As specialist Letting Agents we pride ourselves in offering a personal and friendly service to all, whilst at the same time maintaining a high standard of competence and professionalism that you should expect from a Letting Agent.

Landlords receive all of the below as part of out standard Letting Service

• 6 months Free Rent Guarantee insurance with every new tenant.
• 6 Months Free Legal Expenses cover to assist with tenant eviction as a result of non-payment of rent.
• Full insurance backed referencing, credit checking and guarantor referencing.
• Bank of professional contractors who have been used personally for many years.
• No mark up or commission received on ANY maintenance work arrange by us on behalf of landlords. Many agents add a huge 15%.
• Arrangement of Energy Performance Certificate, Gas & Electric Certificates if required.
• Rent paid by BACS within 7 days (usually same day).
• Quarterly property inspections and reports.
• Full inventory preparation.
• All our documents are legally backed giving you peace of mind.
• Section 21 notices issued on your behalf as standard.
• Help & advice for new landlords or clients looking to rent their own residential home.
• Full Letting & Management Service. Your property really is treated like our own.
• Professionally prepared Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreements.
• Flexible contact, be at the forefront as a landlord or leave it all in our hands.
• Excellent service guaranteed from people who have been landlords in Milton Keynes & Northamptonshire for over 15 years.

Details of some of the properties in Milton Keynes and surrounding villages that we are currently instructed to let may be found on this website, together with an outline of our Letting Agency service.

If we can be of assistance in any way please do not hesitate to call us at either our Milton Keynes or Towcester offices on

Milton Keynes 01908 888816

Towcester 01327 828412

You can also email us at info@prestigemk.com

Considered to be a ‘grey area’ by industry professionals, ‘fair wear and tear’ is the traditional technical term used to describe the amount of deterioration (dilapidations) on a rental property at the end of a tenancy. 

With a total of 23,500 tenant disputes being logged in 2009 alone, a staggering 92 per-cent of cases were found in favour of the tenant, costing UK landlords an estimated £12 million in lost claims.

Rick Flay, Director at Belvoir Sheffield, who offer a wide range of property to rent in Sheffield, said: “Under the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS), landlords now have to prove their case when keeping a proportion of a tenant’s deposit. An increase in badly prepared inventories and a decrease in landlord education surrounding ‘fair wear and tear’ is making this very hard to do. The UK landlord now has as little as a one in ten chance of winning a dispute against a tenant.

“Our own research shows that landlords in the Sheffield area have a lack of knowledge when it comes to assessing ‘fair wear and tear’. The TDS uses a depreciation guide for fixtures, fittings, and furnishings against which they will measure a landlords loss. For example, a felt back/medium quality carpet is deemed to have an eight year lifespan.  Therefore, if a tenant damages the carpet but has lived in the property for three years, and the carpet cost £300, the TDS will only consider £187.50 of the landlords claim, ie the value of the remaining years.  

To ensure that landlords are covered in the event of a dispute, it is essential to follow these five simple steps:

• Ensure that your letting agent executes a meticulous and consistent approach to check-ins, check-outs, inventories and interim visits.  If a dispute does arise, this will lay the foundation of a successful and uncontested outcome, as it will provide all of the necessary supporting documentation to avoid any dispute.

• Bear in mind that the type of tenants occupying your property will have a bearing on what ‘wear and tear’ you should expect as a landlord. Students or those who spend more time at the property are likely to cause more wear and tear than a professional couple who are only at the property during the evenings and weekends.

• As a landlord, it is perfectly acceptable to ask your agent to add certain clauses to a tenancy agreement relating to the care of specific items.  Some landlords will state that any garden areas should be looked after and maintained to a high standard.

• Remember that a formal check-in procedure is essential. Over 70 per-cent of letting agents fail to do this at the start of a tenancy agreement and without this check- in process, the landlord has no way of proving what state the property was in prior to the tenant moving in.

• Ensure that the agent visits the property every 3-4 months to check its condition and report any key changes, as this will add strength to your case.

Rick added, “When landlords come to Belvoir Sheffield, we offer them access to the most up to date legal advice available for FREE from our legal helpline.  We also specialise in creating a professionally written inventory for them, including digital photographs to ensure that they are protected, should a dispute arise.”

Belvoir Lettings Sheffield is the One Stop Specialists for Lettings including Property Management, Tenant Find, Investment and Wealth Management Advice, Fit-outs and Renovations, Furniture Packs and Investment Property Insurances and Mortgages.

For more information on ‘Fair wear and tear’, please visit www.belvoirlettings.com/sheffield.

Belvoir Sheffield is represented by Tina Clough, please direct all press enquiries to tina.clough@poppy-pr.co.uk or alternatively, call 07805716959

During the last three months of 2009 the percentage of landlords experiencing voids over a 12 month period dropped from 55 per-cent to 52 per-cent. The findings also stated that the average duration of voids has fallen from 19 to 17 days. 

Despite the reported decrease in void periods, over half of landlords questioned are still considering the void period to be a very real threat, especially when teamed with a distinct rise in rental prices.

Rick Flay, director at Belvoir Sheffield, who offer a wide range of property to rent in Sheffield, said, “Although these statistics are good news for landlords, the threat of voids still remains imminent. In these harsh economic times property void is a huge problem that is plaguing many property landlord. Here at Belviour Sheffield we specialise in helping landlords abolish the possibility of voids.

  “Here at Belvoir Sheffield we currently we are renting properties on an average within 9 days of putting them on the market. We are inundated with enquiries from landlords keen to avoid such ‘void periods’ so we are offering our top five tips set to help those most in need.”

1.  Ensure that the price is right.

The price has to attract potential tenants. It must be competitive with properties in the area. Don’t hold out for the extra few pounds at the cost of having an empty property, accepting a lower payment is better than no payment at all.

2. Pay attention to the added extras.

Replacing old technology or worn out appliances with the latest flat screen television, broadband or furniture will all help make the property seem appealing to tenants. The more unique selling points you have the better.

3.  Accept viewings at anytime

Don’t let a bit of maintenance get in the way of viewings. Many tenants see the prospect of newly decorated property a huge plus. It also shows you are keeping the property well maintained and up to date.   Belvoir Sheffield organize viewing from 8am until 8pm seven days a week.

4.  Keep the property natural

Painting the property in neutral colours and adding large mirrors to the main living areas, will make the property appear bigger and give the viewer a blank canvas to work with. Too much clutter is not appealing.

5.  Ensure your letting agent responds promptly to leads

Ensure that your letting agent replies to any contact from potential tenants promptly and answer any concerns or questions they may have. If you aren’t quick you will lose out!

Belvoir Lettings Sheffield are the One Stop Specialists for Lettings including Property Management, Tenant Find, Investment, Mortgages and Wealth Management Advice, Fit-outs and Renovations, Furniture Packs and Investment Property Insurances.

For more information on avoiding void periods, please visit www.belvoirlettings.com/sheffield

 “Student lettings are big business with nearly 1.5 million students requiring housing from the private rented sector each year, but the service on offer to landlords, students and their parents is often very poor. Our plan is simple; we already have offices close to many campus sites and we have a strong web presence, and in student lettings this online presence is even more important,” commented Managing Director Ian Wilson.

 If the step into the student market seems a logical and obvious one, why has it taken so long?

“Our strength has been that we focus exclusively on the residential lettings market. We are not a high street estate agent who also dabbles in lettings. Getting the offer right for student’s has taken a number of months of careful planning and investment in our business systems, including the training of many offices involved in this new brand and, our website.

 The biggest investment has been made in the Martin & Co website www.martinco.com . The whole site has been revamped and re-designed as part of a further £50,000 investment by Martin & Co’s head office. “We spent £50,000 on the site in 2009 and we are repeating that investment in 2010. A major addition is the dedicated Student Homes part of the site www.martinco.com/students , that allows students to search by university and campus – a feature that students said they would find convenient but which even the large property portals and specialist student lettings websites aren’t offering at the moment!”

 “In the property industry having a market leading website is essential. We have worked with students to find out what they want from their letting agent. Our website is the highest ranked of any UK lettings specialist and the student homes area allows us to reach out to a new audience. We’re asking landlords the question – “How hard is your current agent trying to reach student tenants?”

 Wilson’s enthusiasm is understandable, the brand have really done their homework, no pun intended. If Martin & Co’s success in the residential sector is anything to go by then the student market is set for a real shake up!

Photos: Martin & Co Student Homes section of the website

            Martin & Co staff on Training Tour

Contact:

For further information about Martin & Co nationally please contact Marketing Manager Jayne Codling 01202 405543 or email jayne.codling@martinco.com

Belvoir Lettings Agency, Kettering and Desborough ,have watched the market change in quarter 3 of 2010. With the decline in the sales market still going strong, the lettings industry has seen a surge of properties become available in the local area. Although this was great news for letting agents, investment landlords saw rents decrease by 12%.  

 A few months on and some headway has been made, with rents rising at an incredible speed.

For example, a Victorian terrace home in Kettering was reaching just £450.00pcm in the spring. Now the rent would reach a minimum of £500pcm.

 Belvoir are a specialist lettings group who work alongside a number of industry professionals, mortgage advisors, investors and local tradesman, to ensure they provide landlords and tenants with the most accurate and vital information, relevant to the current market. They can be found at 2 Newland Street, Kettering, NN16 8JH and can offer a comprehensive service for both landlords and tenants.