UK Landlord Forum / Life

Hi everyone!

I am working on a project for my graduate degree. It is based on a new agency model and would love some input from landlords to help with research. Hopefully this will help us develop a better service for you.

Here are some questions that I would appreciate your input on:

1. What motivates you to use or not use a rental agency?
2. If you do not use an agency, what services would make you want to use one?
3. Do you use a smartphone? If yes, what kind? Would you use an application that made the rental process easier?
4. Do you use social media? (Facebook, Twitter, etc.)

Thank you so much in advance! This will be very helpful for me!

We are designing a tool that will help lower costs and simplify the process for you guys. Any bit of information helps

1. What motivates you to use or not use a rental agency?

(+) Less hassle
(+) Potential cost saving if things go wrong for their time is spent dealing with it on your behalf
(+) Professional experience dealing with all sorts of topic issues

(-) Agent costs money, especially seems wasteful if good tenant
(-) Agent often are useless because they have little financial incentive to do a first rate job and the industry attracts many people who can't find employment elsewhere due to lack of qualifications.
(-) When they muck it up, it can cost a lot of money and they are very good at wiggling out of any responsibility

2. If you do not use an agency, what services would make you want to use one?
( ) Finding tenants.
( ) Providing contract templates

3. Do you use a smartphone? If yes, what kind? Would you use an application that made the rental process easier?
( ) Using built in camera to take photos of ID of tenants before contract signing
( ) I cant think of a killer-application/requirement which would make me use a specialised phone app. I travel with laptop and dongle generally.

4. Do you use social media? (Facebook, Twitter, etc.)
( ) Absolutely not. If a tenancy goes sour it would be splattered everywhere and people who lie and cheat for financial benefit will also lie and cheat on a social network and it's next to impossible to reign them in via the courts.