Can any landlords offer help in renting out our much loved home?

[hooliodancer]

For various reasons, we will be renting out our house in the new year.

We are spending around 5k getting it up to scratch- New blinds, full redecorating, new carpets and flooring. We have done everything to kind of match the rest of the house. It is, I suppose, a high end finish.

It is in a posh ' the much sought after' area. It has huge kerb appeal. Because it has been our home it has a very nice kitchen with range cooker, Fired Earth bathroom. I'm just trying to describe it, not trying to be grand or anything! It is a Victorian 2 bed cottage. I thought we would be here forever, hence we did it up not thinking of getting a return. We just chose what we loved.

My question is, will it attract a higher rent because of this, or is it just the same as properties which have been maybe bought to let so might be more basic?

I am hoping that because of the nice interior and cute factor of the exterior we are more likely to get a high earning couple who might stay a good few years. Is this pie in the sky though? Am I deluded?

We have a buy to let (had if 30 years, it was bought to be our pension) but it has basic kitchen etc, hardwearing carpet. We have had tenants in there for 10 years, and 6 years recently.

Our family home seems like a different kettle of fish though... maybe I am being to emotional?!

If you've got a decent garden, I'd factor in getting proper gardeners at least once a year to do a baseline reset

You can only expect basic garden tasks to be completed - like the grass cut and hedges done if they are low. You can't expect tenants to be getting up on ladders holding hedge trimmers.

I would 100% factor in a garden service to come in the spring, then a couple of times over the summer and a final autumn tidy up.

wonky fence is ok as long as it isn't going to come down.

gardener every few months is useless. If you want the garden maintained it needs to be every couple of weeks and intelligence used. many scalped lawns round here because the mower squad have mowed them weekly because it was summer to get their money. Due to the drought they are destroyed. Do not expect tenants to look after gardens.

If your cooker needs special care and treatment it may get wrecked. My previous ex-home rental had a resin sink where you had to use a washing up bowl - no chance, scratched to bits as they didn't. Just how it is.

Put the cooker into storage. Get a cheaper one for the rental if it means so much to
You.

If it’s 2 bed you can forget ex pat families. A one child family maybe. You don’t want several children in a 2 bed cottage. That’s a quick way to wreck it.

The agents should use an inventory company. It is vital that condition is agreed. You should get the fence sorted before you go. It’s one more thing to worry about if it gets blown down when the tenants are there. Fix everything that’s wonky!

don't leave anything in the loft or shed. that's a recipe for desaster.

everything has to work without issues:
an outside tap that needs to be turned 'just so' to close properly... tv areal that needs the yucca in a certain position in the middle of the room for good signal... a shower that only works on the winter setting of the boiler...

A gardener is a good idea as most tenants don't look after the garden in my experience. Mine was my pride and joy when we lived there and it really upset me last week to see it in such a mess.

I do just gently want to mention not all renters are like the ones mentioned above , we take huge pride in our home and with agreement with the landlord have planted flower beds etc

Do check references and also choose the profile you like...i keep my oven spotless and with a range oven like that if you get the right person they will love it and care for it

It's really not true that all tenants are lazy about house stuff ( we are high earning family focused and long term in that we are not wanting to move foe a long period of time)

Just a reassuring point that not all tenants are horrible and hope you find a family or couple that loves the house

(I do agree two bed might limit and worth looking at couples)

I would say that the advantage of having a well kept home is that you rent the house faster, and the tenants stay longer (assuming you also maintain it well). This is certainly the case with our house that we did up and rented when we moved abroad for work - there's a lovely couple in there, who look after it beautifully, and in return I get any issues sorted quickly. They've just asked for a 5 year lease, so they must be happy, and I'm happy I have reliable tenants who enjoy the home I enjoyed.

We rented a house from a couple which was in nicely decorated condition, not really top end, but I think they cared hugely about it because it had been theirs, to be honest I'm really glad we went through an agent and had a professional inventory (is that what they are called) it listed all marks on walls etc before and after. We had looked after it well, both worked full time, so little time to ruin it, but they were seeing things through rose tinted glasses a bit and had we not have had the 'proper' and detailed survey I think they would have had us paying for them to re decorate etc out of our deposit. I would advise being really realistic that people should look after your house but it won't be the same as you living there and that spending money now is probably a bad idea.
I do think you potentially would get a bit more for a nicer finish, but it won't guarantee that they will look after it better?
Also I would advise putting gardening into the contract, organise someone independent to pop in every fortnight and tidy things up then it doesn't start to look unloved and the tenants think they've got a bargain.

Detach emotionally, renters will not treat your home like you would - not saying that they will completely ruin it but everyone has different standards. If you leave the cooker prepare for some heartache, again it may not be treated as you would.

Get an inventory done, at least if things do go wrong then you will be covered slightly - although if there is a stain on the carpet you can only charge for a portion not the full replacement of the carpet. But I am sure your letting agent will of gone through things like that as well as putting a deposit in a scheme.

remember wear and tear. I put a new carpet in a rental and only saw the place twice in the next few years - was abroad and managed it remotely. after a few years that nice new carpet will be very different simply from being walked on. stuff wears out!!!

Not all renters don't care about the house. While it's not their house, it is still their home.
We rent and we treat our rented house the same way we would treat a house we own, weekly basic clean round, bigger deep clean every few months, and we take care of the house in general (we rent unfurnished so no worried regards furniture).
I'd say aim for families who want somewhere nice to raise their children, as they tend to want to stay in one place for longer.

I don't mean it as a boastful post, and I know plenty of people don't take good care of someone else's house (given the state here was in when we viewed it and moved in ), I just mean that some people, like us, want their home to be nice and welcoming and clean, and do take care of the house.

How much is your 10 year old cooker worth now ? How much will repairs be for parts etc ? Are you planning to go back to live with the cooker in some years time ?
Sell.it and replace cheaper but newer. ...Or store it if it is hugely valuable and you may want it again.

I have only rented out two properties but I have tried to have them maintained to a high standard so I get good tenants. It worked well for one house but the other has had a few issues with tenants. I try and sort problems out very quickly by working with the agent.

However gardening seems to be an issue with quite a few tenants plus breaking things and not telling anyone. Not cleaning the oven and generally leaving a mucky kitchen. Smoke alarm batteries are rarely replaced, for example. When I have had people who care for the houses we are all happy. I do get annoyed by the few who have just been messy and as I have tried to make the house very good (new boiler, showers, carpets, wood floors, new front door, new patios, fencing etc) I have felt let down and the expense has been quite big because I want the property to be good but the cleaning bills and repairs afterwards feel excessive and unfair. The agent never deducts from the deposit. The house with the lawn is often a jungle garden after a rental ceases. One tenant planted a flower bed. I’m really happy that they did that but it’s hard when others have not cared for the property.

smoke alarm batteries are tenant responsibilty after check in. least of your worries.

in my admittedly bad experience they get removed because tenant too pissed to replace them and wants to smoke indoors. and in one case the whole alarm vanished. make sure their presence is on the inventory and the tenant signs to say they work at checkin, then you are covered legally.

Unless it's a very expensive Lacanche I really would replace the oven.
Also you have legal obligations so best to use an agent

Water, yes I understand I have responsibilities, I have been a landlord for a long, long time.

I realise my cooker is my main emotional thing. Looking on eBay it's probably worth about 3-4k second hand now, so not cost effective to take it with me, especially as we don't have gas!

I have always thought buy cheap pay twice. If I put a really cheap range cooker in I would imagine it would break more easily. Mine can have every single part of it replaced, so might be good for a rental.

I bought it with an inheritance, so it does have emotional value.

I am planning a gardener once a month in the summer, unless they say they would prefer to do it themselves. When I was renting I would have bloody loved my garden!

@hooliodancer are you sure that you don't just want to sell? Saying this as we have just made a similar decision. Moved out of our house which was done up to a high spec but financially we were better off selling but most importantly I was worried about how tenants would look after the property and then when we eventually sold it wouldn't be in such good nick. I'm a landlord of another two properties and have seen the good and bad side of tenants taking care of rental properties. Agree with a prior poster that well to do families and couples will only be renting short term and also fixtures and fittings don't command that much more than the equivalent property with more basic fittings. I couldn't have coped seeing my gorgeous house not kept the way I wanted it and made a hard decision to sell but glad we did now! Now putting the equity to good use in another project :-)

Re your garden- you shouldn't be paying for a gardener- your tenancy agreement should state that they have to maintain it. Don't worry too much about fence. When tenants come to view get their feedback- I don't think anyone is going to be put off a property on the basis of a fence! Save your cash :-)

Mrs, I definitely don't want to sell as it is not cost effective at the moment.

We had sold last year, but the chain collapsed when the people we were buying from pulled out on exchange day, leaving us hugely out of pocket.

It's likely you will attract higher rent, we finish our properties to a high standard whether they are single dwellings or student houses/HMO's and price them to reflect that. Detailed inventory is key. We like to meet our tenants as too.

Although we are landlords with a small portfolio we actually live in rented ourselves and would pay more for a quality characterful home and absolutely look after it.

I would leave the cooker

Good luck - you'll have no problem renting it out

Find a good rental agent and do it in a professional manner, they will be able to do all the credit checks etc and will arrange for the property to be checked regularly.

Make sure the mortgage holder, if any is advised and insurance company

We are currently renting out our family home while we are living in the US.

It’s a large house in a naice area with outstanding schools.

It was in perfect condition when we first rented it out and we maintain it rigorously.

The rent is pretty much based on two things: size and area.

How nice our decor is was irrelevant to the rent we could achieve.

Our aim is just to make sure it is continually rented out. We don’t want to deal with insurance and maintenance problems that come with an empty house.

Consequently our rent is slightly lower that we could ask but we have never had any gaps between tenants. It’s rarely even advertised.

In our area we get lots of year and two year lets. People moving temporarily for their jobs. Invariably high earning professional couples with children who are seeking good schools.

Using a property agent has been worth every penny.

We pay for garden maintenance because our garden is lovely and it’s important to us that it stays that way.

We also don’t allow pets or smokers.

Consequently our rent is slightly lower that we could ask but we have never had any gaps between tenants. It’s rarely even advertised.

I think that this is important - a competitive monthly rent often keeps a renter there longer term (if they want a long term rental) and will save you ££££££ in voids, frequent re marketing, inventory costs etc - so overall more profit and less headache for you.

You might want to look for someone looking for a 2-3 rental - maybe advertise it as such - don't expect the estate agents to love that idea - they make there fees on moving everyone around each year.

Agent fees usually amount to at least 6-8 weeks of rent which you have to pay up front - so you want to avoid this every year. If the sales market is slow it might be a time when FTB sit on their hands for a bit so a longer term rental would be attractive.

Thanks for the advice, really helpful.

Initially we are going to use Open Rent, who we have used for our other rental.. We will definitely try advertising for a 2 to 3 year stay, I hadn't thought of that.

although there is a lot of chat about people wanting long lets, I would keep your options open. You could be waiting a long time for that long let couple to come along. Others who have sold and are looking for the right property to buy and want to rent for 6 months won’t be interested. Stay flexible and even if the first rental is 6 months, the next one might be 18 months. Say you will accept either and negotiate.

Yes you should repair the fence. You know if is faulty so repair it. Ditto any faults. Tenants paying top dollar don’t want wonky fences. Well, not in my experience. The first thing they will do is ask for it to be repaired.

You are aiming at a high standard of finish so why are you even asking if the fence should be repaired?
Apart from the fact that tenants will expect it be in a good state of repair, it will be difficult to prove damage to it, should anything happen, if it's already wonky.