Lifetime Deposits, a National Landlord Register, the abolishment of ‘no fault’ section 21 evictions, a drive to improve property standards, including their energy efficiency, as well as a White Paper on Rental Reform. These are just some suggestions made for change in the lettings market which could potentially impact landlords in the future. So what can you, as a landlord, do to prepare for possible changes to come? Your Move offers advice.
- Make sure you fully understand your existing responsibilities as a landlord –to make sure you are in the best position if further changes come along. There’s already a vast array of legislative and health and safety requirements that you must abide by to operate compliantly and ensure, if challenged (or, worse still, your tenant came to harm, for example) you can demonstrate you did all you could to comply.
- Understand what to do if problems arise. Whether it’s a tenant who won’t pay rent, a maintenance issue (including those that come out of hours) or perhaps a query you’ve had direct from a council or other regulatory authority, make sure you’d know where to go to for help or how you’d cope with the issue yourself.
- Get the timings right. Whether its marketing a new property, arranging routine visits, arranging for renewal of documents or even getting the property updated, make sure you understand when it’s the right time to act and, of course, what rules and regulations might apply.
- Keep ahead. Make sure you understand products and services that can assist you as a landlord and potentially help protect you, your property and your tenants. Insurance products are the obvious consideration; whether it’s rent protection, building insurance or content insurance for your tenants use, it’s well worth taking the time to keep ahead of what’s required and make the necessary arrangements.
- Look out for what might be coming. All too often landlords can find that changes take place that they neither know about, nor plan for, and that’s when the problems can start. There can be lots of speculation, and lots of sudden decisions made (sometimes by central government), that can affect how a landlord operates; the recent pandemic is proof of this. It’s therefore important to keep abreast of changes that could affect you, your property and your tenant and prepare, if you can, for these.
- Consider the support of a letting agent, like Your Move. Choose an agent that can demonstrate expertise across lettings and provide reassurance that your property is being managed effectively and compliantly. They should be able to offer advice and guidance about your obligations as a landlord, handle any problems that come along, provide advice where necessary and ensure, should changes come along, you are prepared and ready for them. It could certainly be worth it.
If you’re be interested to find out how Your Move can help you, as a landlord, simply contact one of our local letting agents or arrange a free rental appointment with us. With lettings experts across its business; including in branches and a central Lettings Hub, as well as a dedicated Lettings Compliance Director (who also happens to be a past President for the Association of Residential Letting Agents) we can offer masses of help to landlords and ultimately ensure your buy to let is taken care of.
The Your Move Content Marketing Team
