Page 8 - John Payne Letting Guide

LETTING YOUR PROPERTY... moving your tenant in
Our professional lettings service ensures everything is in place for a smooth and trouble-free start
to renting out your property.
TENANCY AGREEMENT
At the turn of the century tenancy agreements were on average three pages long. Now the tenancy agreement is about ten pages and must be accompanied by the Governments ‘How to Rent’ guide, the gas safety record, right to rent compliance, a checklist of documents provided, energy performance certificate, prescribed information relating to the deposit and (soon) an electrical certificate.
This is a legally binding agreement, setting out the rights and obligations of both Landlord and Tenant. Most residential property is let on an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST) for an initial fixed term of 6 or 12 months. We can advise on all options available to help you make an informed decision on areas of responsibility, conditions of tenancy, how and when the rent will
be reviewed and notice terms. We will prepare all the paperwork and draw up a comprehensive legal document for signing.
INVENTORY
Whether the property is furnished or unfurnished,
it is important that it is clean throughout before the tenants move in. We strongly recommend that the property, including carpets, is professionally cleaned and, if necessary, the garden made tidy. An inventory will be taken to help evidence the condition at the start of the tenancy.
The Tenant Fees Act 2019 precludes landlords from requiring the tenant to have the property professionally cleaned at the end of the tenancy. However, if it is not as clean at the end as it was in the beginning, a claim could be made against the deposit.
Tenants are required to keep these areas neat and tidy. Standards of gardening ability and knowledge can vary considerably. If the garden is particularly important or has special features, we usually suggest that the landlord provides a gardener, the cost being included in the rent. The extent of this can be negotiable and we will make the necessary arrangements and monitor the work as part of our management service.
All of the inventories produced for John Payne Estate Agents clients contain a full written description of the property contents and state of presentation supported with photographic evidence. This provides a definite record in case of any claim against a tenant’s deposit at the end of a tenancy.
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