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Why pay a Letting Agency Admin Fee?

November 12, 2012 | Professionals  

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We feel a Letting Agency Administrative fee should be completely clear, easy to understand, with no ‘hidden’ charges. We also feel we should explain fully why we charge an admin fee.

Let-Leeds do charge the Tenant an administrative fee at the start of the Tenancy, for us, it is a vital income stream that allows us to provide an excellent service to our Tenants.


What fees do Let-Leeds charge?

Let-Leeds charge the Tenant an administrative fee per Tenant applying.

We feel these charges are fair, easy to understand and completely transparent.

  • Let-Leeds does NOT charge the Tenant any further fees for referencing of Guarantors. Since we ask for the Guarantor, we don’t think it’s fair to ask you to pay another fee for the privilege.
  • Let-Leeds does NOT charge any further fees for re-signing or renewals of Tenancies, as far as we see it, we would prefer to keep our best Tenants in our properties, and charging further fees is NOT fair.
  • We do NOT charge the Tenant a fee for an Inventory should the Landlord wish to conduct one, nor do we charge the Tenant a fee for an accompanied move-in.

At present Let-Leeds processes approximately £2.5 million pounds worth of rent on an annual basis, in the interests of keeping our rental arrears to an absolute minimum, and our Landlords happy, we do charge a fee of £40 +VAT should the Tenant pay their rent late, unless there has been a one-off banking error or fault other than the Tenant, in which case we may decide to waive the fee.


What does my Administrative Fee cover?

A credit check constitutes just 5% of the cost of an Admin fee. But, there’s more to it than just a credit check…

Your Administrative Fee covers the administrative work involved in setting up your Tenancy, we have a full time member of staff solely dedicated to Tenancy Applications, and it can be a very time consuming process.

As a Professional Letting Agent, we owe a duty of care to our Landlords, to ensure that only ‘excellent’ Tenants can rent one of our properties. We can only be sure of letting our properties to the best Tenants by being extremely thorough with the Tenancy application.

Your application process will include;

  • Checking through your application
  • Conducting a comprehensive credit search through Equifax and CallCredit, and cross-referencing results such as previous addresses against information within your application
  • Ensuring that the Credit Search address results match your current address
  • Speaking to your previous Landlord to ensure you looked after the property and paid your rent on time, as well as checking that the previous Landlord referee you provided owns the property you are currently renting
  • Speaking to your current employer to ensure you are in employment, if you say you are 
  • Checking your Bank Statements to ensure your affordability level
  • Checking your proof of Address
  • Checking your proof of ID
  • Taking Guarantors if and when required, as well as credit checking Guarantors
  • Creating the Tenancy Agreement and Section 21 Agreement, letting you read through these and ensuring they are properly signed
  • Processing your deposit and ensuring it is paid into a Deposit Protection Scheme Account (on Managed properties)
  • A pre-Tenancy check of your new home to ensure the property meets fire and safety standards
  • An assisted move-in to the property (not always available during peak times)
  • As well as being on-hand 9am to 7pm, Monday to Friday, to answer your queries

We think our Let-Leeds Tenancy Admin fee is good value for money!

What are the Benefits of using a Letting Agent? 

  • Service – We strive to offer the best service we can, but if and when we do something wrong, we are accountable for it (Sunday Times Award Winning Letting Agents 2012)
  • Peace of Mind – We offer peace of mind. Being a SAFE Agent means that every penny you pay us is fully insured against bankruptcy and liquidation  
  • Professionalism – Being an ARLA-Licenced Agent means we are professionally qualified, regularly audited and voluntarily follow a strict code of conduct
  • Resources – fully trained staff, longer opening hours, professional software systems, 8 incoming phone lines
  • Maintenance – ensuring our properties are kept in the best of health

If you ever have a question about our fees or our services, please do not hesitate to contact us!

 

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