Being at the mercy of an auctioneer no matter how humorous, entertaining, and extrovert he may be, is a position I’m not used to being in. As an investment buyer in a recession, I’m used to being the one in the driving seat as the number of proceedable buyers reduces, skewing the supply-demand ratio in […]
Because I was buying the property from a housing association, they were duty-bound to ensure that I was a responsible landlord who could prove via a track record and live examples that I would… Bring the property up to a similar standard to the neighbours’ and b) would look after any potential Tenants in a […]
And it’s not just me. I’ve come into work to a telephone ringing off the hook and every single viewer has confirmed to say that they’ll be showing up for their viewings. I think it’s clear that people are highly affected by the perceived ‘aspirational’ lifestyle on offer at their new potential home. I wonder […]
Like all serious viewers should, I have booked an entire day off work in order to view houses. As a Letting Agent myself, I offer viewings from 8.30am to 6.30pm Monday to Friday, plus 10am to 4pm on a Saturday, but some ‘serious’ viewers claim that they cannot make any of those times! I am […]
No-one enjoys tenancy inspections. The letting agent has to make (and often rearrange) appointments, and sometimes out of office hours as a courtesy to the Tenant- give what may sound like patronising advice to Tenants on simple domestic tasks such as drying washing outside to avoid condensation provide reports to both Tenant and Landlord in […]
There’s no excuse for a tenant not allowing you to do a viewing while they’re still there: it’s in the Tenancy Agreement, it’s a necessity to avoid void periods, and (not surprisingly) the new tenant (who turns into the old tenant) wants to get into the property before anyone else… However, this is much harder […]
I’ve learnt to arrange to have repairs fixed immediately these days. Penny-pinching over every little thing costs time and energy. Rather than spending an hour trying to arrange for more quotes (and letting the repair continue to deteriorate, costing more to fix) trying to save £20, just use your normal contractor and get it done. […]
Why does the general public have such a poor perception of agents? Is it because they are often image-conscious, relatively young, and not recognisably qualified? Anyone who has tried to buy, sell, rent, or let a property in the UK has a negative story to tell about an estate or letting agent, and with minimal […]
The previously bubbly operative then said she’d have to check with the underwriters and, low and behold, the as yet complete application was rejected immediately. “Why’s that?” I asked. “Erm, a higher fire risk? I dunno really.” This particular lender isn’t publicly owned so I can’t get angry about that, but why are mortgage companies […]
I’m not just saying this because I want there to be more tenants around to rent my houses. I’m not so egotistic or naïve to believe that this blog would have that effect! Today’s world is very different from the one that existed when Margaret Thatcher campaigned to ensure we owned the roofs over our […]
