Renting your first property is naturally a nail-biting experience.
For many, it is their first taste of independence after living with family, or after living in halls of residence supplied by an education institution.
Renting is exciting, but can also be a complicated affair.
There are many pitfalls that first-time renters can fall into when looking for their first property, from the small print in their tenancy agreement to the landlords themselves.
So, how should you approach your first property rental?
Here are the ins and outs of renting your first property, from viewing to the agreement – and best practices for every step of the way.
The Property
– Is it furnished? Rental properties are either furnished or unfurnished, but there are cases in which the agreement on offer is somewhere in the middle. Furnished properties might include a complete inventory of furniture and appliances; unfurnished properties might include nothing at all, or might include some white goods.
– Can you afford it? This may seem a glib question, but first-time renters might not fully appreciate the cost of a rental property – especially if the rent is given per week as opposed to per calendar month.
The Viewing
– Is there evidence of damp or mould? Damp and mould are common fixtures in urban and suburban rentals, especially student rentals with 12-month tenancy agreements. Mould growths on walls or ceilings can cause health issues in the winter, and potentially require major disruptive work to fix.
– Are the tenants happy? If, when you view the property, the current tenants are in, take the opportunity to ask them questions about the property and its management directly. You might learn something useful before signing a contract!
The Landlord
– Who are you dealing with? Every rental property has a landlord, but the form that landlord can take can change dramatically – from private landlords with a single rental property to large-scale letting conglomerates with a portfolio of homes. Some private landlords use letting agencies to manage the property and any tenancies on their behalf.
The Tenancy Agreement
– What is the deposit? Every rental property requires a deposit from a new tenant, which is used as collateral for damages or unpaid rent at the end of a tenancy. This deposit is capped at five weeks’ rent for homes of an annual rent below £50,000, and at six weeks’ rent for homes of an annual rent above £50,000.
– Is the deposit protected? The landlord is legally required to place your deposit in a government-backed tenancy deposit scheme, which ringfences your money from their personal finances and protects it. If your prospective landlord does not have proof of intention to do this, they are not acting legally.
– Who pays the bills? With student tenancies, it is common to find tenancy agreements in which bills are included as part of the rent – but this is not the norm amongst domestic lets. As such, make sure you understand who is liable for what before you sign.
The article should mention that Council tax may be added to the rent or paid separately.
All bills such as water, gas, electric, phone line, and personal effects insurance are generally paid by the tenant in most cases unless it is a house share
the landlord by law has to have an EPC of the current grade which changes soon, so older houses may not have enough insulation and cannot be rented legally.
There also needs to be a yearly gas service and safety check and five-year electricity safety check too.
also, Co2 and smoke alarms are a legal requirement
Rents have increased recently and will continue as landlords now have to have properties fit to rent, plus if a management company is employed to take care of the grounds and communal halls, especially apartments add extra rising costs to the landlord year by year, all that is an extra cost that the rent may not cover fully, so the property is sold, a good idea to check everything before you commit as the trend is to sell many private properties that can be a financial drain such as apartments and older houses as they are seen as a less desirable return on investment thanks to government intervention