Landlords 'not likely to have trouble filling homes'

Tenants referencing and rent guarantee insurance are likely to be important products to landlords who are worried they will have to deal with an unreliable occupant, but even if buy to let investors are faced with someone unexpectedly giving notice to move out of their property, they may not need to worry about losing too much cash.

This is the opinion of experts at Belvoir lettings, who explained that high tenant demand means an abode should not be vacant for too long.

Indeed, this echoes the sentiment of many commentators on the private rented sector, with research from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors recently showing the supply of rental real estate is not able to keep up with the number of people looking for accommodation.

As well as reducing the chance of long void periods for landlords, this has also put upward pressure on rents, with the body reporting 19 per cent more surveyors saw asking prices rise rather than fall in the three months to October.

Sales director at independent residential lettings and property management Daniel Cox explained this is partly due to a lack of available finance for first-time buyers.

"The lending criteria is still pretty stringent at the moment, so it is quite difficult to get a mortgage ... That is why renting is the way to go at the moment," he said, adding: "It is difficult to save while you're renting, so it is a catch 22 situation."

For this reason, landlords may notice tenants staying around for a longer period of time while they try to build up enough cash to pay a deposit.

This could be difficult for many young people, as Mr Cox noted even those on a reasonable salary of around £25,000 to £30,000 will have great difficulty accessing finance to purchase a home.

However, some tenants may decide to leave and, even in a climate that could make it easy to fill vacant properties, it is better to retain the same occupants, Belvoir stated.

"If they have looked after the property and always paid on time, they are clearly worth trying to hold on to. If they leave you will have re-let fees to pay out and a possible void period," proprietor of Macclesfield Belvoir Rosemary Millican explained.

The lettings agent suggested buy to let investors find out why people are keen to move to a different abode and see if there is anything that can be done to change their minds.

"It may be they are finding the house expensive to heat and you could investigate ways of making the property more energy efficient, for example. Or maybe they are wanting to cut down on their rent," Ms Millican said.

She also suggested offering a fortnight of reduced charge to stay in the house that is the equivalent cost of re-let fees and other expenses they would have to pay if they had to find someone else to move in.

Some individuals may need to leave for work or because they are buying a house, in which case landlords are likely to need to look for someone new, but they could still ask for the occupant's help, Ms Millican advised.

"If you have looked after your tenant well, they may well be happy to help you find a new tenant, which will minimise the void period. Perhaps offer your tenant a £20 shopping voucher to say thank you," she stated.

Belvoir urged those landlords left with a vacant house to use the time between occupants well.

"It's an opportunity to reappraise your property in terms of rental income, appearance and maintenance to ensure long-term prospects for the property are still good," proprietor of the organisation's Luton branch Adrian Mason said.

He also advised landlords to evaluate how much other portfolio investors are charging their occupants and make sure they meet the standards required of the area they are operating in as well as charging the right amount to tenants.

Ms Millican agreed, stating: "Take a look at the rent you have been getting ... with rents increasing in many areas, it may be that you could now re-market it at a higher rent."

When it comes to the standard of accommodation landlords should aim for, she warned tenants may have increasing expectations in this arena, with buy to let investors refurbishing their properties and owner-occupiers leasing their homes because they will not sell.

This means portfolio holders may be competing with a higher quality of housing than before, so a lick of paint and some maintenance work is a good idea while tenants are out of the house, Ms Millican added.

"Never be complacent and say, 'it will do, it's just a rental property'," she advised. "Importantly, a well-prepared property reduces problems during the tenancy and minimises issues at the end of tenancy too."

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Posted by Luella Ravelin