Fully managed property letting service or DIY?

A fully managed letting service is a tempting prospect for the time poor landlord. In exchange for a fee, letting agencies will not only promote the property and negotiate the initial letting but take care of everything thereafter, from checking the tenant’s references, to collecting the deposit and rent, to registering the tenant with the utilities companies, to handling any required maintenance.

Passing on responsibility for all the maintenance and admin tasks arising from a rental property sounds wonderfully hassle free but it is not without risks. A poorly managed property can irrevocably damage the relationship between the landlord and tenant without the landlord necessarily being aware of any unaddressed problems. This can lead to repeated short term lets rather than a reliable long term tenant. Fully managed properties can also deter some tenants as many lettings agencies charge both landlord and tenant additional fees for this service.

The alternative of course is for landlords to let and manage the property themselves, which doesn’t have to be as daunting as it sounds. Landlords can advertise property to let for free on Propertymatch.com, making it much simpler to find prospective tenants. By going direct and cutting out the middleman they are able to develop a good relationship with their tenants as well as saving on the cost of using a letting agent to provide a residential property management service.

There is also lots of free advice online about how to successfully let and manage a property. Propertymatch.com has produced a landlord’s guide to offer just this sort of information and there are a number of organisations, such as the Residential Landlords’ Association (RLA), which offer support and guidance to members.