General Manager Toby Martin breaks down exactly how to tell if your letting agent knows their onions.
If your boiler broke down, what would you do? The chances are you would find a Gas Safe plumber to fix it for you – someone suitably qualified, who you can trust to carry out a quality job.
You would be highly unlikely to approach someone with no background in plumbing or boilers – the local greengrocer, perhaps. Why? Because if they get it wrong, it could cause a lot of damage.
With over 150 different pieces of legislation to comply with over the course of a tenancy, being a landlord is no different. If you get it wrong, it can cost you dearly.
Why is it then that so many landlords place their valuable investments in the hands of unqualified and unregulated letting agents?
Consider this – on any given day, anyone can wake up, get out of bed and decide to open a lettings agency. Within hours, they can have a Rightmove page and a glossy website boasting unsubstantiated claims about their service levels. In an unregulated sector, anyone can become a self-appointed expert overnight, even if they have no real knowledge of the industry.
So to all of the landlords reading this, my question is: how do you know you’re hiring the expert, and not the greengrocer?
This is where ARLA Propertymark come in. Whenever you see this logo (right), you know you’re dealing with an agency that has chosen to be regulated, chosen to undertake industry qualifications, and has made a commitment to stay up to date with new legislation through ongoing CPD and training. In other words, you’re dealing with an expert.
With landlord regulation at an all-time high, and strict punitive measures awaiting those who do not comply, the risks of using an unregulated agency are too great.
You’re in safe hands with a regulated and qualified agency.
Reside is an award-winning independent letting agent in Bath. Please get in touch if you would like to discuss any aspect of letting or managing your property; we would love to hear from you.
Subject to approval by both Houses of Parliament, landlords and letting agents will need to ensure electrical installation inspections and testing are carried out for all new tenancies in England from 1st July 2020, or from 1st April 2021 for existing tenancies.
“We are supportive of this concept and believe it will create a level playing field for all agents and landlords as well as ensuring improved safety standards for tenants. Mandating inspecting and testing of every fixed electrical installation should have a limited impact on good professional landlords and agents in the market, many of whom already voluntarily undertake these inspections.”