The slow death of Let Only Service

My husband owns a BTL property in the London Borough of Redbridge.

Not long ago this Borough introduced a so called Selective Licensing Scheme – for those of you in the industry will know that most London Boroughs are now embarking on these journeys to supposedly make the Private Rented Sector safer and better for the tenants, as well as to “tackle” anti-social behaviour – whether I agree with the purpose of these schemes is a different matter, so I will leave my opinion for a different blog.

Being the “dedicated property manager” of our family property portfolio, I was tasked to complete the application for a Licence, and this is how it went:

I had to complete a 16 page online application form

I had to provide the information from a gas safety certificate, including all the dates and Gas Safe Register numbers of the gas engineer completing it, to an EPC and the electrical certificate

I had to answer questions about Furniture Fire labels and smoke and CO detectors

About decorative order of the flat to a number of tenants and their Right to Rent in the UK

I had to give details about the insurances held for the property and about what they covered

Provide the details of who manages the property and the person’s professional qualifications (including certificate numbers and dates those were obtained)

The Council seems to want to know everything about your financial history, any bankruptcies, criminal convictions, etc., etc.

When I tried to originally complete the application under my husband’s name and obtain a license in his name, it became pretty clear very early on that in order to do that he would need to go on a course and obtain a qualification

So it was easier to obtain a license in my own name as I am the Property Manager of the flat anyway and luckily a qualified one as well

I mean the process was so tedious and so complex, and in a way too private for my liking that it made me question the need for all this information. At the same time while filling it in, I kept thinking that there is no way your “average” landlord would be able to complete this application and have all the needed documents to hand.

The Lettings Industry has become so complex and so “regulated” by ever changing laws and regulations that the agents themselves sometimes struggle to understand what is being asked of them and of the landlord.

When the mandatory introduction of the EICRs (electrical Installation Condition Report) came into force, it took me months to learn how to read and understand an electrical report, various codes that the electricians use, various ways remedials works can be undertaken and then certified.

The landlord is now also expected to understand the UK visa and residents permits system – how it works, which nationality requires a visa, which one just needs to apply for a leave to remain and at what point it needs to be done, and at what point the landlord must check the validity of whatever the tenant obtained – I mean, do not get me wrong, I am not questioning the mental capabilities of the landlords, but all of this is way too much for any individual trying to have one or two investment properties for their “retirement” – you cannot do this without a help of a qualified agent who is not able to find you a tenant but also to manage this tenancy for you after. In the London Borough of Redbridge you cannot even let your property anymore without having a Property Management qualification or a property who has it! Surely this is the death of the Let Only service in our industry?

And I think the quicker we, as agents, realise it and the quicker we start sharing these experiences with our landlords, the quicker we start adjusting our services to suit our clients’ needs, the faster our businesses will grow.

And if you need a property manager who can take away the stress and the worry about your compliance then you know where we are.