LETTINGSnews
FRANCHISING
New ‘mobile’ lettings franchise will ‘turn the industry on its head’
STUDENT LETS
Demand falls for student lets
Student landlords should consider how impending hikes in university tuition fees will impact their business plans, after it was revealed that university applications for 2012 are nine per cent lower than this time last year, says Landlord Assist. Earlier this year the nationwide tenant eviction and rent collection firm warned student landlords that the buy-to-let sector could be a potential casualty of tuition fee increases, fearing many would-be students may be priced out of higher education. Now their concerns are
confirmed by the University and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) saying the number of applicants fell from 76,612 students at this stage for 2011 to 69,724 for 2012. For a long time student accommodation has represented the best performing sector for landlords, with strong levels of demand, full occupancy levels and good prospects for rental growth. However, a decline in
student applications coupled with a surge in the number of undergraduates intending to go to a local university to save money could lead to problems. Graham Kinnear, Managing
Director at Landlord Assist says, “These figures do not surprise us. We’ve been urging landlords for a while to look at their portfolios and acknowledge the need, where it exists, to look away from a dwindling student market and start looking further afield for tenants.”
50 DECEMBER 2011 PROPERTYdrum
A new lettings franchise claims that it is “turning the lettings agency business on its head”. Olivia Melville-Brown, who lives and works in Gloucestershire, has taken on a Surelet Local Franchise, a field-based initiative which does away with the need for a High Street office, slashing both start-up costs and overheads. Olivia, who has more than five
years’ experience in lettings said, “Launching my own agency was a big move but, signing up my first property on the first day demonstrates that the market is there.
“One of the benefits of working out in the field is that we’re on hand to arrange a viewing or discuss tenants and landlords’
needs outside regular office hours. “We also have a SurePad electronic notebook with enhanced features which allows us to instantly market details and pictures of the property on the major internet sites. “I chose to go for a Surelet Local
franchise because its unique business model set Surelet apart from its competitors. “I just love the concept and it’s
very affordable with set up costs of less than £10,000.” Surelet’s Franchise Manager
Dan Lewis added, “The need for a High Street letting shop or office is no longer as important as it used to be. We find that he majority of leads now come from internet giants such as Rightmove and Findaproperty.”
TENANCY DEPOSITS TDS Adjudication
Workshops The successful programme of Meet TDS Events that has been running all year is to
take a new turn, from insight to reality. TDS Events have been held
around the country to give members an insight into the adjudication process. Now, these events are being transformed into Reality Adjudication workshops. ‘Judge for Yourself’ events
allow members to work out the answers to real life disputes. With the cases anonymised, TDS adjudicators will guide participants through. The interactive workshops begin this month in Leeds, London and Manchester. Mike Morgan, TDS Head
of Adjudication says, “Our members are the people who actually meet the landlords and tenants in dispute. With the insight and practise that we can offer members, they can then go out and guide disputing parties to a solution without everyone needing to resort to Alternative Dispute Resolution. That will save time, tears and administrative cost.” Apply online for Judge for
Yourself workshops at www.
tds.gb.com/latest-news.
INVENTORIES
AIIC launches new check-out workshop The new one-day workshop will
at the Holiday Inn, Reading RG41 5TS (M4 Jct 10).
End of tenancy ‘check-out’ inspections can be contentious if not handled correctly and can cause wasted time, energy and money for all parties. To help landlords, agents and inventory clerks to manage the check-out procedure properly, The Association of Independent Inventory Clerks (AIIC) is launching new one-day workshop. The new ‘Check-Out’ workshop will be launched in January 2012
• The practicalities of carrying out cover:
• What to look for • Finding ‘hidden’ damage to
a check out • What is chargeable and what is
ensure that the landlord’s property is protected
• Handling your tenant in difficult situations
not – being realistic
• How to compile a detailed check • How to avoid going to dispute
out report
Pat Barber, Chair of The AIIC, comments, “We have developed this new course in response to many enquiries for hands-on training on check-out procedures. With this new workshop we can now offer landlords, agents, inventory clerks and all other interested parties training on how to complete a thorough and balanced check-out. We hope that as a result of these workshops, which will be held on a monthly basis, we can help to minimise end of tenancy disputes between landlords and tenants.”
www.theaiic.co.uk
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