Tips for Choosing a Letting Agent

In our current day and age where the cost of properties keeps rising, properties are slowly becoming more and more inaccessible for the younger generations. Many will be looking to rent rather than purchase. Finding the right tenants for your property can pose a major challenge and many landlords look to employ letting agents in order to carry out the search and due diligence in their place.

Choosing a letting agent who understands the requirements of you and your property can help make the general letting process more pleasant. View our top tips for choosing a letting agent below.

Proximity to Property

The location of the letting agents is usually one of the first points you may consider. You should be looking to find someone who is located in close geographic proximity, or at least an agency from which your property is reasonably accessible by car.

The added benefits of having an agency that is in close proximity to your property is additional area knowledge and more frequent property checks. It is common for homeowners in the area to rely specifically on one of several local agencies. By asking other locals, you may be able to find out who they recommend within the area.

Marketing Choices

If there is no tenant currently present in your property, your property isn’t making you any money and therefore, it’s important to find a suitable tenant as soon as possible. Different agencies utilise different marketing techniques to advertise properties and may thereby find tenants at different speeds.

Finding an agency that is proactive in their advertising by utilising a combination of local papers, online directories and their previous client banks will help you find a great tenant quickly.

Regular Inspections

When dealing with a letting agent, making sure that they frequently check that your property is in good shape should be a priority. In an ideal world, a tenant would keep your property in immaculate condition and repairs would never be required. Unfortunately, this is not always the case.

Things may go wrong and your property will require some care and attention at times. Your agent should drop in relatively frequently (without being a bother to the tenants) and check that everything is in order.

Tenant Checks

When questioned about it, many of our clients said that the leading reason for them choosing a letting agent over carrying out the process themselves was due to the worry of getting bad tenants.

There is an assortment of checks that need to be carried out before a property can be rented out to a tenant with the legal repercussions hanging over anyone who does not carry them out properly.

Letting agencies are well versed in this process and can therefore identify any potentially harmful tenants while also meeting the legal obligations. Speaking to an agency regarding their vetting process can help give you the comfort of knowing that they will be able to find the right tenant for you.

Contact Us for Landlord Services

If you’re looking for support and advice in letting a home, then please get in touch with our letting agents today. We provide a comprehensive range of landlord services to help make things easier for you.

Call our lettings team on 0121 426 3220 or you can send us an email here.