We at Landlords Alert recognise that the process of finding and moving into a property is not always easy. It will normally take about five to ten working days to take up and confirm your references, clear your cheque covering the deposit and the first rent period, arrange for inventories to be taken and possibly arrange for the transfer of utility accounts into your name. Most recognised agents will not allow you to move in until all of these things have been completed. In order to help you with the processes we have put together some useful steps which will hopefully make your life a little less stressful and much easier. The basic steps can be outlined as follows:
1. Find a property
2. View property
3. Pay holding deposit
4. Be referenced and or Guarantor
5. Pay bond money & first rental instalment, get a receipt
6. Wait for check to clear if it is not a bankers draft or cash
7. Get inventory (should be at this stage but is often later)
8. Sign tenancy agreement
9. Transfer utility accounts (not always done at this stage)
10. Receive keys & move in
Find a property
Can be stressful and time consuming to say the least, but we at Landlords Alert have made it easier by giving you the opportunity to advertise the type of accommodation you’re looking for, as well as the area of your choice. With a automatic property matching system the responses are instant. This method of advertising will undoubtedly satisfy your needs as only the registered landlords of Landlords Alert database who meets your specification will respond to your advert directly.
View property
When viewing a property make sure you are clear about boundaries such as who is responsible for different areas particularly if you are renting a flat but share part of the garden. It is not uncommon to ask the landlord for identification to satisfy your-self that he or she is who they say they really are. There are some unscrupulous individuals out there and one must always be aware of the potential risk of losing money through ignorance.
Check all areas in the property especially if it contains defects which you are uncertain about. Protect yourself by ensuring that the landlord has carried out his/her obligations as a landlord by making sure all electrical and gas appliances have been well maintained and certified to which you must see proof of this.
Holding deposits
This is used to in the following ways:
- The holding deposit is non-refundable if you pull out of the deal simply because you have changed your mind.
- Your application may also get rejected by the referencing company or for failing to meet some other criteria set by the landlord or letting agent. If the tenancy doesn't proceed, usually within a set timescale, you may lose all or part of the holding deposit. The justification for this on behalf of the letting agent is the administrative expenses that they incur in taking the process as far as they have done.
- With several lettings agents competing to let the same property, there is a risk that although you put down your deposit at a certain value, someone else may put down a deposit for a higher value through another agent, or even through the same one if they are particularly shady. The landlord will almost always favour tenant offering the higher rental value even if they came in after the first party who had put down a holding deposit. It’s a competitive situation to be in as there is no guarantee of securing a tenancy on a property.
- There are some grey areas which surround incidences of where agents have been less than truthful in an attempt to get you into a property. If you agree to move in, pay your holding deposit and then find something that the agent either lied about or should have told you, which forces you to change your mind about the place, you may have a fight on your hands to get the holding deposit back. Most decent and honest agents will refund the deposit particularly if it was their fault, but at times you may have to shout loud enough – as agents involved have their reputation to think about.
- If the Landlord or Agent decides to withdraw the property and no longer wish to proceed, then you should almost always be able to reclaim the holding deposit back.
References
The referencing process will differ depending on who you are renting from. Private landlords may simply ask for the address and phone number of your previous landlord, bank and employer and contact them directly. If your previous landlord or agent is a member of Landlords Alert web site, information stored about you will generate a reference in a report format. This is also known as (Tenant Alerts) which acknowledges strengths and weaknesses identified during the term of your tenancy according to your contractual obligations. Your landlord may state whether or not he would recommend you to other landlords with reasons and backed by supporting evidence.
Lettings agents will often require you to fill in a separate referencing form, which allows either themselves or a third party referencing company to write to various individuals or referees that are able to help confirm your ability to meet the rental commitments.
Referees
Some companies will also ask you to pay if you want a reference from them. Past landlords and other lettings agencies will usually make a charge for this.
Landlords Alert offers a unique service which enables you to self verify and save the landlords time thus making the whole process of moving into a property a speedier experience. Make sure that you advise anybody you are using as a reference that they are going to be used as such. Encourage them to respond as quickly as possible, and be sure that they will not be away at the wrong time.
What information will I need to provide?
Agencies in London use several different referencing companies. All require same information. This will be across a number of different areas such as:
The Property
- Address
- Property type
- Move in date
- Length and type of tenancy
- Whether there is a 6 month break clause
- Amount of monthly rent.
This is the total amount due up front from the tenant, which includes your monthly rent in advance, the deposit and any administration fee that is payable.
Personal Details
- Names
- Date of birth
- Smoker?
- Have you any pets?
- Car registration number
- Sex & Marital status
- Children
- Current address
- Email address
- Phone number(s)
- Current residency status - i.e. whether you are a homeowner, rent privately, are a council tenant, a student, live with your parents or are staying in temporary accommodation.
- Any previous addresses you have had in the last 3 years.
- Your current and previous landlord, managing agent or local authority.
Do you have any? If so, you will be asked to provide details:
Employment Details
- Your job title and description
- Employer details
- Salary details
- Payroll number if you have one
- A contact at work
- Details of your previous employer if you have been in your current job for less than 6 months
- Bank name and address
- Bank Account number and sort code
Under Landlords Alert verification service you will sign a declaration that states...
"The information I have given is true to the best of my knowledge. I consent to this information being verified by fair and lawful means, which I understand will involve contacting a licensed credit reference agency. I understand the resulting verified information will be forwarded to the landlord or letting agency and the results may also be accessed again if I apply for a tenancy in the future. I hereby expressly consent to my personal details including any previous addresses at the determination of any tenancy being passed to the landlord or letting agency.
I agree that information supplied by me will be held in accordance with the company’s notification under the Data Protection Act 1998 and that I have the right to ask for a copy of the information held about me subject to the payment of an administration fee."
Guarantors
If you have moved house frequently over a short period of time and have not been in a stable accommodation for more than 6 months, or working in same company for more than 6 months, if you are a student or in a job with low earnings, you will more than likely need a guarantor to be able to rent privately in a privately owned rented accommodation.
Where a guarantor has entered into an agreement, this means that in the event of a tenant being unable to meet their obligations under the tenancy agreement, whether it is for overdue rent, damage to the property or whatever, the Guarantor is legally bound to accept the liabilities on behalf of the tenant.
The purpose of a Guarantor is like an insurance policy for the landlord or lettings agent against the tenant defaulting on the rent. Like with most types of insurance, the number of claims against guarantors has risen in recent years, so the requirements for being a guarantor are getting somewhat tougher. Nowadays, a guarantor must usually be a homeowner that does not fail a credit inquiry and is therefore probably in regular employment. A person would not provide much of a guarantee if they were themselves unable to make a payment should the circumstances require it.
Bear in mind that if you are entering into a joint tenancy where the tenants are individually and severally responsible, the guarantor is, in effect guaranteeing not just the tenant they specifically have association with, but any of the other tenants as well. They may not be aware of this and may not be so willing to act as guarantor if they know.
A guarantor's application form normally has two aspects to it:
The first part is almost identical to the tenancy application or references that will be checked on the tenant and requires information on the following:
- The rented accommodation in question
- Guarantor's personal details
- Residency information
- CCJ's
- Employment history
- National Insurance number
- Accountants, solicitors, character referee
- Declaration accepting credit search etc & signature
- The date of the agreement
- The signatures and names of the parties that are making the agreement
- The property concerned
- The names of the tenant(s)
- If the tenant defaults in the payment of rent laid down as per the tenancy agreement, the guarantor will pay the landlord.
- If the tenant does not observe his/her obligations as set out in the agreement, the guarantor will pay all losses, damages, expenses and costs that are incurred as a result of the tenant's default.
Again, if your Guarantor does not pass the inquiry, it does not mean that this will be the case with every agency that you try. Different companies have different requirements and it can be worth checking elsewhere before you give up hope altogether.
The Bond
What’s this?
The bond is paid to cover against property losses as stipulated below: It is also quite handy for any landlord or agent that has multiple properties, since they can earn quite a bit of interest on the bond without the money ever really being theirs.
The losses or expenses that the landlord or agent may incur for which your bond provides cover include those caused by:
- Damaged items.
- Accidentally disappearing items or deliberate removal of property.
- Outstanding debts attached to the property.
- Failure to carry out your obligations as a tenant as set out in your tenancy agreement. In other words, if you don't treat the property as you are supposed to or leave it in the state agreed, and then you will be liable for any costs involved in ensuring that the property meets those standards. This often includes things like cleaning windows and carpets.
- Non-payment of rent. Some people forgo deposit and don't make their rent payment in their last month of occupancy of a property. This is not the best cause of action particularly if legal proceedings are being taken against you to recover costs, will only serve to strengthen the claimants case in their favour. If you fail to pay rent, you will almost certainly be in breach of your tenancy agreement and therefore could find that you have lost the bond and are still liable for the rent you didn't pay in any event.
Bonds can be for anything from 4 to 8 weeks' worth of rent. The sum demanded can also be a strange unconnected amount. There are no hard a fast rules governing how much of a deposit a landlord is entitled to ask for.
Some people are required to pay additional monthly rent as well as a bond if they can't get a guarantor. Make sure that this is documented at the commencement of the tenancy and also keep a receipt. Details of this sort of thing should be added into the tenancy agreement.
You will normally also be asked to pay some rent up front. This is not part of the bond and is not always the case, but the landlord is likely to ask for one months' worth of rent in advance of you moving in. They can legally ask for as much as they want to. Which method of payment?
It is almost vital to expect your new landlord or agent to have cleared funds before you move into your new property, which means making payment by cash, switch, building society cheque or banker's draft. Most of these methods automatically involve proof of payment, but you should also ask for a receipt, especially if you pay by cash.
Who is holding the bond?
Be clear who is holding the bond. It can be the landlord, but equally it can be the agent. Normally if there is an agent, the bond will be paid to them, but this is not always the case. Speak to them about it first and make sure that you get the process in writing. Many lettings agents collect the deposit on the landlord's behalf and then transfer the deposit directly to them or into a designated client's deposit account.
It is well worth checking who has the bond, as sometimes it can be news to the landlord as well. There are many cases of landlords accidentally spending the bond in the mistaken belief that the agent was holding it.
If property is sold when you are in it, the agent is required to tell you in writing. Make them also tell you in writing who is now holding your bond. This is often specified in the particulars of the sale, but is sometimes forgotten. You can end up with the landlord that was holding your bond no longer being in the country, which makes it tricky to get your money back.
How do I get the bond back?
Assuming that the property is left in much the same state as it was when you moved in, you should get back your bond. If it is not in the same condition, you may end up forfeiting all or part of the bond money.
At the start of your tenancy it should be confirmed in writing at what stage who will receive your bond money.
How do I know if my cheques cleared?
Unless you have paid by bankers draft or cash standard cheques normally take three working days to clear. You can check with your bankers to confirm when the funds left your account after this time.
What’s an Inventory?
The landlord will have a detailed breakdown of all the items in the property and the condition of the walls etc. Most organised landlords will have a pre printed version which will require your signature as well as the landlord. Your landlord may take photos of the property to show the condition as it was before and at the end of the tenancy. This erases any disputes which may come about later between landlord and the tenant.
If there are any defects in the property make sure your landlord repairs them before you move in. Your landlord has a duty of care to ensure that the property is safe and free from damp or mould.
Sign tenancy agreement.
Once the landlord is in receipt of your deposit and any bond money you should sign the tenancy agreement to bind the whole deal. Most tenancy agreements are pretty standard; however, occasionally you may come across one which has additional clauses which may affect your tenancy in some way particularly if there have been some miss-understandings which should have been explained earlier. You should read this document very carefully and if you are in any doubt about its contents, always seek legal advice before signing.
Make sure you keep a copy in a safe place as it is a legally binding contractual agreement and must be adhered too to avoid the risk of you defaulting on your obligations as a tenant.
Transfer utility accounts.
Make sure you take meter readings at the start and end of your tenancy and notify the utility companies that you are the new tenant(s) to ensure that you are sent the correct bills.
Receive keys and move in.
Assuming you’ve completed the above steps, all that’s left is for you to pick up your keys from either the Agent or the landlord and move into your new home.
We at Landlord Alert wish you happiness in your new home.
Revised Aug 2005
