Advantages
Video tours can cut the need to book in-person viewings for multiple properties only to find several of them do not actually meet your requirements and the one that you had really set your heart before going was reserved by someone else earlier in the day.
You do not have to set aside significant amounts of your time or perhaps take a day off work to go and view properties only to find that you are called into work at the last minute and are left having to cancel bookings and rearrange alternative appointments.
Can help you find and reserve your next home before someone else does – In a competitive rental market, being able to make a quick decision can be crucial as often we receive several enquiries about a newly listed property within just hours of it going online.
Video tours can be viewed on any device, at any time of day or night, from anywhere in the world.
Practical Issues
1. Be Prepared
Make a list of the things that are important to you as part of your property search on a room by room basis search and tick them off as you view each video tour. Things that we often get asked about during in-person viewings include:
- Where is the parking?
- Will our sofa, TV and other furniture fit in the living room? Is there easy access for this, maybe via patio doors?
- Where are TV connections and power points?
- Is there space in the kitchen for our appliances (fridge freezer, washing machine etc)?
- Is there plumbing and space for a dishwasher if important to us?
- What do any integral appliances look like inside?
- What size is our bed and will it fit in the bedroom we plan to use?
- Are any curtains and/or blinds included in the letting?
You should include important outside items also e.g. If a property comes with allocated parking spaces for example and they are not shown in the video (normally they would be), ask to see a photo of them to satisfy yourself that not only will you be able to park your car(s) but you will be able to get in and out of them once parked.
2. Ask Questions
We understand that a great deal of information is absorbed during a property visit but a virtual viewing is different. After a video tour, please ask us as many questions as you need to and we will be happy to help. The last thing we would want on the day you are moving all your belongings into your new home is for you to find out that a treasured piece of furniture will not fit into the required room, maybe due to the positioning of doorways or suchlike, the kind of thing that you would most likely have noticed during a physical viewing. Often it will not be the first time we are letting the property and if we have managed it for some time, we may be able to provide additional photographs of specific items or chat through any maintenance and repair issues that have occurred at the property that might be relevant e.g. if it has had a brand new boiler within the last year or has been freshly painted.
3. Check Google Street View
With any Video Tour, we strongly recommend you also visit Google Earth Street View and have a look at the surrounding area just as people usually walk or drive around the local area before or after visiting a property for an in-person viewing to get an overall feel of the locality and to gather other useful information such as whether there are any parks, shops, pubs or restaurants nearby, railway lines and how easy it is to get to and from schools, motorways or suchlike.
The Next Steps
If, having viewed a Property Video Tour, you would like to proceed to the next step, please contact us and we will be happy to answer any questions you may have about the property or the local area over the phone. We will ask a few questions about your circumstances, employment status and the like and will be able to provide you with details of how you can pay a holding deposit (which will be the equivalent of one week’s rent) should you wish to reserve a property.
The Holding Deposit is non-refundable in certain situations but, if your application is successful, it will go towards the total deposit amount for the tenancy (being the equivalent of five weeks’ rent). For full details of when a Holding Deposit is refundable and non-refundable, please click HERE
We can email you a Tenancy Application Form and a Tenancy Application Guide setting out the supporting documents that you will need to provide along with your completed application form(s). This is a contactless process, normally done via email, though we may need to arrange a video call with you at some point as part of identity checks.
