Residential Letting & Management

Walters Estate Agents are experienced and professional Property Management & Lettings agents. We offer Landlords both a FULLY MANAGED service and a LET ONLY service. Whether you are an ‘accidental landlord’ or a seasoned property investor with a large portfolio we would be delighted to hear from you to discuss your property and lettings requirements. Our letting and management fees are very competitive, we aim to offer a professional service at a fair price. 

Market Appraisal: First off we will need to visit your property to carry out the initial consultation. This includes a rental valuation and advice on any obvious repairs or maintenance issues which may be necessary in preparation for letting. This is a FREE no obligation appointment, much like a normal estate agent valuation. We will also discuss our fees with you on this appointment and provide you with further information about lettings & property management services.

    Request your Lettings Market Appraisal today!

    Let Only Service

    Property Marketing

    After you have instructed Walters Estate Agents as your agent we will look to place your property on the rental market. Prior to marketing we will require an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) which can be produced by Walters if required. We will also arrange to take photographs of your property. Once we have conducted pre-marketing preparations we will place your property on the rental market, we advertise on global property portals including; Rightmove and On The Market. We will also advertise your property via a ‘TO LET’ sign which will be erected at the property.

    Viewings

    We will handle telephone and email enquiries on your property, we will also match prospective tenants to your property from our internal database of registered applicants. We will arrange and carry out accompanied viewings on your property or we will arrange with you as the landlord or your existing tenants to carry out the viewing. There is no additional charge for accompanied viewings. We will aim to provide you detailed feedback from the viewings carried out. Any interested parties will be provided with an application form on request.

    Application

    We will inform you once an application is received. We will negotiate the terms of the application at this point. Subject to your acceptance of an application we will carry out a full referencing check and a credit check on the applicants and their guarantor (if applicable). Referencing is conducted externally using a professional referencing company.

    Deposit

    Upon agreeing to let a property the tenant will be asked to pay a deposit. We register deposits with the Deposit Protection Service (DPS). You as the Landlord will need to register with the DPS and provide us with the Landlord ID allocated to you. We will register the deposit with the DPS upon receipt before transferring this to your DPS Landlord account.

    Tenancy Agreement

    An Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreement will be prepared for the tenant/s to sign before moving into the property. The agreement is written by Pain Smith Solicitors, the tenant/s will have the opportunity to read the agreement and ask for clarification on their rights and obligations under the agreement before signing. The tenancy period will be for an initial period of 6 months, a longer term can be agreed with mutual agreement between all parties.

      Fully Managed Service

      The fully managed service includes all of the services/ steps included in the LET ONLY service in addition to the further services/ steps below.

      Inventory & Move in

      We will arrange for a detailed inventory and photographs to be taken prior to the start of the tenancy.  Upon move in we will conduct a sign up appointment, the tenant will be provided with a copy of the signed inventory. At the end of the tenancy we will carry out a check-out inspection at the property with the tenant using the same inventory to assess the condition of the property (fair wear and tear is accepted and expected).

      Property Inspections

      A property inspection will be carried out during the first three months of the tenancy and every 6 months thereafter. A written inspection report will be produced and provided to you. We will notify you of any maintenance repairs or obvious defects, please be aware that inspection visits are of limited scope and do not constitute to an expert investigation or survey. If in our opinion the tenant/s is not taking proper care of the property we will inform you of this and arrange to carry out another visit. If you require more frequent inspections please do discuss this with us.

      Repairs

      We offer an emergency ‘out of hours’ contact telephone service for all our fully managed tenancies. This is for tenants to report urgent issues and situations, for example a water leak. In normal circumstances, including standard none emergency repairs we will affect essential repairs up to a value agreed with you in our ‘terms and conditions’. We only instruct reputable and insured contractors on your behalf. If you wish to use specific contractors we ask you kindly inform us so we can ensure these details are uploaded to our system.

      Rent Collection

      For a fully managed service the rent is collected a month in advance. We will provide the tenants with a sanding order mandate and encourage them to pay their rent via this method. We will pay your monthly rent less our agreed fees and additional expenses to your nominated account and provide you with a monthly statement of income and expenditure. We will notify both you as the landlord and the tenant/s if rent becomes overdue.  Advanced rent terms can also be agreed and paid on a monthly basis.

      Renewals & Rent Increases

      Towards the end of a fixed term we will contact you to confirm whether you wish the tenancy to be renewed. If the tenancy is to be renewed we will negotiate on your behalf as a landlord and prepare a new tenancy agreement to be signed.  Where a tenant wishes to remain at the property on a ‘month to month’ contract (periodic tenancy), then rent can only be increased with a notice under Section 13(2) of the Housing Act 1988. This is required in law.

      End of Tenancy

      At the end of the tenancy we undertake an end of tenancy inspection. This is using the inventory that was signed on the move-in appointment. We will send a move-out report to you on the condition of the property at the time of the move out. Should there be any deductions from the deposit required we will negotiate with the tenant on your behalf. Fair wear and tear is accepted and expected.