Rent hasn’t increased at all in five years

[Tryingtogetbacktomysize10s]

Probably a silly question but should it?

I don’t really understand tbh. You say it’s to do repairs and also to supplement your reduced income as you just had a baby. Which is fair - but £30 a month Isn’t really going to make much of a dent in either of those, and you also say the house is in excellent condition and very well maintained- so what repairs? It does really just sound like you’ve had a look around and seen higher rents nearby and thought you should have a bit of that but don’t want to risk losing a tenant (because hassle of dealing with that and then selling while looking after a baby) so have decided on what you think is low enough to keep them there.

Ken I promise I’m not meaning this rudely but the threads not about you.

Thanks sip, this is the issue. Repairs, white goods being replaced (I left them in when I let it out which was naive of me) pest control (turned out to be a bird!) - they do add up.

Everywhere except London, rents are going up and properties are in high demand ( the latter causing the former)

But any rent increase will be a lot lower than the costs of a changeover if your tenants give notice as a result.

My property is maybe £20 a month below market rate now. Nothing will change , it isn't worth it financially. If my tenants are still there in ten years I may regret it - but that is unlikely, I reckon they will leave long before that and I will then sell up. At the moment the boat is steady on both sides so why rock it?

How can you not understand uhtred? Again I don’t mean that rudely but I’m baffled as to what you don’t understand.

Things go up in price. Including homes.

I am wondering if my letting agents should be sorting this. It isn’t some sort of bizarrely coded complicated issue. Sorry if that sounds snappy but I’ve never been more baffled as to what someone doesn’t understand!

Ok, now offence taken.

If you want to get some more money out of the property I would leave the rent as it is and get rid of the agent. It sounds like you have a good tenant and it's not hard doing the management yourself. Although my top choice if I were you would to just sell up. Lifes too short of you don't want the hassle of being a LL.

I think that if someone has a great long-term tenant then the landlord should try not to increase the rent too often or too much. They risk losing their great tenant. If you need to increase the rent to cover costs then fair enough, but increasing just for the sake of it doesn't make sense to me.

We’ve loved in our property 5 years now and the rent hasn’t increased in that time. We do kind of expect that yearly at the review the rent may go up by a small amount £25-£50 (our rent is £795) and I wouldn’t call this unreasonable.

Other local properties are now renting for nearer £1000 but then all have been recently decorated etc so I would ask for some updating to be done in our property if they were looking to update it to those sorts of prices. The only cosmetic work we’ve requested in the time we’ve lived here is the carpets doing as they were very tired and worn when we moved in (most looking at it wanted them doing before moving in).

I don’t think the £30 you’ve suggested is unreasonable.

How can you not understand uhtred?

I explained in the post.

I am wondering if my letting agents should be sorting this

Yes. Any letting agent worth their salt would review rent annually. Even more reason for getting rid of them and doing it yourself.

Of course you charge a market rent.

£360 a year. So if the tenant decides to leave (I wouldn’t pay another £30/ month for my place and it’s more than £500 a month currently) then a one month void totally wipes out the extra income for more than a year. A one month void is totally normal between tenancies to allow you to inspect and carry out repairs and painting and carry out viewings. Is it worth it?

I suspect you wouldn't leave, @UhtredRagnarson, if you knew that other tenancies in your area were all £100 a month more. After 5 years, £30 a month sounds pretty reasonable. In this case, if the tenant leaves it would make total sense for OP to bring rents up to local levels, with the result that any loss for a one month void would be recovered within around 5 months.

Indeed ... it isn’t rocket science!

My rent hasn't increased in many years and there has been suggestions that the agent/landlord could be charging more for the property. I'm not against a small increase per year but have made it clear that I'm not ok with a large increase all at once which has been suggested before.
I have also pointed out that a higher rent means I don't have the money to anything in the flat. It is not in the condition to achieve market rate and I think would cost quite a lot to get it there including a new kitchen and bathroom.
So at the moment I decorate when needed, I have replaced flooring etc

It's fair to me that anything I can do, within reason, I will.
If I'm charged market rate or close to it then I'll be asking for old carpets and floors to be replaced and for help with decorating etc as well as updating old and battered kitchen and bathroom. They know this.

It seems like a fair trade off. They get to be fairly hands off and I get more choice and freedom in my home.

Same here. I’m a landlord and charge enough rent to cover the mortgage and service costs, that’s it. I never struggle to find tenants and most stay for several years or leave to move in with a partner etc. It’s a little cheaper than other identical flats in the same block, but my costs are covered and that’s all that matters to me.

I'm neutral here, being neither a landlord nor a tenant, but that seems slightly mad to me. You're building nothing in for the hassle factor, e.g. keeping accounts for the taxman, checking on rent receipts, being on call to organise repairs and replacements when anything goes wrong etc, nor are you building up any sort of contingency fund for expensive repairs and refurbishment. If I were a landlord I wouldn't charge a lot, but I think I'd aim to keep up with the retail price index.

I've never looked into the rent increase process as I've never done it. I just did.

given the effort involved and the fact that no-one can be evicted, or will be for the next two years or so - unless it is a huge sum, I can't see that it is financially feasible.

I suspect you wouldn't leave, @UhtredRagnarson, if you knew that other tenancies in your area were all £100 a month more

Other tenancies in similar properties may be £100 more. I’d rent a smaller property because I just couldn’t justify paying so much in rent.

Depends on your area, in mine rest haven't changed in the last 5 years (which was the last time I was looking for a rental and am looking again now). Only exception for higher rents seems to be ones with a significantly higher standard internally (ie not just new kitchen, paint etc, but a fancy glass extension or quirky style)

Sure you would uhtred

You’d totally go through the hassle of moving, finding a new rental property, having your kids share a room, and you probably wouldn’t save any money because two beds and even one bed flats aren’t dramatically different from the £30 I’m suggesting. Sure you would.

I would only assess the rent if my tenants decide to leave. Having people who look after the house, pay the rent on time and have never caused a single problem is far more valuable than a tiny increase in rental income.

Now isn't the time to put rents up at any rate, £30 to many is a huge amount of money right now. Do you know their circumstances over the pandemic?

Can I ask a question op?

If you don't want to be a LL, why don't you just sell? Now seems like a really good time to do so.

@Tryingtogetbacktomysize10s

Sure you would uhtred

You’d totally go through the hassle of moving, finding a new rental property, having your kids share a room, and you probably wouldn’t save any money because two beds and even one bed flats aren’t dramatically different from the £30 I’m suggesting. Sure you would.

That’s what you’re relying on, isn’t it OP? You’re betting on your tenant not being up for the hassle of moving. So you’re projecting that onto me.

Sorry, that should say, you’re projecting your fear of them actually doing that onto me.

I would only assess the rent if my tenants decide to leave. Having people who look after the house, pay the rent on time and have never caused a single problem is far more valuable than a tiny increase in rental income.

You've had this same reply from loads of experienced LL, you seem dead set on increasing, just increase the rent then. If the second part of your question is basically, is the agent doing their job by not suggesting this, I think the answer may be a bit more complicated. Certainly they should be discussing it with you annually and most agents would be advising an increase. Bear in mind though, an increase is win win for the agent. If the tenant pays it then that's higher fees for the agent. If the tenant leaves they will most likely be charged with finding you new tenants (and the tenant a new place) this usually involves very high fees to the agent.

Op. I have no personal experience of being a landlord. But unlike some of the pp I have read the thread.
I really think that your letting agents are the problem and they do not appear to have your best interests at heart.
So, if you want to keep the property I would suggest you look into other agents. I have seen some advertise that guarantee the rent if the tenant doesn't pay.
You could maybe set up a meeting with the tenants, tell them that you need to either increase the rent by x (personally I think £30. per month is way to low) or you will have no choice but to sell the property.
You could self manage if this is your only rental.
As I said at the beginning though I would definitely get rid of your letting agents. They are not helping you at all.