Belvoir Northwich has disagreed with a new report indicating that rising costs coupled with an increased exposure to rent arrears, may force landlords reaching retirement age to leave the buy to let sector.
The new report released by rent arrears collection service Landlord Assist has been questioned by Belvoir Northwich, as it says that providing that landlords have adequate landlord insurance, and credit check their tenants using a professional service, any risks are greatly reduced.
James Whalley, Office Manager at Belvoir Northwich, who offer a wide range of homes to let in Northwich, said: “This new report indicates that the risk to landlords has increased when in fact other research indicates that arrears are in fact decreasing particularly when properties are managed by a professional lettings agent. At Belvoir Northwich our arrears are very very low as a percentage of our total rates. This is due to thorough credit and reference checking and also good process and management in the event that someone is late with a rent payment.
DIY landlords have always been at risk of arrears because they are not using a professional tenant checking service, and this report could well be an indication that more landlords are attempting to go it alone to save costs in the current climate. The outcome of this can be arrears and significant void periods.”
In an economy where money is tight, Landlords try to go it alone to save agent fees and pick up tenants who are also trying to avoid fees by not paying for credit checks, many of these people would fail in our process. So whilst there may appear to be a few pounds saved upfront if it goes wrong, the real cost to a landlord can be massive.
By using the detailed credit checking service, landlords can eliminate some of the risk associated with non paying tenants.
Prior to a tenant moving in, Belvoir Northwich would run thorough credit checks and get references for all parties who intend to move into the property.
James, whose letting agency on Castle Street in Northwich, added: “This should ensure that from day one, you are moving the right tenants into the property and are selecting only those who will respect their surroundings and return everything as they found it at the end of their agreement.”
