One of the most important things to ask yourself when you buy investment property is, do you know your landlord responsibilities?
The majority of landlords in the UK choose to have their properties professionally managed by a letting agent (or have done in the past) who will enusre your legal landlord responsibilities are met. However, both options needed to be carefully considered when you purchase a buy to let property.
Do you know your landlord responsibilities?
A DIY approach to property management can be appealing to some landlords, who may see it as an easy way to save money. The reality of managing an investment property, however, involves a time commitment that can dramatically outweigh any monetary savings.
Screening tenants, conducting regular inspections and inventories, ensuring rent is paid on time and being on call to address maintenance issues 24/7 are all landlord responsibilities and huge demands for an unsuspecting investor. Those who struggle to keep up with these tasks may find themselves in trouble; if a tenant is causing damage to a property and regular inspections aren’t carried out, the landlord could be faced with mounting repair bills. The same can be said from the other perspective; if maintenance issues aren’t dealt with promptly and a tenant injures themselves as a result, the landlord could find themselves faced with an expensive legal liability claim.
We can take the stress and time constraints away from owning an investment property and ensure landlord responsibilities, like those listed above, are carried out.
We are able to conduct regular inspections, identify maintenance issues, ensure tenants are looking after a property and, if needed, liaise with contractors to address any problems. Agents also have processes in place to find and screen prospective tenants and can ensure the correct paperwork is in place, rent is collected and arrears monitored.
If a dispute arises with a tenant, professional agents are well aware of relevant legislation and landlord responsibilities and are best placed to follow the correct procedures to help resolve the issue as quickly as possible. If a tenant falls behind in their rent, for example, a letting agent will ensure the proper notices are issued to the tenant within the required time frames.
The benefits of using an agent to manage investment properties and landlord responsibilities are considerable. If you need a professional lettings company to look after your investment please get in touch with Mistoria Lettings who will be happy to talk you through your options.
