The case for landlords using a professional lettings and property management agency seems more and more compelling as time goes by.
There seems to be more legislation and paperwork focussed on landlords than ever before.
Did you know that Landlords need issue their prospective tenants with the Government’s “How to rent” handbook before any tenancy agreement is issued?
All landlords should by now be aware that there are specific rules and regulations for the holding of tenant deposits and strict rules governing the release of these deposits.
A recent example is the “right to rent” legislation which came into law at the end of January. Apparently more than 90% of landlords surveyed by the Residential Landlords Association said they had received no information from government on their new legal duty to check the immigration status of their tenants. Furthermore, 72% of respondents do not understand their obligations under the policy. The other follow-on issue from the above is the documentation a landlord requires a tenant to show. Apparently there are 12 million UK citizens without a passport. Verifying those without a passport requires more work and assessments. However, landlords must be careful not to fall foul of being discriminatory or opening themselves up to accusations of racism.
- There are gas safety and electrical safety rules.
- There are rules on soft furnishings.
- There are rules on carbon monoxide and smoke alarms.
- There are rules on legionella disease.
- The rules on stamp duty, accounting for wear & tear and accounting for mortgage interest are all changing.
All in all the work required to keep ahead of the law is increasing. These are all new burden’s on Landlords and one arguably better outsourced to a professional lettings agency. We offer the services of Full Management, Let Only or Rent Collection from our offices in Oakham, Stamford, Kettering and all surrounding areas.
If you wish to discuss any of the above please do contact us at Osprey Lettings; www.ospreylettings.co.uk
