The problem with the Private Rented Sector is that for many, ‘landlording’ started off as a lucrative hobby, not a job. As the sector has grown, it has become entirely necessary to put some policies in place to protect the consumer and raise standards, just as a business would have in place for its employees and/or customers. However, legislation has come so thick and fast that many landlords have struggled to keep up and have not recognised the need to educate themselves.

If you are a landlord that likes managing your rental property yourself, building a relationship with your tenant so that they are encouraged to stay longer and treat your property as a home, that is fantastic. HOWEVER, the latest count I read, was there are now 176 rules and regulations relating to letting a property, so my advice is learn learn learn. At Fresh Move we advise landlords to go online at the beginning of the day, before they get stuck into work mode, emails and calls, and just read what is going on in our industry.

Here’s a few websites we recommend:

www.landlordzone.co.uk

www.property118.com

www.propertytribes.co.uk
www.propertyreporter.co.uk
www.landlordtoday.co.uk

I would also advise landlords to join a landlord association such as NLA or RLA. They provide the latest news, campaigns, lobbying, market trends and sign posting of recommended suppliers, as well as an advice line. Being part of a community of professional landlords means collectively you have a stronger voice.

This we have seen first-hand with the Fair Possessions Coalition response to the Government’s intentions to abolish Section 21. Along with many other organisations and associations in the industry that have come together.

Landlord Redress will be mandatory in the not too distant future. Personally, I think this will be positive move which will force landlords to be accountable, responsive and more compliant when renting out a property. And yes, this will require more learning because it means the consumer, your customer, will be able to make a compliant about your service.

It’s tough enough working full time, being a parent, running your own house etc. So, if you simply do not have the time to be a professional landlord, find a tenant, deal with all the compliance paperwork, arrange an inventory and handle regular communication with your tenant(s), I strongly advise you to use a managing agent. When choosing who to use, make sure they belong to a redress scheme, hold Client Money Protection and belong to a trade body such as ARLA or NALS such as Fresh Move.

More and more ‘battle-hardened’ landlords are approaching Fresh Move because they can’t be dealing with all the changes and are struggling to keep up and have passed their properties over to us for full management.

What many landlords don’t realise is the cost from let only to fully managed is not a huge jump if you put a price on the time you spend carrying out the work yourself – read more about this in my book www.landlordsfriend.co.uk. Divided over 12 months, most landlords who opt for a fully managed service agree that it is not a lot to pay for a peace of mind and reassurance that you are compliant.

The Government want landlords to be more professional, which is great, but we have 1.8 million landlords and of these, not even 10% belong to Landlords Associations. Whilst we do not know the number of properties managed by agents in the South West of England, we do know there are a lot of landlords DIYing.

I’ve tried to reinforce the importance of self-learning and provided some links for where to find more information. But the main point I’m making is that the argument from landlords saying, “I didn’t know about that, doesn’t wash any more.

This is a business, approach it like a business, rather than a weekend hobby.

No more excuses, please.