Letting a farm cottage - the need for an agent....?

Doing it for the kids · Apr 24, 2018

as the title suggests, in our part of the world the demand for housing is strong (we are lucky) and an agent seems to charge between 8-10% to find, complete background checks, get a contract signed and pass them my details to organise moving in, rent payment and on going maintainance.

My gripe with the agents is they seem to get loads of enquiries, carry out 3 viewings and then sort a tenant in a week. If demand was lower and they had to spend more time on the job then I would be relaxed, but they don't.

What do others do? The TDS is mandatory but I can sort that FOC, the contract is easy enough to draw up, it's just the background checks that I haven't yet looked into but I am sure for a few ££ an online company can check them out.

I appreciate there is an element of risk in going alone but the savings are easily 4 figures per let which does tot up when farming is on its knees.

What do others do?

Chris F · Apr 24, 2018

Having just rented when I moved, most agents are happy to get the first person who passes the checks into a house, not the person who would be best for the owner. I think meeting the potentials yourself and finding one who is interested in a longer term let is the best thing for you. Agents don't care about you, they care about getting their fee, and then hopefully getting it again in 6 months.

Bloders · Apr 24, 2018

do it all myself.
are you in Wales, in whihc case you have to be registered and a whole load of other stuff. I dont believe there are any particular requirements in England.
Dont forget, agents dont gurantee the tennant will pay the rent, AND if the tennant rings them with an issue they will either use their own "preferred (possibly expensive) tradespeople or ring you anyway
AND, a lot of folks dont like renting through an agent becuase of the fees they charge.

I use facebook groups and gumtree to advertise property. I got lucky a couple of times as i had recomendations, which saves a load of worry

Skimmer · Apr 24, 2018

Isn't keeping the property occupied (particularly if you have to pay full council when empty) , let out at maximum rent & their experience of vetting tenants worth 10%, I think its good value.

Doing it for the kids · Apr 24, 2018

Chris F said:
Having just rented when I moved, most agents are happy to get the first person who passes the checks into a house, not the person who would be best for the owner. I think meeting the potentials yourself and finding one who is interested in a longer term let is the best thing for you. Agents don't care about you, they care about getting their fee, and then hopefully getting it again in 6 months.

Very true, I've tried a few over the years, amazIng how their own rules are inflicted on others, i really lost it with one of the bigger agents who insisted I sign a disclaimer to protect them from letting the house with a gas certificate, even though there is no gas for miles.

Bloders said:
do it all myself.
are you in Wales, in whihc case you have to be registered and a whole load of other stuff. I dont believe there are any particular requirements in England.
Dont forget, agents dont gurantee the tennant will pay the rent, AND if the tennant rings them with an issue they will either use their own "preferred (possibly expensive) tradespeople or ring you anyway
AND, a lot of folks dont like renting through an agent becuase of the fees they charge.

I use facebook groups and gumtree to advertise property. I got lucky a couple of times as i had recomendations, which saves a load of worry

I know all about the Welsh job, it's frustrating to say the least! This post was about English property so not so dramatic! Facebook is hilarious, one nice gent got upset when I declined his request to live there with NINE children, 2 dogs and then accuses me being crooked for asking for a deposit!

Never got on with gum tree need to look at that

Doing it for the kids · Apr 24, 2018

Skimmer said:
Isn't keeping the property occupied (particularly if you have to pay full council when empty) , let out at maximum rent & their experience of vetting tenants worth 10%, I think its good value.

I've not had a void of more than a few days in years. Not because I am good (or the agent) but because there is no were to rent round here. In one week I've probably had a dozen enquiries, 2-3 are of interest. There is some relief on CT I think max rent = market rent round here. In all honesty I think they just plug the prospective tenants name into one of their subscription check sites and hit print.

Maybe I am sounding harsh!?

Frodo · Apr 24, 2018

I would definitely get a professionally prepared lease.

Using an agent does mean everything including rent reviews and inspections happen, but at a cost.

Crabtree · Apr 24, 2018

Depends how much time you want to spend vetting potential tenants ? our family has 7 let properties which I oversee, but we generally use agents who charge 1 months rent. They often have to go through more than 1 credit check or guarantor procedure when the first people fail the checks so this all takes time. Sometimes it's easy for the agents, other times they have to work for it, and in several cases they have got us higher than expected rents. However if you have quick turnaround of tenants (we don't) then you wouldn't want to keep losing a month's rent and redecorating etc.
In our case if proper referencing has been done our insurers would cover us for any lost rent if the tenants stop paying or default so that's also something to consider.

Skimmer · Apr 24, 2018

Doing it for the kids said:
I've not had a void of more than a few days in years. Not because I am good (or the agent) but because there is no were to rent round here. In one week I've probably had a dozen enquiries, 2-3 are of interest. There is some relief on CT I think max rent = market rent round here. In all honesty I think they just plug the prospective tenants name into one of their subscription check sites and hit print.

Maybe I am sounding harsh!?

If that works for you fine, I know many who rent direct successfully.

AJR75 · Apr 24, 2018

The vast majority of tenants are fine but there will always be a problem tenant in amongst them and when it goes wrong it really can spiral very rapidly. If the agent is worth their salt then they'll provide a barrier to these types of people, that's worth their commission all day long in my book but choose your agent carefully.

Doing it for the kids · Apr 24, 2018

Crabtree said:
Depends how much time you want to spend vetting potential tenants ? our family has 7 let properties which I oversee, but we generally use agents who charge 1 months rent. They often have to go through more than 1 credit check or guarantor procedure when the first people fail the checks so this all takes time. Sometimes it's easy for the agents, other times they have to work for it, and in several cases they have got us higher than expected rents. However if you have quick turnaround of tenants (we don't) then you wouldn't want to keep losing a month's rent and redecorating etc.
In our case if proper referencing has been done our insurers would cover us for any lost rent if the tenants stop paying or default so that's also something to consider.

Which agents do you find ok?

Most stay for 1-2 yrs plus, we are lucky. I could easily spend £5k in the next 6 months on agent fees before inventory, check in TDS etc. Costs alone. I like to meet all tenants before they move in so arguably agent or not I am still involved.

Sounds like it's 50:50 out there with for and against!

Crabtree · Apr 24, 2018

Doing it for the kids said:
Which agents do you find ok?

Most stay for 1-2 yrs plus, we are lucky. I could easily spend £5k in the next 6 months on agent fees before inventory, check in TDS etc. Costs alone. I like to meet all tenants before they move in so arguably agent or not I am still involved.

Sounds like it's 50:50 out there with for and against!

How will you spend £5000 !? In the next 6 months, the thread title suggested 1 farm cottage to let ? We would pay a maximum of £3000 as that's the highest pcm rent.
What area are you in, the people I use are mainly only doing lettings in Gloucestershire, plus skirting into Wilts and Oxon.
Fair to say one is always involved in sorting out on going problems or maintenance anyway.

A Trebor · Apr 24, 2018

4 family rentals,use agent to find tenants,contracts and checks but do viewings ourselves.Do management our selves as paying 10% for them to answer a phone,ring a tradesman to solve problem with no regard to cost is ridiculous.

steveR · Apr 24, 2018

I have 4 properties on AST's 3 old farm cottages and one newer property. I use an Agent to find new Tenants 75% of the time, and pay a pre-agreed fixed figure of around 400 quid for their work. Have been delighted with their vetting so far over 4 years. Lettings not pre-arranged with Agents have been fine, but need checks on incomes

All management in-house

slackjawedyokel · Apr 24, 2018

We do use an agent because they can provide a bit of a barrier when necessary between tenants and us. We’ve got one lot of tenants who are proving to be a bit of a pain; want minor problems sorting out yesterday, peeing off tradesmen and so on. In future I think we’ll insist they go through the agent cos I can do without the agro.

Doing it for the kids · Apr 24, 2018

Crabtree said:
How will you spend £5000 !? In the next 6 months, the thread title suggested 1 farm cottage to let ? We would pay a maximum of £3000 as that's the highest pcm rent.
What area are you in, the people I use are mainly only doing lettings in Gloucestershire, plus skirting into Wilts and Oxon.
Fair to say one is always involved in sorting out on going problems or maintenance anyway.

This post was about a current let I'm sorting, I know I have others leaving within 6 months so applying the same logic.

I agree with others ref contractors fixing issues, unless you live miles away, we have a full time fix it man so at least side is easy enough.

AJR75 · Apr 25, 2018

slackjawedyokel said:
We do use an agent because they can provide a bit of a barrier when necessary between tenants and us. We’ve got one lot of tenants who are proving to be a bit of a pain; want minor problems sorting out yesterday, peeing off tradesmen and so on. In future I think we’ll insist they go through the agent cos I can do without the agro.

Exactly this- Income checks are an essential - there are an awful lot of people out there who can "talk a good game" but scratch beneath the surface and the story is very different. Unfortunately I've found these people to be the ones that cause the biggest problems as well. Like you say, wanting stuff fixed yesterday then being inflexible for access for tradesmen etc. Call me cynical but generally when stuff like this starts happening there's a bigger picture that the tenants don't want you to know about.

Ysgythan · Apr 25, 2018

Look up agents ads to see the going rate. Ad in the paper, do the viewings yourself - your gut instinct on someone is often the best tool. Take ID and proof of funds. Register the deposit. In Wales register as a landlord. Search the insolvency register https://www.insolvencydirect.bis.gov.uk/eiir/
Ask for references. Let’s face it though, if it’s a country cottage only certain people will be able to afford to rent it. Get a tenancy agreement from your solicitor and if you’re really cheeky ask them to do an electronic money laundering check against the tenants and a quote for possession proceedings if it goes tits up. They’ll normally have a flat rate charge for their landlord clients.

Sid · Apr 25, 2018

We use an agent, family relation to find tenant for a set fee for entry and exit.
We then pay a fee to walk round and do a check every 6 months just to make sure all is good and how it should be.
Any issues with let is deal with a tradesman so its not a cobble together effort for repairs...hopefully!

muppet · Apr 25, 2018

Can be done without an agent but it’s getting a lot more complicated with the required pre lettin paperwork - EPC, TDS, electrical certs, gas safety checks, right to rent etc etc. All of which needs to be present and correct (especially if you ever need to apply to Court for posession!).

I mostly use an agent as they deal with the above and do the initail weeding out of unsuitable candidates, but beware of the extra fees! Just swapped as the last one started to charge an annual fee to hold the deposit, among other things (FFS!!)

Letting a farm cottage - the need for an agent....?

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