UK Landlord Forum / Life

 Hi there

I instructed an agent to let out my property as i was new to the whole landlord thing.  I signed a contract with a 6 months breakclasue, as I was talked into this being a good thing and at the time thought it was.  My first tenant signed this and then activated it within six months, as they were moving abroad, so I had to start again.  Now the second tenant has also activated it as they split up and once again I found myself paying for this.  Looking into it now, it appears that ' Letting agents favour break clauses as they can use them to get a 12 month fee up front even if the tenant only intends to stay for 6 months' and I realise that I have paid him a 12 month fee each time, but each time they have only stayed 6 months.  I now beleive that I should have recevied 50% of my fee back, or at least had it taken off the second fee. Does anyone have any advice on this for me please? 

V unhappy and out of pocket! Needless to say, I am not using them again!

Thanks

Sally

Yes, Agents love Tenant turnover... they can charge outgoing fees, incoming fees, Landlord fees... they can get money just raining down on them, for no effort.

I do not have a Break Clause in my ASTs... however, I generally have a Fixed Term of 6 months and I have done 12 months if the Tenant has specifically asked for that. If you had a Fixed Term of 12 months and your Tenants needed to leave (moving abroad is a good example) then there's actually little you can do about them leaving... you'd be in much the same boat.

However... you have been talked into something by an Agent who you now believe isn't exactly acting in your best interests. You'll not make the same mistake again, that's for sure, if you want a Break Clause you'll have one, if not then not... it's all part of your learning experience. I don't want to sound pithy, but it really is... first-time Landlords can expect everything to run smoothly and, hey, they've even employed an Agent who will look after their interests... er, no... not really. You can try to impress upon the Agent the fact that they work for you. However, many don't seem able to grasp this rather simple concept.

I'm not sure what you mean by 12 month fee each time... do you mean you're paying the Agent the management fee (like 10% or something?) for the full year up front? Why? Why wasn't their commission taken from each rent payment incoming each month? Was it because this was the Agent's Ts&Cs? If so... you do right in getting another - or, preferably, getting none or just using the Agent for Tenant Find. If the rent is £1,000 per month and their fee is 10% are you saying you've paid them £1,200 at the beginning of the year, then another £1,200 after six months, so you've paid them £2,400 or 20% of the incoming rent in 12 months?

I would only sign something whereby you pay them £100 per rent period... it ends up being £1,200. How can you expect them to work [well] for you when they already have all your money in their coffers?

Check your agents terms and conditions to see what they say about refunds of commission. If we relet a property where we were paid all our commission upfront then we give a credit for the "unused" months against our new fee otherwise you are paying twice for the same service. Unfortunately not all agents do this so vote with your feet if you have been ripped-off. Check also whether you are paying an admin fee as some agencies will charge that regardless of the length of tenancy.