Why should you use a letting agent?
Tamara Price, Lettings Manager, explains why so many landlords choose to enlist the professional property management services of a letting agent...
If you're a landlord maybe you find your free time restricted making it difficult to look after your property and tenants, or perhaps you lack experience or knowledge in the letting market and the legal obligations you have to adhere to while letting out property, or maybe you live in another city or country to where your investment property is located.
The point is, there are many obstacles that can make life as a landlord difficult, but there are simple ways to tackle these obstacles through the variety of services that are provided by letting agents - all designed to take on the responsibilities involved with letting a property so that life as a landlord can be as stress-free as possible.
To help you better understand why you should consider using a letting agent to let out your property we'll take a look at the role of a letting agent and the range of popular letting services that are available.
Is using a letting agent the right choice for you?
The great thing about using us letting agents is that our professional expertise and experience can be utilised to suit the personal needs of a landlord - this might involve managing just certain aspects of the work that's involved when letting a property to tenants, or it may involve enlisting our services to take care of the entire process and ongoing management of the property.
If any of the below applies to your situation or lifestyle, using the services of a letting agent might be the right choice for you:
- You're short on enough free time to fulfil the duties of a landlord
- You live a significant distance away from the property or properties you let out
- You feel you lack the experience of being a landlord
- You'd rather hand over tenant and property management issues to someone else
- You struggle to remain aware of the constantly changing letting regulations and legislation
Choosing the right letting services
From simply finding the ideal tenant to occupy your property through to complete management packages, the letting services that are offered by most agents can be cherry-picked to suit your personal needs. Once you've narrowed down the services you require, you can then begin the search for a suitable agent.
There are many things you need to look out for when sourcing a reputable letting agent, so it's important you do your due diligence. First and foremost, ensure the agents are members of professional bodies, such as ARLA and The Property Ombudsman.
Check out reviews from past tenants and landlords to get an indication of how others have found their services, conduct some general online research and do the same offline by asking friends and family if they have any past experience of dealing with the agents in question.
Ask for a full breakdown of their services and fees before investigating a few key points about their procedures. For example, what sort of marketing strategies do they follow? What hours do they operate for general correspondence or to carry out their viewings? How do they deal with maintenance and repair issues? What protocols are in place when it comes to late or missed rent payments?
Aside from finding answers to the nitty gritty important things, it's also vital that during communications you also feel completely comfortable and at ease while dealing with those taking care of your property.
After all, this is perhaps your biggest investment in their hands.
If you're looking for an experienced letting agent in Cardiff, our team of property experts here at CPS Homes are ready to help. To discuss your situation in detail and to learn more about our property management services or how to get the best from your investment, don't hesitate to contact us today. Call 02920 668585, e-mail enquiries@cpshomes.co.uk or pop into one of our three Cardiff branches.
The information contained within this article was correct at the date of publishing and is not guaranteed to remain correct in the present day.
