not sure what the actual name is for it but landlords/ladies can't hold onto your bond personally. the government set up some kind of scheme where landlords have to deposit your bond where it sits for the time that you are renting and they can't touch it until your tenancy ends. lots of private landlords ignore this illegally.
I'm a student. I've moved 4 times in the last 4 years. Always got my deposit back. Just moved a week ago due to mold and damp problems in the previous flat. Because we were tennants through an agency they sorted us straight away. So I've got good experience with agencies and not so much with private landlords. If you do think about letting students in you may need an HMO lisence. If there are more than 3 unrelated people living there you'll need one. It concerns things like smoke and CO2 detectors as well as fire doors etc. I've had a lot of experience renting property. And I much prefer agencies. Things get sortrd easier and Landlords get decent protection. The agency we are with only take people who have a steady income or have a guarantor. Hope you can get something from that.
Yeah Comm, I am aware of this. All deposits must be entered into a bond scheme and signed for by both parties on return of agreed amount. Like the poster said, it is now the law.
Its called the My Deposits Scheme and it was made into a law couple of years ago. I am a member and I own and manage 3 properties here and one overseas. Would definitely advise you to stay away from students and vet the tenants yourself. Also management companies are sharks. Don't know how to contact you privately but I would be willing to have a word with you, and would even consider part time management as I do a lot of the work myself or have plenty of contacts in the various trades.
I'm amazed you'd need a lawyer for a residential tenancy. Is that the done thing in the UK? I thought there would be a bog standard form available from the real estate institute (which we have in Au over here). Paying a lawyer to draw up an agreement every 6 or 12 months is bollocks. Extra advice - make sure you're 100% up to speed in knowing the market rent for your property. That's where an agent or two can probably help for free.
I'm living in a rented property which I rent from a friend - I think because of this it is easier - problem with managing a rental yourself is the amount of work involved in it if you have a tenant who demands everything straight away - luckily I have an agreement with my mate where, if anything happens with the house (boiler repairs and stuff Landlordy) then I pay for the repair, send him the receipt and take the cost out of the next months rent. Unfortunately I think this is only manageable if someone you know rents the house - he is buying another house on the estate I live on to rent out (he lives down south) and has asked me to manage the rental for him but outside of this he said he would have to have Estate Agent involvement - the good thing about the way we do it is that he can rent it to me for less than it'd cost through an agent and it's a bonus for both him and me as he has someone he trusts living in the property (to the end that he is stopping with us from tonight until Monday in the spare room) - in short - if you get someone you know and trust living there then no problem - but if you don't then (according to my mate) it's really difficult to manage
