We try our best to look after our tenants
Particularly for younger people, renting is now the only way of living in your own place, be it by yourself or with a partner or sharers. The flexibility that comes with renting, allows people to move on freely, perhaps to move to a new job in another city or just move on from time to time to explore new pastures, it’s your choice. Going through an established letting agent will make your experience of renting better. We are both letting agents and provide property management to our landlords if they so require this service.
It’s pretty common now for professionals to rent for quite a while before settling down to a mortgage commitment and a family. Our European counterparts have been renting for decades and see it as perfectly normal. You rent what you can afford and move when it suits you. Sounds good to us! Our letting service is a friendly experience as we try our best to get to know our tenants. We don't charge you to renew your Agreement or charge you a check out fee. As we are full members of the UK Association of Letting Agents (UKALA), we provide "Client Money Protection (CMP)" which protects both Tenants and Landlords in relation to the handling of funds entrusted to the Agent. Our Insurance is provided by "LET ALLIANCE" (Total Loss Client Money Protection for Landlords and Tenants). Furthermore we are members of THE PROPERTY OMBUDSMAN (TPO) who provide both tenants and landlords with a dispute resolution service, should we (the agent) not meet your expectations in the unlikely event of a grievance which cannot be resolved between us. This scheme is a statutory requirement for all Letting Agents.
Tenant Information
Fees are to be banned from 1st June 2019 (Tenant Fees Act 2019), although there are some "Permitted Fees" which an agent/landlord can charge. In our case the following fees will apply.
Change of tenant during the period of the tenancy - £50 inclusive VAT
Loss of Keys/Security Devices - Cost of obtaining replacements and reasonable cost of our time. PLEASE NOTE: In the event that you find yourself locked out of your property due to a loss/theft of keys we do not convey our management keys to the property whether that be out of hours or during business hours. You are however welcome to collect keys from us (if possible) and return them to us the next working day. The other option would be to call a locksmith, who's charges will be your responsiblity.
Late Rent Payments will attract a charge of 3% over Bank of England Base rate, calculated annually.
Surrender of Tenancy/Variation of Contract - Limited to the reasonable cost of agent time. To be advised at the time.
Complaints Against the Agent Information
Should you have cause to make a complaint to the Agent where upon you feel that the agent has not resolved the issue to your satisfaction you are entitled to esculate your complaint to "The Property Ombudsman (TPO)" who operate a complaints process for landlords and tenants. By clicking on the link below will open the page on the TPO website in order to start this process. You are expected to have already approached the agent with your complaint for resolution and only after having done so without sucess should you go to the Ombudsman for further investigation. We obviously hope that you would never have just cause to make a complaint in the first place.
A Brief Guide to What to Expect
Renting needn’t be taxing. At BS Home Lets we guide you through the rental process and answer any questions that you might have. These are some of the areas which you will encounter when applying for a property:
We’ll show you around by appointment your chosen property
We’ll answer any questions at the property that you might have, such as how much is the Council Tax
We’ll draw up a tenancy agreement should you wish to move in which includes taking up employment references and id checks. We inform the existing utility companies (Water,Gas and Electricity) that you have moved in too, so you don’t have to.
We will meet you at the property on the day you move in and not just give you keys over a desk for you to go on your way.
Your security deposit will be registered and held by The Deposit Protection Service (DPS), who are backed by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Your full deposit will be returned to you at the end of the tenancy, unless any deductions are made for cleaning or breakages/damage, over and above that of fair wear and tear. You have a legal right to dispute such charges and your deposit protection service will provide you with a dispute resolution service in the unlikely event that deductions should be made. This dispute service is a free service.
Our standard contract term is for 6 months (the fixed term). After this period is up you can stay on on a month by month basis as your contract becomes what is known as a "statutory Periodic" tenancy. To give up the property you just need to give us 30 days notice in writing.
Rent is always payable via a Standing Order, through a UK Bank. We try to avoid large cash sums of rent, as we have a duty to enquire and for you to prove where the cash has come from. This is a money laundering legal requirement which we comply with.
Any personal data that you give us that is recorded electronically or used by us is subject to the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR), so you can be assured that your data is stored by us securely and in accordance with the law. We are registered with the Information Commissioners Office (ICO).
Reporting a fault
If you have a maintenance issue at the property we’ll deal with it as quickly as is possible. Please complete the "Report a Fault" Form in order for us to allocate the job to the appropriate contractor.
In the event of you having locked your keys inside the property and can't get in we can provide our management keys on the understanding that you will return them to us as soon as possible. This is within office hours and not overnight. In the event that this should happen out of hours then we would ask you to contact a locksmith (at your own expense) to gain entry. Williams Locksmiths may be able to assist you. PLEASE NOTE THE LOCKSMITH WILL REQUIRE PROOF OF ADDRESS. Their contact number is 07590 677417.
We’ll be happy to answer any questions you might have, so please don’t hesitate to call us.