Information for Landlords |
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In today's property market residential letting makes good commercial sense. It is our objective to maximise the benefits of letting your property, whilst always ensuring you peace of mind. We will offer you advice and guidance through each stage of letting, from preparing your property for occupancy, through to check out at the end of a tenancy.
There are two main types of service that we can offer namely, Full Management for Landlords that like peace of mind that their property is being cared for by Professionals, and Tenant Find Only for hands on Landlords who like to manage their own properties.
FULL MANAGEMENT SERVICES
- Free advice on rental and market conditions including tips on décor and fees, ensuring the property remains occupied
- Company website, www.claremontproperties.co.uk
- Our ‘To Let’ boards
- Advertising of Property
- Accompanied viewings
- Verify references and conduct credit checks
- Lease agreement and all documents will be drawn up to cover all legal aspects of the tenancy
- Check in tenants and advise Council and utility companies
- Collection of rent and money transfer into your preferred bank account including a monthly detailed statement.
- Arrange all annual safety checks
- Proactive and reactive maintenance
- Inspect the property periodically and report any problems to you
- Check out tenants and report findings
- Arrange re-letting of your property
We offer this service to Landlords who want a professional agent to look after their property for them to get on with other projects.
TENANT FIND ONLY
- Free advice on rental and market conditions including tips on décor and fees, helping ensuring the property remains occupied
- Company website, www.claremontproperties.co.uk
- Our ‘To Let’ boards
- Advertising of Property
- Accompanied viewings
- Verify references and conduct credit checks
- A Lease agreement and all documents will be drawn up to cover all legal aspects of the tenancy
- Check in tenants
- Complete Standing Order Form
- Send you all signed paperwork
Once the tenancy is finalised you will take the reins to do the rest, such as prepare the inventory, carry out safety checks, inform utilities and maintain your property. This service is for hands-on people who want to manage their own properties.
LANDLORD INFORMATION
Registration of Landlords
Anyone becoming a landlord and letting a property must register with their local authority. They are required to register from the date the property is marketed.
The web site for registering online is www.landlordregistrationscotland.gov.uk
Tenants
Finding the right tenant for a property is fundamental. We start by establishing with yourself a criteria for the sort of person you wish to occupy your property.
Payments are due every calendar month, in advance starting from the commencement of the lease. We do encourage tenants to pay their rent by standing order, if however they pay by cheque we must allow time for this to clear our bank before forwarding payment to yourself.
Rent
When we initially assess a property we indicate what we believe to be a realistic rent. Prospective tenants usually accept this figure but there may need to be some room for negotiation.
Deposits
We request a deposit on all tenancies, for private tenants the deposit is equal to one months rent.
Deposits are held to help ensure the tenant looks after the property and as a safeguard against unpaid rent. It is refundable at the end of a tenancy only after the tenant has vacated the property and providing the house and their account is in order.
When the tenant vacates the property you will have an opportunity to inspect the property yourself prior to the deposit being refunded. Should you wish to so do, you must make arrangements to view the property within as fewer days as possible (no greater than 5) of the date the tenant vacates the property. Otherwise we will carry this out on your behalf and make a judgement as to the refund of all or part of the deposit.
Commencement Of Tenancy
The tenancy commences on the date shown in the lease. Prior to the tenant moving in we will carry out an inventory of the property, with a brief description of its condition.
Repairs
Every property at some point will need some work doing to it, if things go wrong and the tenant contacts us, we then contact you, if required to do so. In the majority of cases the problem can be resolved quickly. However there are two important points to remember when it comes to repairs. Firstly, we will instruct minor repairs up to £150 of value, but larger and common repairs are the Landlords responsibility.
Secondly, once a property is tenanted you do have an obligation to ensure it is well maintained. Carrying out repairs quickly is often as important for you as it is for the tenant, after-all repair caught early enough can save you a lot of money. Remember tenants do have rights, tenants can contact the Environmental Health because repairs are not being attended to quickly, the ensuing ‘enforcement order’ could include extra repairs and significantly higher final bill. Work not done will be carried out by them and they will add a hefty additional charge on top of the repair bill.
*”In the Landlord & Tenants Act 1985 under section 11, it is implied as a convenient in the tenancy agreement that the landlord is:
(a) to keep in repair the structure and exterior of the dwelling (including it’s drains, gutters and external pipes).
(b) to keep in repair and proper working order the installations in the dwelling, for sanction and for the supply of water, gas and electricity as well as those for space heating and heating water”
*(journal for residential property professionals- July 1996, issue2, volume4)
Gas Appliances
It is a legal requirement that every gas appliance and gas central heating system has to be inspected on a annual basis, they have to meet strict conditions and a safety certificate must be issued. (This certificate or copy of if must be kept with our files).
You can ask British Gas (who charge per item inspected) or a private gas engineer (some of whom have a flat rate, regardless of the number of appliances). Remember for a inspection to be complete the piping must also be inspected and the person conducting the inspection MUST be CORGI registered.
We can arrange for the safety inspection to be carried out for you by our local gas engineer. Once the inspection has been completed we keep a record of the date. A safety certificate must be issued every twelve months.
Central heating systems do break down, unfortunately it always seems to happen at the most inconvenient of times such as a Bank Holiday or when you are away. The cost of repair can be substantial and there is often little option but to have the work done. For this reason we recommend a service contract. British Gas offer a policy which serves the majority of systems very well, they also allow you to spread the cost and pay monthly instalments. If you do take out a service contract or have one already then please let us know, the details will be kept in the files and should the tenant have any problems we can contact your service provider on your behalf.
Alarms
It is our recommendation that all properties should be fitted with at least two smoke alarms. While this is not a legal requirement failure to take adequate precautions (such as fitting smoke alarms) could lead to a landlord being prosecuted if something did happen. Smoke alarms are inexpensive and are easily fitted, they can and do save lives. Once installed these devices must be checked on a regular basis.
If your property has gas appliances then you may wish to consider the installation of carbon monoxide alarms (these detect the build up of dangerous gasses). These units cost a little more than smoke alarms but again do serve a very useful purpose.
More and more landlords are having burglar alarms fitted that have a master code as well as a user code, this must be kept secret. A master code means that changing the alarm number is only possible with this number. Consequently while your tenants can have the benefit of the alarm they cannot change its settings. Alarms (like any peace of electrical equipment) can malfunction. This is not only annoying for yourself and neighbours but it is also leading to increased calls from police officers for a list of such nuisance alarms (the implication being that if an alarm is frequently sounding for no valid reason the police refuse to respond). We would therefore recommend that the alarm is checked on a regular basis.
Furnishings
If any furniture is left in a property, then you as landlord have a duty to ensure it is maintained and (for electrical / mechanical equipment) repaired should it become faulty, provided of course this is not as a result of negligence or malicious damage by the tenant. Any soft furnishings (Chairs & beds etc.) that are left in the property must comply to fire regulations, and a label clearly stating so should be attached. If not then the furnishings must be removed from the property they cannot be stored at the rented address.
Mortgages
If the property you wish to rent is subject to a mortgage then the mortgage lender should be informed that you intend to let the property. This should be done before a tenant moves into the property. Gaining permission from the building society usually depends upon the mortgage account not being in arrears. Some lenders do ask to see a copy of the lease, which the tenant will be asked to sign, we will happily provide them with this. The lender may make a small charge to cover administration costs.
Insurance
As landlord you are still responsible for the building and accordingly the buildings insurance. Please note buildings insurance will not cover the costs of replacing or repairing carpets if they become damaged, it does however cover fixtures and fittings. If the property is furnished or part- furnished you may also wish to consider contents insurance.
Empty Property
The agreement you signed when the property was put on our books does not cover periods when the property is vacant.
Keys
We would normally require three sets of keys to the property, two will be handed to the tenant on occupation, the other will be retained in our office for emergencies
Finally
If you do have any problems, feel free to contact us - we are here to help.
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Claremont Properties currently can also offer properties in the following locations :
Hawick
Galashiels
Kelso
Selkirk
Jedburgh
Other
Information for Landlords, Scottish Borders
Report a Repair
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