Have you been thinking about becoming a landlord? This is an excellent way for you to secure a source of passive income. However, there are certain risks involved, especially if you do not plan to live on or near the property yourself. The best way to make a go of it is to hire a letting agent to act as your property manager.
You Need to Find Tenants
The first thing you will need to do once you have bought a new property is to fill it up with tenants. This is why you need to hire letting agents. These are the trained and experienced professionals who can help you with this crucial detail. They can help you procure, vet, and install your new tenants with ease.
This initial detail will be all the more crucial if you do not plan to live anywhere your new property. If this is the case, your letting agent will help you to advertise for tenants and then make the selections on your behalf. You can confer with them to get valuable tips and advice on how to make the best possible choice of new tenants.
Once a prospective tenant has applied to live at your residence, your letting agent can perform all of the necessary screening. This may include checking their past references and credit history or performing a background check. All of these will be necessary in order to ensure that your tenants will be law-abiding and low key.
You Need to Get Your Rent on Time
One of the benefits of hiring a letting agent will be to help with getting your rent on time. In fact, a letting agent can actually help to negotiate a higher level of rent for your property than you may have been able to get on your own. This is because they are much more skilled at this type of negotiation than you are.
A letting agent can not only get you a higher level of rent, but they are also very adept at collecting rent in an efficient and organized fashion. This will be a major plus for an owner who doesn’t plan to live anywhere near the property. You can leave this duty in the hands of your letting agent who will gladly perform it on your behalf.
Letting agents are skilled at knowing when and when not to accept the excuse of a delinquent tenant. An elderly tenant may not have received a pension check when they expected to. Some amount of consideration may be given to them. Likewise, a person who has spent time in the hospital can be given an extension on their due date for rent.
However, a person who has been chronically late with their rent for no good reason may well be simply inconsiderate or attempting to enjoy a free ride. This is the kind of tenant that poses a serious threat to your financial wellbeing. A letting agent is a person best qualified to deal with such a tenant in a firm and authoritative manner.
You Need to Keep the Property in Good Order
Another major benefit that a letting agent can provide is the ability to keep your property in good shape. This will be all the more crucial if you are planning to sell the property at a profit in the near future. Your letting agent will keep up with the day to day management of the area, both financially and with regard to its appearance.
There is no telling when an act of vandalism or a plumbing malfunction may occur on your property. This is exactly the kind of circumstance that a letting agent is skilled at dealing with. They can quickly summon a plumber or renovation expert to fix the problem.
The Time to Hire Your Letting Agent is Now
If you are serious about becoming a property owner, you’ll need to know how best to proceed. Hiring a letting agent to manage the property is an excellent idea for first-timers as well as veteran landlords. Time, energy, and money are all commodities that are in short supply. A letting agent can help you make the most of all of them.
