Being a successful property landlord brings financial rewards, but it also comes with responsibilities and risk. Choosing the right letting service for you and your property is all about finding a balance of these three things that you are comfortable with.
We can help with three types of service:
Our Guaranteed Rent service includes professional letting and management and the most financial security. It is ideal if you are looking for the stability of a fixed income with no breaks or gaps and prefer low risk and is often the preferred “let it and forget it” solution for the following:
The property owner receives a guaranteed annual rent (for normally 1, 2 or 3 years at a time) payable in fixed monthly amounts direct from Northwood with a fixed rent start date.
The rent is payable to the owner even if the occupier does not pay the rent and, unlike any rent guarantee policies, even if the property becomes empty from time to time.
There are absolutely no fees, commissions or hidden extras to pay.
The key difference between Guaranteed Rent and more traditional services is that it is a contractual agreement between Northwood and the property owner (the landlord) in which we effectively become the tenant though we never move in.
Guaranteed rent start date
No matter how long it takes for us to find the right tenant, we’ll start paying rent a set number of days after the property is signed over to us with all necessary certificates, all works completed, fully cleaned and ready for a tenant to potentially move straight into.
Predictable income
Letting a property is an unpredictable process and there are things outside a landlord’s control, but which can substantially affect and reduce their overall rental income. Sadly, couples split up, people lose their jobs, prospective tenants sometimes pull out of lettings because their circumstances change and even the best of tenants decide to move on. There are usually empty or ‘void’ periods between tenancies when no rent is received, tenants can be late making payments (sometimes very late) and occasionally there is a need to take legal action.
On a standard letting service, all these things increase the landlord’s costs and significantly lower their income. With our Guaranteed Rent service though, Northwood takes over these risks and the property owner continues to receive their fixed monthly rental payments set out in the contract.
No fees or commissions
There are no charges for setting the contract up, no tenant introduction fees, no commissions and absolutely no ‘hidden extras’ to pay.
Legal costs covered
Occasionally, there can be a need for court action to recover unpaid rent or possession of a property. This can be costly and time-consuming with court fees of £335 (August 2019) and a legal process that takes around 4 to 4½ months. Northwood will meet all the legal costs and handle the court process and the landlord will still receive continuous monthly rental payments.
This service includes professional letting and management of the property, but the owner carries the financial impact of non-payment of rent, empty periods and legal costs. It carries more risk for the owner than our Guaranteed Rent service and is often a good choice for:
Tenant Sourcing
Once we’ve agreed a suitable rental level, we will advertise the property, conduct accompanied viewings and source a suitable tenant. This process includes:
Tenancy Deposit Registration
Northwood is a member of the insured tenancy deposit protection scheme administered by TDS. We will register each tenant deposit within 30 days of commencement of the tenancy and ensure that the deposit remains protected for the duration of the tenancy. The cost of this is included in our management fee.
Maintenance Management
We are the tenant’s point of contact and when any maintenance or repair issues arise, we first contact the landlord who can choose to address the matter themselves or resolve it using a local contractor of their choice or a regular Northwood contractor. For works arranged by us, we provide the landlord with a copy of the invoice and deduct the amount (with nothing added on by Northwood) from the next monthly rental payment.
Property Inspections
We carry out regular property inspections (normally quarterly or six-monthly depending on instructions and circumstances), keep a report on file and action any issues arising. A copy of the report is available to the landlord upon request.
Legal Action
It is sometimes necessary to take legal action against a tenant. Should the situation arise, we prepare and serve the notices and legal documents. Unlike on the Guaranteed Rent service, all court costs, solicitors’ fees and any rent losses fall to the landlord.
Check Outs
At the end of a tenancy, we undertake an inspection of the property on the final day and assess for any damage that goes beyond fair wear and tear with reference to the Inventory and Property Photographs prepared at the start of the tenancy.
Tenancy Deposit Disputes
If any issues arise at the Check Out, we will negotiate matters between the out-going tenant and the landlord in line with the tenancy deposit protection scheme legislation. If matters cannot be resolved by negotiation, Northwood will handle any formal dispute arising at no extra cost.
This service can give the best overall income for landlords who are happy to have a much greater level of involvement and feel comfortable about dealing direct with tenants, arranging maintenance and repairs, carrying out property inspections and keeping themselves and their property compliant with relevant legislation and regulations. This option carries the most risk for a landlord when compared to our other offerings.
Thereafter, if any issues arise and you would like to chat things through and get some general guidance and advice, we are always happy to help.
