Landlords- What you need to know about renting out property
Have you been thinking of dipping your toes into the Buy To Let market, but feel overwhelmed by how to get started?
We work with a large number of landlords in the local area, from new landlords to long established landlords who already have an extensive portfolio of Buy to Let properties. It is important to us that all our landlords fully understand their responsibilities from the outset, as well as what they can expect from our service, to help us work together to make the lettings process easy.
We have put together a useful guide to becoming a landlord, highlighting the key factors you need to consider:
What’s your target market?
Think about the type of tenants you want to attract, are they families, students, young professionals or company lets- you need to have an idea of the target market for your rental so that you understand what they will be looking for in a rental property and landlord.
Property type
Once you have established your tenant profile, you can start to consider the style of property that would be most suitable. Whether it’s a house, flat, maisonette or studio apartment it needs to appeal to the tenants and be practical for their needs. If they own vehicles is there space to park at the property or near to the property.
Location
This leads us onto considering the location which works best for your intended tenants, are there sufficient public transport links close to the property if they are commuting to work, do they have local amenities within easy reach such as a supermarkets and shopping centres or will be it difficult for them to buy their basic supplies.
Mortgage Type
Make sure you do your homework when it comes to choosing a buy-to-let mortgage, talk to a few different lenders to see what they have to offer, find out a reasonable interest rate will be in the current market as well as what sort of arrangement fee you should expect to pay.
You should also talk to your letting agents to see what their fees are. Find out if they belong to a professional body and how the maintenance of the property will work.
Rental Income
Now that you know what mortgage products are available, you can formulate an idea of rental potential. What will you charge your tenants, what would happen in the event that any significant damage is caused by the tenants. Also think about a contingency plan in case your tenants fail to pay rent on time or if they lose their employment income.
Landlord Responsibilities:
As a landlord you will have some core responsibilities when it comes to providing a safe living environment for your tenants along with providing information that you are required by law to disclose.
The following list forms the basic requirements:
- Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)
- Fire Safety Order– Link http://www.hse.gov.uk/toolbox/fire.htm
- Gas Safety Certificate (If the property has gas appliances this will be a requirement)
- Deposit Protection Scheme (Your Letting Agent can advise on this)- Link https://www.depositprotection.com/landlord-info
- Electrical Inspections– Electrical appliances must be safe for use. An HMO (House of Multiple Occupancy) will require regular inspections every 5 years
- Carbon Monoxide Alarms– should be in any room containing a solid fuel burning appliance
- Smoke Alarms– Should be located on every floor of the property
- Licensable HMOs guide- Full details of HMOs https://www.rentify.com/resources/landlords-and-hmos
- How to Rent Checklist should be issued to all tenants- Link https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-to-rent
- Exterior property repairs – as landlord you will be responsible for all exterior property repairs and maintenance
- Safe supply of water, gas and electricity to the property
There is a lot to think about when deciding whether becoming a landlord is right for you, and it’s important to be prepared so that you understand your responsibilities and what you can expect from your tenants and lettings agents.
Your lettings agents will be able to offer advice and guidance, and most agents will have a landlord pack that outlines everything you need to know right down to the fine details of the insurances you need to be able to protect yourself and your tenants.
A lettings agents’ job is to source the right tenants for your buy to let, vet those tenants and ensure the property is up to required safety regulations.
At Middleton Estates we offer a full or part-managed Lettings service to Landlords with competitive fees and a 24 hour telephone service to ensure we are on hand to assist landlords and tenants in case any problems arise.
If you are looking to get started as a landlord and want some free, no obligation advice then please get in touch with our Lettings team today on 01273 915902 or email info@middleton-estates.co.uk with your enquiry.