Landlord FAQs
1. How do I advertise my property once I have registered?
Simply sign into your account from our homepage with the username and password you registered with. You will then be taken to your ‘dashboard’. Click on ‘my properties’ then ‘add new property’. Fill in the details and click proceed to step 2, type your description of your property as you wish and then click proceed to step 3. From there you can upload photos and/or PDFs if you wish, then click ‘publish’.
2. How can I make my advertisement stand out from the rest?
You can purchase a premium listing for just £4.99 per month or a featured listing for £9.99 per month. Take a look at Advertise your property free in the Landlord services section for further information.
3. I have purchased a tenancy agreement - when will I receive it?
When you purchase one of our tenancy agreements, you can click on complete purchase and fill in the resulting PDF wizard. Once completed, click generate agreement and you will receive your PDF in minutes.
If you wish to fill in the form at a later date, you can simply log into your account from our home page with the username and password you used when creating your account. This will take you to your landlord control panel. From there, click on my purchases then incomplete purchases. There you will see your tenancy agreement listed - just click on complete purchase to fill in the wizard and receive your PDF document.
4. Can I receive a discount if I purchase more than one service?
We have several different promotional packages to save you money on multiple purchases. Please see our promotional packs section.
5. My property appears on your site but I didn't put it there. How do I remove it?
If your property appears on our site, it is quite likely that you put it on and then completely forgot about it. We do not upload property adverts ourselves and it is unlikely that somebody will have done it for you unless you asked them to.
If you wish to remove it, you can simply log into your account (if you don't remember having ever signed up or can't remember your password, click on 'forgot password', put in your email address and your password will be sent to your email address).
Once you have your password, log into your account and from your landlord control panel, click on 'my properties' 'list my properties' and you will see your property listed. Then simply click on 'Delete' on the far right hand side to remove your property from the website'.
6. How do I remove my property ad once the property is let
Log into your account and from your landlord control panel, click on 'my properties' 'list my properties'. You will see your property listed and you can simply change the status to 'let' in the drop down box under the status heading. This will remove the advert from the site but the details of the property will remain on the system should you wish to readvertise- in the future.
Should you then wish to readvertise it in the future, you can simply follow the above procedure but changing the status to 'to let'.
7. What are my obligations as a landlord?
You have a number of obligations towards your tenants by law. The main responsibilities are:-
Repairs
Under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, the landlord must maintain the structure and exterior of the property, and the installations for the supply of services (gas, electricity, water, sanitation and heating). The landlord must also look after the roof, drains, gutters and garden of the property, if there is one.
Gas safety
Under the Gas Safety Regulations, landlords must have the gas equipment inspected every year by a Gas Safe Registered plumber (Gas Safe Register is the official gas registration body appointed by the Health and Safety Executive) and must present the certificate to the tenant prior to them moving into the property. Landlords should check the current regulations with their local Health and Safety Executive.
Furniture
The regulations require all furniture in a rented property to be fire-resistant and to carry labels to show this.
Electrical equipment
Anyone who lets residential accommodation is required by law to ensure that the equipment they provide as part of the tenancy is safe. The Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1994 requires that all mains electrical equipment (cookers, washing machines, kettles, etc), new or second-hand, supplied with the accommodation must be safe. Landlords therefore must regularly maintain the electrical equipment they supply to ensure it is safe.
It is essential that the property is checked prior to each tenancy to ensure that all goods supplied are in a safe condition. Further checks should be made at regular intervals thereafter. A record should be made of the goods supplied as part of the tenancy agreement and of the checks made on those goods. The record should indicate who carried out the checks and when they did it. You should obtain and retain test reports detailing the equipment, the tests carried out and the results
Quiet enjoyment
This means that the tenant should be able to live without interference. The landlord cannot enter the property without the tenant's consent (except in an emergency), should maintain the property in a proper condition, and should not do anything (or allow anyone else to do anything) which may affect the tenant's rights.
A landlord who lets separate flats in one property has a duty to the other tenants in relation to the covenant of quiet enjoyment, e.g., if one tenant is a nuisance, the other tenants will look to the landlord to resolve the problem and, if necessary, evict the tenant who is causing the disruption.
8. Is it necessary to have an inventory carried out when I rent out my property?
You should have an inventory for each property. It is very important to have a document showing the condition of the property, otherwise it may be difficult to claim any monies from the deposit at the end of the tenancy to cover damages if there is not an inventory in place. The inventory should also highlight the current condition of the walls, ceilings, curtains, carpets, bathroom, kitchen appliances, garden and the property as it stands. For further information, please see our section on inventories.
9. Do I need specialist insurance when I rent out my property?
It is your responsibility to insure the property and it makes sense, as you can be sure that the property is insured for the full value. You should obtain specialist landlord insurance as standard household insurance will not usually provide a sufficient level of cover. As a landlord, you may also want to take out property owners liability insurance to protect yourself against any potential claim from your tenant for any injury they may have received on your property. Further, we recommend that you insure the contents of your property, e.g. carpets, curtains and whitegoods, against risks such as fire and theft. For further information, please see our section on landlord insurance.
10. Is it necessary to have a tenancy agreement in place?
You do not need to have a tenancy agreement in place by law. However, without a suitable and fair tenancy agreement in place, you will have almost no rights to regain repossesion of your property. Any tenancy agreement must be fair, otherwise it could be thrown out by the courts during a dispute for unfair contract brought about by the tenant. Clauses in assured shorthold tenancy agreements that prohibit certain things, e.g., fitting satellite dishes to properties, pets, smoking, etc., must contain the words "permission not to unreasonably withheld" otherwise the chances are the contract is unfair.
11. Do I need to protect the tenant’s deposit?
Deposits taken before 6 April 2007 do not need to be protected. However, as an existing tenancy is renewed and a landlord agrees a new fixed-term tenancy, the initial deposit taken must then be lodged with a tenancy deposit protection scheme. From 1 October 2010, when the threshold will be increased to £100,000, any deposits taken on tenancies with an annual rent of under £100,000 per annum must also be protected. The implications of failing to protect the deposit are that the landlord may have to pay the deposit back to the tenant and may be ordered to pay to the tenant a fine of three times the deposit amount. For further information, please see our section on tenancy deposits.
12. Do I need to bother obtaining references for my tenants?
You should always take proper precautions to ensure that your prospective tenant is of general good character and standing. You should obtain comprehensive references to validate the information that your tenant has provided. To help protect you further, we do recommend that landlords also take out rent guarantee and legal expenses cover. For further information, please see our section on tenant referencing.
13. Do I need an EPC certificate?
You must obtain a valid Energy Performance Certificate (EPC), which must be shown to all prospective tenants when marketing your property. You must then give a copy of the EPC to your new tenant(s) when they move in. Non compliance can result in a fine of £200. For further information, see our section on energy performance certificates.
