Dodgy Letting Agent

[Grampa]

A friend of my called me this week to say they had brought a property to rent out and were using a agent for full management..

In the course of the conversation i mentioned that they should find out where the deposit it held and make sure they get a guarantor with the guarantee drawn up as a deed.

I get a call back later saying they checked with the agent to make sure it was a deed and the reply from the agent was " WHAT IS A DEED"

I know there are crappy untrained agents out there but this is frightening.

[Richlist]

I know there are crappy untrained agents out there but this is frightening.

Why ?

Wouldn't you expect there to be some 'crappy untrained agents' in an industry that allows anybody to set themselves up. ? Any industry that has little or no regulation is bound to result in this type of failure.

Its equally frightening that there are gullible, short sighted people who can't be bothered to make a few checks before employing an agent to conduct their business.

Whilst I have some sympathy......it doesn't extend very far.

[Grampa]

I think it is just the same for solicitors if if you have never used one before you expect they know what they are doing and we know that isnt the case.

In the industry or knowledgable landlords know full well that letting agents are do not have to be regulated but for a new landlord it is very easy especially if they have never been in buisness to expect a high st agent to know what they are doing.

I did it myself many many years ago.

[chickpea]

I think it is just the same for solicitors if if you have never used one before you expect they know what they are doing and we know that isnt the case.

In the industry or knowledgable landlords know full well that letting agents are do not have to be regulated but for a new landlord it is very easy especially if they have never been in buisness to expect a high st agent to know what they are doing.

I did it myself many many years ago.

Yup, that'll be us you're talking about.

For us gullable, short-sighted people, can you please tell me what I should be demanding of my letting agent (I already know that they use protected deposit scheme)? Does every tenant need a guarantor? What checks (other than credit) should be done? (I know about landlord references but any others?

You're right - I thought if I went to letting agents that are part of a high street estate agency and paid my money, they would take care of everything we need...that's why we decided against manging the let ourselves.

[Grampa]

I will make a start of a few things you need to ask of a letting agent:

1 Are you a member of Nals or Arla. ( It doesn't mean they are bad if not it just means there are certain safeguards in place and they are likely to have had some training)

2 What deposit scheme is the deposit held in.

3 Do they serve legal notices and how do they serve them..

4 Who does the inventory and can you see an example. The best practice is for it to be done by a independent company.

5 If there is a guarantor is the guarantee drawn up as a deed and is the guarantor a home owner and is that confirmed from the land registry website.

6 How long have they been trading and how many properties do they manage.

7 What is their proceedure if the rent isnt paid and what are the options. If they dont mention a section 8 notice ask them and see if they know what one is.

8 What is the management fee % and what other charges are there. Do they charge extra for:

a Contract renewals

b Arranging maintenance works

c Gas certificates

d Serving notices

c Inpections

There are loads more things to ask but that all i can think of at this time in morning with a hangover.

[Simon Dewsberry]

.....Fundamental.

what is the reference proceedure for prospective T

1. ID check

2. credit check - AND disposable income calculator (no good having some who earns 70k pa who cannot meet rent payment due to existing financial commitments - yep i failed someone on this bais a few months ago!)

3. previous LL ref

4. income verification and permanent/income salary

this LONG before you get into how to get rid of them !!!!1

[Grampa]

Another example:

Just had out local solicitor refer someone to us to draw up a new tenancy for them. They did a tenant find only with a big london agent Wxxxxxxxxxxx but have been charged a very large amount every year even though they are not managing the property.

I have just looked through all the original paperwork and though a guarantor's name is mentioned on the AST there isnt anything signed by the guarantor or any details. Also there is a lovey big well written inventory but there isnt a signature of either the agent or tenant..

I have told the person to contact the agent and request the signed copy and if they cant demand the fee back.

[OptionLettings.com]

There are so many dodgy agents, whether they be poorly trained staff at companies with many offices or single office companies. I have just encountered one company who charged their landlord £50.00 for the placing of the deposit with the DPS, even though it is free to do so. However, they kept it in their own piggy bank as far as I know.

The landlord had contacted me as they were concerned that every month the rent was paid late and asked if I could look into matters on their behalf. I visited the agent in person, with a letter of authority to act on behalf of the landlord, and asked to see the complete file on the property in question. Not only had the deposit not been properly safeguarded within one of the three government approved schemes, in particular the DPS, I was was told it was safe with the NatWest insurance scheme. If that wasn't bad enough, the Section 21 notice that had been served at the start of the tenancy was not worth the paper it was written on.

Many landlords don't have the time, or perhaps are overseas to be able to have a hands on approach to their investments and hence use an agents.

I hope your friend has more luck in the future.

[Grampa]

I know it would be a pain for the agents who do the job correctly but it is about time agents were regulated to get rid of most of the cowboys.

[OptionLettings.com]

I know it would be a pain for the agents who do the job correctly but it is about time agents were regulated to get rid of most of the cowboys.

I couldn't agree more. However, quite often the individual lettings negotiators have no accreditation themselves, only senior personnel within the company will have the accreditation. If there were regulations that meant that each individual involved in lettings had to have the required accreditation, then not only would they be more knowledgable but more accountable like with the FSA.

[Grampa]

Yes but at least the buisness is still accountable with certain safeguards and some form of recourse if things go wrong.

[Melboy]

Worth a read for Newbie Landlords and those who like to keep abreast of the renting scene in general. I guess most of us have experienced this as written below.....I know I have years ago.

Letting agents ripping off landlords with 'made up' charges

Tuesday 25th October 2011

Letting agents are routinely ripping off landlords and tenants, and making up administrative charges as they go along.

The accusation comes from Citizens Advice whose spokesperson Moira Haynes told the Daily Mail that charges by agents often bear little or no relation to the cost of the work involved.

She said: Many letting agents routinely rip off tenants by imposing unjustified and excessive charges and providing a poor or non-existent service.

In some cases letting agents appear to make them up as they go along.

These charges can be a huge barrier for people on low and even average incomes who have no housing options other than the private rented sector. They should be banned.

According to the article, Citizens Advice is particularly concerned about the lack of regulation in the lettings sector, with anyone able set themselves up as a letting agent without any need for professional expertise or experience.

While it acknowledges that some agents join ARLA, it says that ARLA does not cap or monitor what its members charge landlords and tenants for administration.

The link to the full article is below. Do let us know your thoughts.

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/mortgageshome/article-2051809/Are-letting-agents-ripping-landlords-tenants.html#ixzz1bbYDZlPj

[Richlist]

Look.......I know I'm a total pain in the arse BUT...... and I don't seem to be agreeing with anybody today......I don't agree with the CAB who are making out that lettings agents live in a separate world to other people.....ITS JUST NOT TRUE:

Letting agents are routinely ripping off landlords and tenants, and making up administrative charges as they go along.

So what ? So do lots of other people. Some of them are : builders, washing machine repairers, second hand car salesmen, double glazing firms etc etc.....the list is endless. Some of them appear on 'Watchdog' every week.

The accusation comes from Citizens Advice whose spokesperson Moira Haynes told the Daily Mail that charges by agents often bear little or no relation to the cost of the work involved.

Yep.....Just like the legal profession, mortgage application fees, credit cards and bank charges etc etc.

According to the article, Citizens Advice is particularly concerned about the lack of regulation in the lettings sector, with anyone able set themselves up as a letting agent without any need for professional expertise or experience.

This applies to 100's of other services......what are CAB doing about the others?

[Grampa]

I maybe over simplifying the issue but if people read the contract they sign with the agent surely that would resolve 99% of the complaints. If the agent trys to charge for something not listed in the T&C's question it.