Did you know that there are over 1.75 million landlords in the UK alone, servicing a demand of over 4.3 million household’s worth of tenants? It’s a staggering amount, and only a small fraction of them are professional landlords, with portfolios of properties they manage as a full-time job. The rest of them? They have ordinary jobs just like you and me, but have maybe one or two properties they rent out as a way to supplement their income. The problem is, being a landlord is hard work, and there are a lot of things you need to think about and be aware of or engaged in, to get it right. That’s why at Northwood we offer a Guaranteed Rent Service – a combination of property management and guaranteed monthly income that makes being a landlord the easiest thing in the world.
What is Guaranteed Rent?
In the usual arrangement, an estate agent is responsible for finding you new tenants as quickly as possible. That’s it. This means that most estate agents don’t necessarily have a huge incentive to find “good” tenants and the first ones that come along will usually be moved-in, but this can work to your disadvantage later if they’re not referenced properly, and with a large back-log of cases in the courts it can take months to gain repossession if you need to. Here at Northwood, we believe in consistency and protecting your livelihood, and that means ensuring we find good tenants for your property and making sure you will always be generating a return. That’s why we created the Guaranteed Rent Service, where Northwood becomes your ‘tenant’, providing you with a fixed monthly income even if your property is empty. Northwood will then effectively sub-let the property, manage finding tenants and make rental payments to you, regardless of whether there is a tenant in the property at the time. This means that you can relax and get on with your busy life.
Guaranteed Rent is one of our most popular services for landlords – not only because you get a regular monthly income, but because it’s such an inclusive and easy service to use. Our Guaranteed Rent Service gives you:
- A guaranteed annual rental income on time, every month
- Guaranteed payment even if the property is empty
- Paid on time even if the rent is late or isn’t paid at all
- No set up fees, monthly commissions or hidden extras
- We deal with all the tenant’s queries, questions and complaints
- A guaranteed contract start date – no worrying about how long it will take to find a tenant
- If ever needed, we cover the court costs & the eviction process
- Regular property inspections and maintenance management
- Internal condition guaranteed, up to one and half months’ rent
Is Guaranteed Rent Right for You?
At the end of the day, no one can answer that question but you! That’s mainly because finding the right letting service for you depends entirely on how much risk and responsibility you’re willing to take on. Some landlords are more than happy to be fully involved with their property and their tenants, and willing to take on the responsibilities that come with handling contracts, background checks, rental agreements, payment chasing and the rest of it. But for others, especially accidental landlords, guaranteed rent offers a simple way to keep your rental property profitable, while giving you the time to focus on your daily life. We always say that our Guaranteed Rent Service is ideal for landlords who want more of a “hands-off” service, with the financial stability of knowing what their rental income will be each month, combined with the benefits of property management. But if you’re not sure, you can always get in touch with us and ask.
Commonly Asked Questions
Of course, we understand you might have some questions about our Guaranteed Rent Service, or what benefit it might have for you. And while our advisers are always happy to help, we wanted to provide a few answers to our most commonly asked questions here. Including:
How long is the contract? We offer contracts of 12, 24 and 36 months, and all of these can be renewed on a mutually agreeable basis.
How does it compare financially alongside a traditional Fully Managed Service? To get the various guarantees and peace of mind that our service offers, you might expect to receive less per month than a traditional lettings service where you take all the risk, and you’d be right. But when you take account of no voids, no fees, no hassles and a guaranteed start date, you could easily be better off over the long-term – and you can budget with confidence. We’ll need to see the property to be sure, but you might be pleasantly surprised.
Is it an insurance policy? No. We provide you with a guaranteed rent payment every month, regardless of whether the tenant pays on time. There’s no need to make a claim if the tenants aren’t paying and we don’t charge any premiums. If you’re tempted by a guaranteed rent insurance policy, we encourage you to read the fine print first so that you don’t end up out of pocket.
What are the benefits? To sum up – no void periods, no rent arrears, no commission, no set-up or renewal fees, and no hidden extras. In fact, no need to deal with tenants at all!
If you would like to know more about our Guaranteed Rent Service, or just want to ask some questions and find out if it’s right for you, we would love to help. Just get in touch with our office today and arrange a meeting with one of our agents.
