Updating post from Reddit.
Hi everyone, I’ve been following for a while and it’s now time for me to get some advice. I will be a first time landlord (Edinburgh). I also live abroad so I will undoubtedly need an agent to deal with the property.
I’ve been reading about all these changes in the law that makes it so hard to be a landlord these days. My question is, a good agent will be in charge of all this right? Do they have different levels of service? How does all this work? If I make the mistake of going with an agency that makes an error, doesn’t that make me liable? I’m sorry if my question makes me look like a total idiot, but I am completely clueless and quite scared by all these legalities that are coming in. Thanks in advance for helping me understand.
Ultimately you’re liable as the basic legal relationship is direct landlord>tenant. If your agent makes an error which results in monetary loss then you have a claim for redress against the agent. However the agent’s culpability or otherwise may only be defined (other than a general responsibility under ‘duty of care’) by reference to the signed agreement you make with the agent. So make sure you understand the detail of that agreement.
Thank you! This is really helpful
As an overseas landlord you must register with HMRC and complete form NRL1. Make sure your agent knows their responsibilities in this regard.
Generally go with an ARLA regulated agent as they have standards to keep up to in order to maintain their membership.
Thank you! Writing all this down
You’re looking for a “fully managed” service. They will charge a bit more, but they handle basically everything.
The best one will be a local market thing. I’d recommending talking to a lot of them, and would also advise you find a smaller company. In theory that might limit the number of people who will view your place, in practice thanks to thinks like Right Move, that’s not the case.
I started with a small company who were great, but they’ve expanded massively and now they are a big faceless company who I would describe as “absolutely awful”.
I’m going to call them Leaders, because that’s their name.
Thanks a million! This is what I hoped. Thanks for all this advice