Last week the National Landlords Association revealed that over a quarter of UK landlords have been letting properties for under 5 years and over 70 per cent of the sector are classed as ‘amateur’ landlords as they don’t receive a bulk of their income from lettings.
As a result the NLA are issuing guidance to inexperienced landlords about their obligations to tenants.
Here at InventoryBase we know one of the best ways to protect tenants and landlords is to make sure a thorough property inventory is carried out and a legitimate report is produced as a result.
Landlords who are new to the industry may be tempted to carry out their own inventories to minimise costs at the start of a let – We say don’t do it! In our experience it is almost always a false economy because if a dispute arises at the end of the tenancy it can become a long drawn out process costing a lot of money to sort out.
A professional report can keep disputes to a minimum and provide clear and definite proof if issues are presented.
In many cases landlords are caught out due to their own reports not being detailed enough, pictures not being clear enough and signatures and dates not being recorded correctly. InventoryBase provides structure throughout the inventory make process so the clerk carrying out the inspection won’t miss a thing.
The software also allows tenants the opportunity to review the inventory once completed and to make any additional comments on any aspects of the property they feel need more information. This makes the process totally fair and at the end of the tenancy referring to the completed report will show that both the landlord and tenant agreed on the state of the property at the beginning of the letting period.
So if you’re a new landlord – take all the advice and help you can get. If you’re dealing with an agent make sure you specify the quality of inventory you expect. It’ll save you time, money and stress come checkout-time.