As from 1st April 2007, full council tax will be payable on all unoccupied and un-furnished properties which are not exempt. There will no longer be a 50% discount available for the first six months following any exempt period.
Table of Contents
Keys
To avoid any unnecessary problems in the event of tenants mislaying keys to the property, it is advisable to provide a duplicate set which can be retained by ourselves for safe keeping. It would also be helpful to have a name and address of a third party should they also have keys.
Viewings
If you are not living at the property or wish us to show people over if you are not able to attend we will need at least 1 exterior door key to get access for viewings. Viewings can take place during the daytime, evenings or weekends and where we hold keys all tenants will be accompanied by us. We will vet the viewers as much as possible at the time of booking the viewing, but sometimes it is not always possible to do this (if the tenant calls from a board for example) Rest assured that all tenants suitability will be assured prior to any tenancy taking effect.
Tenants References
It is vitally important to let your property to the right type of person. That is why we take the utmost care in ensuring that any tenant we install, in a property, has sufficient means to meet his/her obligations. We use one of the UK’s leading financial and Insurance Investigators to carry out a full personal and financial check upon any of our prospective tenants prior to us allowing them into your home, typically the following references are checked Bankers reference, employers reference (if less than two years, previous employers reference), existing/previous Landlords reference (if applicable) and two personal character references and most importantly a full credit search against their current and former addresses.
When letting to Company’s, we again require a Bank reference, together with two trade references and an accountants reference, we also obtain a Company Report.
Furniture To Leave (Furnished Lettings)
NOTE We do not suggest you buy any items that you do not already have (apart from floor coverings and curtains). It is better to market the property with it’s current contents and then to give the new tenant the option to include items they require. If your property is currently un-furnished we would suggest letting on this basis.
If you do prefer to let your property on a fully furnished basis we would suggest you leave the following items of furniture :-
Floor coverings, a three piece suite, curtains, dining table and chairs, beds, wardrobes, lamps and shades. In the kitchen we would recommend that a cooker, refrigerator, washing machine. We do not advocate leaving a large amount of cooking equipment and utensils but these items may be left at the owners discretion. A vacuum cleaner, iron and ironing board are also of great benefit.
We do not believe it is essential to leave linen and bedding. The availability of these items is often appreciated by tenants who may well be temporarily resident in the UK or between moves, but are prone to the wear due to laundering during a tenancy.
As the Landlord is normally responsible for repairing or replacing items that remain in the property, we would recommend that anything of special value is removed and that careful consideration is given before leaving televisions, video recorders, radios and Hi-Fi equipment. These could be expensive to repair and rarely make a difference to the rent achieved.
Please refer also to our Safety Legislation page.
Un-Furnished Property
It is possible to let any property on an unfurnished basis, the current legislation allows the same rights to re-possession as properties let fully furnished and it is our general view that the potential for letting unfurnished property consistently is the most favorable option at the moment and in most cases rent will not be any lower than that achieved for furnished property. We would recommend that the property is left fully carpeted and if possible curtains and drapes should be left as these are expensive items and it is unlikely that any tenant would wish to buy these expensive items themselves when the let is for an undetermined length of time.
Statements Of Account
Upon receipt of the monthly rent, all outstanding bills would be settled and the balance paid into a U.K. Bank account or forwarded to and address in the UK if preferred. A statement of funds would then be sent to the owner and the person dealing with their tax affairs if applicable, either by post, e-mail or fax.
Rent Payments A Cautionary Note
Rent payments are due monthly on the same date that the Tenants moved into the property originally. We usually insist upon a standing order being set up with the tenant, although this cannot always be enforced. Due to the vagaries of the banking system we ask you to ensure that any payments you make from your bank account that rely upon the payment of rent being received are changed so that payments are due at least 7 to 10 days after the rent is due for payment. This is because it then gives you a breathing space to allow for payments to actually be received by Crofters and then a further period of time whilst finds clear into your account.
Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreements / Notices
Typically, tenancies are set for a term of either 6 months or 1 year initially, with the option to renew if required. We generally only use Asured Shorthold Agreements as it guarantees the owner the right to repossession should the owner need to move back into the property. Shorter tenancies are a possibility and we would be glad to discuss this option with you in greater detail.
The serving of the correctly worded Section 21 Notices (different forms of notice required for each type of tenancy) will also be arranged by us because it is of fundamental importance that this is done correctly to comply with current legislation.
Domestic Utility Accounts
As your agents we ensure that meter readings are taken and all Electricity, Gas and other types of domestic fuels are transferred into the tenant’s name. We also ensure that the Council Tax department at the relevant local authority and the Water Company are informed of a change in occupier. The only utility we are not normally able to take care of for you is British Telecom(BT), we would suggest therefore that you inform BT of your impending departure from the property, it is then the new tenants responsibility to change the name on the account should they wish to continue with the service.
Please note!! In this day and age of ‘deregulation’ it is possible to have utilities and telephone lines supplied by a number of different companies. When we send through our ‘authority to let’ form to all new landlords we ask them to advise us of which companies supply them with their Gas, Electricity and Telephone so that we can ensure that all relevant parties are informed.
SUPPLY OF METERED WATER IMPORTANT!
At the time of compiling our brochure we are aware that it may become compulsory for properties that do not currently have a water meter fitted, to agree to having one installed. As far as we are aware new tenants or for that matter landlords may have no choice but to agree. Things are still a little unclear. We would be glad to discuss this with you further.
Domestic Service Agreements
We of course provide an ongoing service to arrange all maintenance issues for you during the tenancy, but if you do currently have:
- Boiler Service Agreements
- Domestic Appliance Insurances
- Electrical Service Agreements
- Plumbing Service Agreements
We would advise that you should continue with these arrangements. Please supply us with either copies of the policies or details of how we may arrange works on your behalf in the event of a problem.
Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT)
IMPORTANT NOTE! AS FROM 1ST DECEMBER 2003 THERE HAS BEEN IMPORTANT CHANGES TO STAMP DUTY REGULATIONS.
Stamp duty has been replaced by the new ‘Stamp Duty Land Tax’ (or SDLT) as from 1st December 2003. This has simplified the arrangements for payment of taxes and now takes 93% of UK landlords outside of the requirement to pay stamp duty. Generally, If the value of the rent due during the tenancy period is below £60,000 (£5,000 per month on a normal one year tenancy period) then no duty at all will be payable.
If the rental value exceeds £60,000 in any one tenancy period then SDLT will be payable at 1% of the value of the lease (i.e. is rent due during tenancy is £72,000 a fee of £720.00 will be payable) We would be glad to discuss the above with you in greater detail.
The Housing Act 1988 (As Amended By The Housing Act 1996)
Any owner can let property under the provisions of the Housing Act 1988 and 1996. If the requirements of the act are complied with, possession of the property is available at the end of the tenancy although, if the tenant was difficult, it would be necessary to apply to the County Court for a Possession Order. The Court must give possession as long as the Notices and Agreements have been correctly drawn.
The Rent Assessment Committee
Under the Housing Act 1988 and an Assured Tenancy Agreement, the Tenant of any type of accommodation has a right to apply to the Assessment Committee for a market rent assessment. Although we feel this is unlikely on Owner/Occupier furnished letting, which are normally for short periods, the possibility, however remote, exists and this could result in a reduced rent being payable.
