Make sure to do your research on letting agents, says Connells

Selina Egan , lettings partner at Connells Leamington and Warwick, said: “It is vital that both tenants and landlords do some research into the letting agent they are putting their trust into before they sign an agreement or hand any money over.”

After the Government’s announcement that retirees are now able to access a greater proportion of their pension, some aspiring investors may turn their focus to buy-to-let property. With this in mind, Connells believes that now is an extremely important time for anybody thinking of letting a property to be aware of the correct and current procedures to ensure you are gaining the best possible return from your property and have the right tenants to match your needs.

Selina added: “There may be an influx of novice landlords over the next few months because of the recent pension changes. Therefore we believe it is vitally important that landlords understand the importance of their letting agent being transparent about the fees they charge and how they are regulated.

“Here at Connells we are a member of the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA) which is the leading regulatory letting body in the UK. We also hold our tenants’ deposits in the Tenant Deposit Scheme which offers security to both landlords and tenants when the tenancy comes to an end.

“The services we offer as a letting agent are exactly the type of procedures agents should be providing to protect their customers and it is imperative that whether you are a tenant or landlord you do your research into this before rushing into instructing an agent or letting a house from them.”

For more information on the local property market visit your local Connells branch in Leamington or call 01926 428107.