Looking around places to rent - what to ask?

Bloodshot · 17 Apr 2010 at 13:48

Hey all,

On Tuesday I'm going to be looking around some flats to rent. Never rented by myself before (staying directly with the owner of a house right now), so I was wondering what kind of things I should be asking? It's going through an agency, so I'm sure there will be hidden hosts in there somewhere.

Any help, would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers!

4T5 · 17 Apr 2010 at 13:55

How long did the last Tenants stay & why did they leave ?
How long is the notice to quit ?
How much is the dreaded council tax ?
Any idea on monthly/quarterly heating costs etc
Who do you ring if owt goes wrong & who do they use for maintenance etc

Bloodshot · 17 Apr 2010 at 13:58

malc30 said:
How long did the last Tenants stay & why did they leave ?
How long is the notice to quit ?
How much is the dreaded council tax ?
Any idea on monthly/quarterly heating costs etc
Who do you ring if owt goes wrong & who do they use for maintenance etc

Thanks!

GeX · 17 Apr 2010 at 14:27

if you like somewhere, go back later and speak to the neighbours. Find out what the building is like to live in.

meghatronic · 17 Apr 2010 at 14:36

Whatever you do, scope the place out of an evening time without a guide. I can't stress this enough.

WrathOfAchilles · 17 Apr 2010 at 14:42

Before you agree to anywhere, vist the place 2 or 3 times on your own at different times of the day and see what the parking / noise situation is like.

Maybe speak to a neighbour and see what they think about the property and ask if they know of bad experiences others have had with landlord agency.

Mobile phone coverage

K.C. Leblanc · 17 Apr 2010 at 14:47

Ask about deposits and make sure they're lodged in a proper scheme (they need to be by law).

Make sure you have a normal electric and gas meters, card meters etc. cost more and although you can get them changed it's a nuisance. If there is one tell the landlord/agent you want it gone before you move in.

Make sure there's a working phone line.

Check exactly what fittings are included, especially if you're viewing it while still occupied. Not just big things like appliances but also stuff like curtains.

If it's in a block of flats makes sure there's no additional service charges or charges for car parking.

Ask them not only about repair procedures but also what happens if you have issues with one of their contractors.

Make sure you know what fees will be charged, this varies a lot. Some agents will charge over £400 while some private landlords just buy one of those generic lettings agreements from the post office for a few quid.

Measure up, make sure you're furniture will fit (and you can get it in).

Check to see if pets are permitted.

Bloodshot · 17 Apr 2010 at 14:53

Awesome, thanks for the great replies. The flat is right in the centre of town and I know for a fact that a lot of drunk people wonder by - but I'm not too worried about that.

So electric / gas on a metre is bad yeah?

If you like somewhere, can you put a holding deposit down until you're ok to move in? Generally, how long will they hold somewhere for you?

Thanks,

Glaucus · 17 Apr 2010 at 17:49

Check shower gets to a nice hot temperature and has a decent throughput. Gets annoying showering in a cold underpowered thing.

Council tax agency probably wont know which band
You can use http://www.voa.gov.uk/cti/InitS.asp?lcn=0 to check band, then just find your councils webpage and find out how that translates to cost. Remembering it's generally paid over 10 months and not twelve. And if you move in after tax year starts I have found they usually ask for 2months council tax at a time.

As said check they have an out of hour number for emergencys, broken electrics/water and the like.

Always ask about getting virgin/sky/telephone/BB installed

Make sure you understand notice periods, even if you have a 6 month contract you will 99% of teh time still need to give at least 1months notice.

As for how long they will wait that depends on landlord and agency will ask on there behalf. I usually find they will wait for 4 weeks. They would rather know someones going to move in soonish than risk it being empty.

what do you mean metered? pre paid, or just normal metered.

You say drunk people wont annoy you, but have a think about summer when you leave windows open. It can affect some people and if it does it will be something that really winds you up. Same with traffic, is it on a bus router or other major road.

You can use http://www.upmystreet.com/ to find out stuff about the area.