is payable on all rental income arising from property in the UK regardless of the residential status of the landlord.
Under the 1995 Finance Act, a Letting agent is obliged to advise the Inland Revenue that a letting has been arranged for a landlord who is non-resident for UK tax purposes. As a Managing Agent, we are legally responsible for payment of any tax that arises and will retain monies to cover this liability.
Non-resident landlords can apply to the Inland Revenue for approval to receive gross income. Without this approval we are obliged to deduct tax. We strongly advise any landlord to appoint an accountant to deal with their tax affairs as many of the costs incurred in renting can be offset against the income.
Inventory – We consider it imperative that a professional inventory be commissioned. This comprises not only a full list of contents, but also a schedule of condition. At the termination of the tenancy, a schedule of dilapidations will be drawn up to assess if there should be any deductions from the security deposit.
LETTING SERVICE OPTIONS
There are three levels of service available to you:
Maxwell Valentine Lettings will ensure all rent that is collected on your behalf is transferred quickly to your account. In addition to this late payment of rent or arrears is acted upon immediately.
FULL MANAGEMENT
This is the service level that will suit you if you to totally delegate all the administration of your property.
Maxwell valentine Lettings will ensure all aspects of your property maintenance are covered and any work that is necessary is carried out at a reasonable cost and where possible by a local tradesmen.
Your fee to us covers normal management. If however we need to arrange and pay for additional work, or any other services, we will itemize them and charge these amounts to your monthly account.
LETTING PLUS RENT COLLECTION
This is the service level that will suit you best if you still wish to have direct contact with your tenants on all general issues including maintenance.
Maxwell Valentine Lettings still collects and transfers the monthly rent.
Additional services that would normally form part of the Full Management service as laid out above may still be requested. Fees for them would be charged ad hoc to your monthly account.
INTRODUCTION ONLY
This is the service that will suit you best if you wish to have complete control over the management of your property but require some help in finding the tenant and drawing up the tenancy agreements.
Maxwell Valentine Lettings markets your property on its own website and additional external websites. Applicants are screened in exactly the same way and suitable Tenancy Agreements are drawn up.
We will collect the first month’s rent and security deposit.
