Advice on letting your property in the UK

Whether you are letting your property for the first time or looking for some tips on how to more effectively manage your uk property investment, Gordon Barker letting have put together a few pieces of the property letting advice we have built up over the years.

Make property viewings effective

Whether you are letting a house, flat, room or even a commercial property in the UK. You will absolutely need to make the most of any initial viewing.

First impressions

A key factor to getting the offer on your property is making the best possible first impression. With just a small amount of time spent improving your property before viewings take place can make a huge difference to converting these into tenants.

Property Exterior

ensuring the exterior of your property can fill potential tenants with optimism the moment they arrive. Treat the property as if it were your own, so If the gardens, exterior paintwork, driveways etc have been tended to, ensuring anything unsightly has been repaired or removed.

Make sure the exterior is clean. Get the windows and any paths/drives cleaned in advance to viewings.

Often landlords of properties in more run down areas can feel these changes are not necessary. However it can be even more effective in these areas as it can make the property outshine the others in the street.

Property interior

If you are in the position of having an empty property before viewings take place you will be able to present the interior of the property very well.

Every room in the property should be cleaned, tidied and de cluttered. Don’t miss the interior of wardrobes, drawers and cupboards etc. Any unpleasant odours should be removed and replaced with pleasant ones.

Repairs and decoration should be carried out where ever necessary, even the smaller matters like replacing light bulbs or putting a drop of WD40 on stiff and squeaky window hinges can give a far better impression of your property.

If you have furnished the property, ensure the furnishings are in good condition. If you provide some small furnishings if they are not in good condition it is often better not to have them there at all.

Make sure any kitchen appliances you are providing are working, but more importantly (as it is often missed) they are clean inside and out

If you have current tenants

Obviously this process can appear to be more difficult when there are still tenants in the property. However with the right planning you can ensure the process is actually easier.

During their tenancy

If you ensure your agents give tenants regular inspections, and give notice of these inspections, often the tenant will take the time to keep the property clean and repair any damage they may have caused. If you do not put off any repairs the tenants may have requested, this will mean that your property stays in good condition and you will not be hit with large costs at the point of changing tenants, while at the same time keeping your current tenants very happy.

Before viewings

Very few people like to present a dirty or cluttered house, ensure that tenants are given notice that viewings will be taking place and most will present the property in the best condition they can.

If you are interested in learning more about how to prepare your property for viewings see this post

Is your agent converting the viewings into tenants

If you are applying all of the factors above, with the help of an effective letting agent your property should be empty for a minimal period of time.

Gordon Barker Residential Lettings believe there are 3 main factors that can enable a landlord to reduce the void period on their property, 3 factors that are very controllable for a landlord and with the help of a pro-active agent they can be used to ensure your property is rented quickly and to good tenants.

Carefully consider the offers made on your property

While the advice above will help you make the most of the viewings that take place, you still need to ensure you consider any offers made carefully.

Gordon Barker Residential Lettings believe one of the major contributors to any rental property making sufficient returns is the size of the void periods between tenancies.  Simple mathematics show that holding out an extra month for a mere £25 per month extra on an £800 per month flat can take you up to 3 years to make that money back, and that’s providing the next tenant stays there for 3 years and there are no further void periods.

Give Gordon Barker Residential Lettings a call today on 01202 292400 or email on aaron@gordonbarker.com if your property is on the market but remains un-let, there is a tenant out there for your property and by choosing the right agent they will see it. Gordon Barker Residential Lettings offer very competitive full management and tenant find rates and work on a no let no fee basis, can you afford not to call?