Looking for advice on renting my property... can anyone help
Discussion
Hi all - can anyone help? any 'experts' in the house?
All I know is that I want to rent out my 2 bed apartment, fully furnished, for £550.00 a month.
I need to know whether to do it privately, or through an agent - the pros and cons, etc... and really the finer details - like who do I inform and how do you sort out council tax and bill payments, etc... and does it affect my mortgage? What do I do about tax from the extra income, etc...?
Any advice gratefully received. Thanks!
All I know is that I want to rent out my 2 bed apartment, fully furnished, for £550.00 a month.
I need to know whether to do it privately, or through an agent - the pros and cons, etc... and really the finer details - like who do I inform and how do you sort out council tax and bill payments, etc... and does it affect my mortgage? What do I do about tax from the extra income, etc...?
Any advice gratefully received. Thanks!
Quick answer:
Depending on the area/state of the place:
Rent yourself: You'll have to pay for advertising, do all the paperwork yourself, and have very little recourse in case of a problem with tennants(unless you own a big dog)
Contact local council: Most local authorities have a private landlords scheme, the guarantee/underwrite the whole thing and you're more or less certain to get a regular income
Agency: Pay through the nose, to advertise and will probably just end up with council tennants anyway, minus the agency fee.
Depending on the area/state of the place:
Rent yourself: You'll have to pay for advertising, do all the paperwork yourself, and have very little recourse in case of a problem with tennants(unless you own a big dog)
Contact local council: Most local authorities have a private landlords scheme, the guarantee/underwrite the whole thing and you're more or less certain to get a regular income
Agency: Pay through the nose, to advertise and will probably just end up with council tennants anyway, minus the agency fee.
Hi ya
Well, it is a really nice place... even if I do say so myself... I defo only want to rent it out to working professionals... single/couple... don't mind... but certainly no scum.
Still ultra clueless. There's a massive split on private/agent letting on here, and from what I've found out from other sources... I guess I defo don't really want to be doing privately, unless, for e.g. I find someone who works at the same place as me, who I can nail down if it gets 'dodgy', god forbid...
God, am confused!
Well, it is a really nice place... even if I do say so myself... I defo only want to rent it out to working professionals... single/couple... don't mind... but certainly no scum.
Still ultra clueless. There's a massive split on private/agent letting on here, and from what I've found out from other sources... I guess I defo don't really want to be doing privately, unless, for e.g. I find someone who works at the same place as me, who I can nail down if it gets 'dodgy', god forbid...
God, am confused!
Advantage of letting to the Council is that you have someone to take action against in the event there are problems. The vast majority of Council tenants and DSS are not going to wreck your house.
However don't leave furniture/possessions in your house that are precious to you as accidents can happen. Don't leave any personal papers either as there was a recent case where they were used by great effect by a tenant.
You do need to notify the mortgage company and they may load your interest rate slightly. You will also need to consider the capital gains tax implications.
However don't leave furniture/possessions in your house that are precious to you as accidents can happen. Don't leave any personal papers either as there was a recent case where they were used by great effect by a tenant.
You do need to notify the mortgage company and they may load your interest rate slightly. You will also need to consider the capital gains tax implications.
If you are going to use an agent then make sure they are ARLA approved. Also there are 2 types of service
Let only-the agent finds the tenant and organises a credit check, contract,informing the various stakeholders (council tax, elec etc), setting up direct debit or ongoing rent etc. You are then left to manage the property. They usually charge a months rent as commission and collect the 1st month rent and 4-6 weeks deposit for you.
Fully managed-all the above and they collect the rent on your behalf and deal with building issues etc. You have to really trust them though as you are pretty much at their mercy for the repairs. They charge around 12-15% PLUS any costs and also usually ask for a "float" to pay for repairs. If you live far away then this is the way to go.
Let only-the agent finds the tenant and organises a credit check, contract,informing the various stakeholders (council tax, elec etc), setting up direct debit or ongoing rent etc. You are then left to manage the property. They usually charge a months rent as commission and collect the 1st month rent and 4-6 weeks deposit for you.
Fully managed-all the above and they collect the rent on your behalf and deal with building issues etc. You have to really trust them though as you are pretty much at their mercy for the repairs. They charge around 12-15% PLUS any costs and also usually ask for a "float" to pay for repairs. If you live far away then this is the way to go.
I looked into this a couple of months ago, for letting a 3 bed house.
Went to a local Estate Agents, and they came out and had a look, on a rental of £650 a month they were going to take about £75. For that they credit check the tenants, deal with any niggles there were, check the property after the tenant had left to make sure everything was ok and generally take the hassle out of it.
They did say you have to get a gas certificate (obvious) but you also have to get an electricians certificate now to say the electrics are up to standard and safe.
They recommended renting unfurnished, if you get a tenant that is less than careful, you can probably end up paying nearly all your profit on replacing items.
If you have a mortgage you have to notify your lender, and you have to upgrade your insurance to cover accidents, (people like compensation these days).
Council tax will be reduced when the property is empty, so you will have to notify them when the property is not occupied.
Thats all i can remember. good luck
Went to a local Estate Agents, and they came out and had a look, on a rental of £650 a month they were going to take about £75. For that they credit check the tenants, deal with any niggles there were, check the property after the tenant had left to make sure everything was ok and generally take the hassle out of it.
They did say you have to get a gas certificate (obvious) but you also have to get an electricians certificate now to say the electrics are up to standard and safe.
They recommended renting unfurnished, if you get a tenant that is less than careful, you can probably end up paying nearly all your profit on replacing items.
If you have a mortgage you have to notify your lender, and you have to upgrade your insurance to cover accidents, (people like compensation these days).
Council tax will be reduced when the property is empty, so you will have to notify them when the property is not occupied.
Thats all i can remember. good luck
Also don't discount DSS, be carefull of course, but the council pays you so it's guaranteed, and there are plenty of honest cases out there. We had a single mum (2 year old) whose other half walked out left with no choice but to rent. Perfectly decent woman, in fact she had to be home so much she did the garden better than we ever had it
Incorrigible said:
For £50 odd a month I'd get an agent...
For £50 a month, they do fk all
If you're less than a hour away from it, do it yourself
With the benefit of hindsight, as a tenant, direct renting from a proper nutter, you can see where I'm coming from though mate...
Not that I am suggesting that our heroine in this case is a complete nutter, you understand...
mrsT said:
Hi ya
Well, it is a really nice place... even if I do say so myself... I defo only want to rent it out to working professionals... single/couple... don't mind... but certainly no scum.
Still ultra clueless. There's a massive split on private/agent letting on here, and from what I've found out from other sources... I guess I defo don't really want to be doing privately, unless, for e.g. I find someone who works at the same place as me, who I can nail down if it gets 'dodgy', god forbid...
God, am confused!
Have been renting my place now for a couple of years. I'd suggest going through an agent initially. They're generally cr*p but at least they should get someone in who is "ok". Go for the shortest term possible, then if the people are ok, negotiate with them yourself. My agency was charging me £135 per month, and I had to make several phonecalls asking where my rent was. The tennant had paid it, but they decided to keep it! I got rid of them and kept the tennant's in there (£45 finders fee)!
Tax. I think you're allowed around £4k a year of profit a year, but the interest you pay on your mortgage can be offset against any income, so you shouldn't have any worries there (unless you have a £2.50 mortgage!!).
Hope this helps.
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