A letting agent is basically an agent that takes on letting properties which will be rented on the landlord’s behalf.
What Letting Agents Do
There are different kinds of letting agents. There are some who are directly employed by landlords only for the purpose of renting the property. It means that the sole responsibility of the letting agent and the overall expense on the part of the landlord will be the renting of the property. It will be the letting agent who will be in charge of the price of advertising the property, will be in charge who views the property, and will have the responsibility of securing the deposits and agreement of the letting with the tenant. The letting agent will also hand over the keys, and secure the rent for the first month.
Most of the time, the letting agency also charges an administration fee to the client for the required paperwork and credit checks. Once the tenant receives the keys and moves to the property, they will have to directly deal with the landlord if they have questions or problems with the property.
One more common type of letting agents is one that provides a managed service. It means that the agency will fulfill all the duties mentioned above and at the same time, be in charge of managing the property. Tenants will also be dealing only with the agency from the beginning to the end of the contract. If there are issues regarding the property, tenants will have to contact the agent. Most of the time, the tenant in such cases will never have any direct contact with the property landlord at all.
Why Landlords Don’t Rent the Property Themselves
Letting agents specialize in what they do. They can advertise properties to a bigger base of potential customers than what any landlord can do. Since agents usually have an extensive number of rental properties, it means that they can use their advertising budget in a more cost effective manner. There are some landlords renting several properties and lack the time to try and rent the property on their own, while others don’t live within the area where their properties are located, which means that they have limited local knowledge, and opt to hire someone who has.
Properties Handled by Letting Agents
Letting agencies can take on anything and everything. Some agencies specialize in specific markets, whether it is low end or top end, but many letting agents have a wide selection of properties which race from several pounds per month to several thousand.
Why Homeowners Rent Their Properties Instead of Selling Them
It doesn’t necessarily apply that selling properties is easier for homeowners. There are some factors which can affect the decision. The most common of which is investment. A homeowner can purchase a property for a low amount, do up the property, and rent it out to generate profit in several years. also, many people today cannot buy a house right there and then, so renting out is the next possible option.
