Tips on being a landlord

[hellohellooo]

Hello all

My parents house has been vacant for a few years now

A friends colleague wants to move in

He wants to paint and put in a new flloor
I willl of course pay for everything

How do I keep this all formal so that I ensure he does not do extra work and could claim to not owe rent (if that's even a thing)??

I'm new to this

I have a contract to be signed
Checks every six months
Landlord insurance
Photo Id for all tenants

What else am I missing?

Should I give a receipt if I am giving them money for doing the floor??

Not done this before so please go easy on me

It definitely isn’t for the faint hearted. The new Ombudsman scheme, which effectively good landlords will pay for to assist the tenants of bad landlords will be an additional cost soon. It’s easier to charge responsible landlords than deal with the rogues.
I have several properties so can spread the load in case of serious rent arrears or major repairs, but having just one property makes you particularly vulnerable.
I’ve closed my waiting list as my plan now is to sell any property which becomes vacant.

Check all your legal obligations like deposit scheme, gas safety checks, fire regulations, energy rating etc. Also deal with any maintenance issues asap.

For the love of God please also put any deposit in a deposit protection scheme

Get a proper agent OP and pay ten percent to get all this sorted. It’s just not worth the hassle.
Who owns the house? If you own it jointly then any one of you can insist on a sale. Or they can buy you out of your share.

You should get any improvements done professionally - how do you know the tenant has the skills to do a floor or paint properly? You are in danger of ending up with a bodged job that you’ll have to sort out anyway.

Wise wise words thank you

It is not for the faint hearted

I know

Seems like the best way forward

Yes

Thank you

Making a full list

These are all great

You must issue a Right to Rent booklet which you can print off from the Government website.

You must put the deposit in a deposit scheme. They should be given evidence of this within 14 days.

You must give the tenant a gas certificate every year and it must not expire and an electrical certificate which currently lasts for 10 years.

You must give the tenant the EPC rating letter. You get the EPC done then print the certificate off the government website by entering the postcode and house number.

I give the tenant a checklist with all these documents in a folder and get them to sign and date to state they have been received on the day they moved in.

I also take about 18 photos of each room including the inside of the oven and garden and get the tenant to sign each image as a true image of the state of property when they moved in. This avoids any disputes about property not being left in a similar state to when they moved in. I give them a copy of the photos.

Make sure the contract is water tight. Make sure it states any damage caused by tenants can be deducted from the deposit.

Make sure you include no smoking inside of the property and the garden must be tidied once a month including any grass cutting.

Ensure they advise you if the property will be empty for more than 30 days as this will invalid insurance.

Get them to agree to inform you immediately of any damage or repairs needing doing and not trying to do them themselves as they might make things worse and it could be dangerous if electrics etc.

I also put in my contract that rent will increase each year in line with inflation on the date of renewal of tenancy. I give them 2 months notice of intention to increase the rent to give them the option to vacate or continue to rent at the new rent price.

I would not allow a tenant to paint the house themselves I have all my houses painted white. I do allow tenants to choose a colour if they don't want white but in these instances they must agree to pay for it to be repainted white at the end of tenancy.

I give them a copy of the receipt for a professional clean at the start of the tenancy including any carpets cleaned and oven in the contract they must leave the house with a professional clean including carpets and oven and I require a receipt.

I like to keep things professional and have not had issues with tenants.

If a problem is reported I aim to get it dealt with within 48 hours. The only time I could not get this done was during COVID.

Get a professional to do any work on the house for repairs because you can write repairs and maintenance off against your tax bill. Make sure you have a fan in the bathroom for ventilation or it will get damp. Put in contract absolutely no drying of laundry hanging inside the house and provide a washing line and tumble dryer.

@caringcarer so so helpful

And thank you all

This is really helpful as someone who had no idea really and still has a long way to go

Yes exactly

I agree with much of this.
As far as I’m aware the EICR ( electrical installation condition report) only lasts for 5 years now.