People become landlords for many reasons. Sometimes it is a business investment in the property market, sometimes people wish to rent out their house for a short period whilst they work or travel abroad and other people may become accidental landlords if they inherit an additional property! Whatever the reason that you are going to rent out your house you need to be fully prepared in advance to ensure that both you and your tenants can get the most out of your rental property.
Because we have dedicated lettings teams in all of our branches at Wrights we really get to know our landlords and understand the issues and problems that they can face along the way. That’s why we’ve put together our top tips for new landlords to consider before they put their property on the rental market:
Make sure your property is in a good condition
Before you put your property on the market it’s always a good idea to ensure that it is in a good condition. Not only will this make it more rentable it will also mean that you should hopefully have less maintenance problems to deal with during the tenancy period. A lick of paint always freshens up a house and you may also need to look at investing in new flooring and carpet to improve the look of your property. It’s also a good idea to make sure that all of your appliances work correctly, and of course check that essential items such as the boiler are all in good condition.
Make sure your property has received the correct safety checks and certifications
As a landlord you have a number of obligations to your tenants to ensure that they are kept safe from harm. This means that it’s really important to make sure that you have undertaken the legally required checks on your property and that these are kept up to date. This can include fitting fire and Co2 alarms, gas safety checks and a PAT certificate for electrical items. One of the benefits of putting your property on the market with Wrights is that we can manage all of this for you and provide you with trusted tradesmen to perform the safety checks for you.
Work out how much money you need to make from your property and plan a sink fund for maintenance or emergencies
Of course most people want to make a profit from their property so it’s important that you decide on the rent that you will be charging with this in mind. Work out what costs you will have to cover on the property such as mortgage payments and buildings insurance. You should also make sure that you have enough money to put aside a percentage each month into a ‘sink fund’ to deal with any emergency repairs you may need to make. Any leftover money can be saved to help with the upkeep of your rental over the years.
Consider who your ideal tenants will be
When you put your house on the rental market with a trusted agency such as Wrights we will ensure that all of your potential tenants are fully referenced and have their credit history checked. However before we begin to market your property you may want to consider your target market. Will you be looking for professionals or are you happy to rent to students? Will you allow pets and are you looking for long term or short term tenants. The more information you give us the easier it will be for us to help you find your ideal tenants.
Ensure that your mortgage and insurance providers are aware you are renting your property out
It’s really important to let your mortgage company know that you will be renting out your house and also to tell your insurance providers.Make sure that you do this by letter and keep copies of these for reference.
Decide how much support you will need from your lettings agent
At Wrights we offer a variety of services to our landlords. It could be that you simply want us to market your property and undertake credit checks on potential tenants, or maybe you want us to fully manage the property and deal with any issues on your behalf. We want to offer our landlords the best service possible so why not get in touch with your local branch to discuss your lettings needs and discover how we can help you.
