Rental: cheeky potential tenants

[erloe]

I have a rental which was my home before I met dh. It’s a one bedroom flat in a very very sought after development. I listed it for £3,200 a month and got no interest. I reduced to £3,000 and got one viewing. They offered £2,700 a month.

I got another message asking if the kitchen appliances had been updated since the pictures because the washing machine looked 20 years old. I have now had new pictures taken.

Have other people had tenants haggle on price? I rented it for £2,700 in 2019.

Do you need to get £3k (!) or would the lower(!) amount be just fine except impacts your margin? It's a 1 bed flat.

Why are they cheeky?

If you think it’s a fair price, turn down their offer and remarket

(also - you rented your flat and then bought the exact same flat?)

What's the going rate? If it's a sought after development it seems like you must be asking too much if you can't get someone to pay your full price.

Yes it’s completely normal to offer on rentals - if 20 people want it agents tell them to outbid each other (possibly soon to be illegal), and if no one wants it then people can offer lower.
For that amount I’d certainly hope the appliances are recent.

I can tell you that when I was renting for a few years (up to 2021) i always haggled or made a lower offer and the offers were accepted.

Not sure what it's like now that the rental market is a lot hotter, but I have a question - what have you done to maintain your property? Its decor and appliances will have become worn and tired over five years,.does it still look nice? Are the floor coverings scruffy?

It is common to offer a lower price of say 10% at first, it’s up to you if you want to accept it. Also you should always show recent photos just in case there’s any issues going forward.

I also don’t understand why you wouldn’t have taken recent photos (it sounds like you have updated the appliances but used older pics in the ad, which is silly if so)

Presumably the potential tenant has seen other properties and yours is on the cheeky side, hence the haggling/negotiating.
Not wanting to be lumbered with a 20 year old appliance is quite reasonable?

That's a crazy amount of money for a 1 bed flat, of course they'll haggle.

Are the appliances 20 years old?

Are you aware that providing appliances in a rental means that you are liable to replace them as and when they have a fault?

I also thought that's a crazy amount for a one bedroom but I just went on right move and found a flat in a not particularly nice part of London - 50sq m £3500 per month
I must be getting old and grumpy...

If it’s such a sought-after location then surely you’d be able to easily secure a tenant at the price advertised?

Clearly - your apartment is not up to the standard tenants expect for the price you are offering.

Either lower your price or update your apartment.

A tenant asking to pay 10% less is perfectly reasonable and in many countries is a standard part of the negotiation between a prospective tenant and a landlord. How strange that you are offended by this.

Welcome to the market, OP. Very occasionally it the holder of capital doesn't get everything they want.

If you’re getting little to no interest then you’re overpriced. It’s perfectly reasonable and normal that the potential tenants would offer what they believe it’s worth. If that number isn’t going to work for you, or you think you can get more (doubtful if you’ve only had 1 viewing) then by all means reject it. Also, using old pictures of ancient appliances is definitely not going to help you get viewings, not sure why you would do that but good to hear you’ve now updated it. It’s also perfectly reasonable that they’d query the age of the appliances as presumably they just want reliable stuff and to avoid the hassle of a broken washing machine then dealing with a management company who IME are always difficult. They don’t sound cheeky at all. Are you sure being a landlord is for you?

If I was paying nearly £3k in rent knowing all appliances are in good working order is important. Landlords can be crappy. I rented a flat once and washing machine broke. Waited weeks and then landlord brought round a £50 one he bought off gumtree. It never worked properly. I. Moved out.

Regarding your price the market is telling you it’s too high. This is why you don’t have viewings/ interest. Rent it out to them or reduce and remarket. It’s not cheeky to not want to pay over the odds for something. If it’s currently empty that’s a consideration. If you wait two months to find a tenant to pay £3k your income will be £2.5 a month balanced out over the year. Rental prices don’t just go up they stagnate and do down sometimes too.

It is cheeky to market with old photos.

I've rented since 2002 and almost always made offers and negotiated the rent, I wouldn't call it cheeky. Current place we negotiated full repainting and reflooring as part of signing the contract (the place was in a poor state). It's expected that rental properties are kept updated and if they aren't that is reflected in the price.

It's normal to haggle, in either direction. When we were renting there was a queue of potential tenants waiting to view in 10 minute slots! In that situation you'd offer more. If no one else wants to rent it and it doesn't look worth the money you'd offer less.

How much do you actually need to rent it for to cover your mortgage and agency costs and have enough for a sink fund for repairs and maintenance?

It sounds like yours is over-priced as there hasn't been much interest.

Very understandable them asking about the appliances. I've been through the situation of appliance breaks, landlord initially doesn't respond, then sends repairman we have no control over. Then sends a second to sort out the mess left by the first. Eventually after three weeks without appliance, landlord agrees to replace it. Then we have to be in to receive the delivery.

For that kind of money I would expect everything to be the highest spec so if you're trying to let it with a 20 year old washing machine no wonder nobody wants it. Not cheeky at all.

For £3,000 per month I'd expect a butler to come with but the very least the very latest high spec washing machine/dish washer.
3k is insane!

If it really is that old, I’d take the £2700 if this is your only offer. Or negotiate £50 more and replace it. You’re losing so much money by not having a tenant.

Either the location isn’t as sought after as you think or your price is too high, where have you got the £3k figure from? Are you paying a mortgage on it?

With this little interest you’re definitely overpriced, I’d be thinking more about selling the flat rather than renting it.

@Catsinaflat

There's plenty of room here on the bench!

I keep hearing my Dad in my head 'hooooow much?!?!'
🤣🤣

Regarding the price, and you saying you were paying £2.700 in 2019, has there been newer developments in the area? If your flat is no longer the shiniest newest thing in the area.

They’re not being cheeky.

You overpriced it at £3,200k - no interest whatsoever so forget that valuation.

Even 3k was optimistic as you only got 1 viewing.