BUY TO LET


Alandlord


must expect to carryout boiler,gas


Protecting


riChArdClArke reminds would-be landlords that


AtAtimewhenthereismAssive


uncertainty in thehousing marketand houseprices inmanyareas of thecountry are stagnating,propertyownersare seeing the rental marketasaviablealternative to selling. Letting out a property should be a sound commercial decision: you retain your own property andcan rent it outtomakeabetter return on your investment than is available at present fromabank. Even if thepropertyis mortgaged,withinterest ratessolow,the rent collectedmay represent asubstantial profiton themoney borrowed. So farsogood –but don’tforgetthatrenting


property is atwo-way street.The landlord cannot just sitbackand collectthe rent –he or shehas certain obligationstothe tenants in that property underthe Landlord and Tenant Act 1987 and should also be conscious of theneed to protect that investment bymaintaining theproperty to ahigh standard.Iflandlordschoosetoignorethose responsibilities,the consequences canbe legally and financially disastrous. Wheremaintenanceisconcerned,the


biggest problemfacingmost landlords is the diversity of the work that needs doing; each individual job is oftentoosmalltocallina tradesman to deal with therepair. Handling suchawidevariety of problems–from leaking taps to brokenappliances andfrom issues with dampto noisy neighbours –aswell as collecting rent andservice charges can becomeexpensiveand time-consuming for smalltomediumsized landlordswithonly


54 effectivemaintenance is key to success in the buy-to-letmarket


oneortwo properties in theirportfolio.What starts as asmall leak throughaceiling that is ignored can quickly lead to something much bigger andmoreexpensive -suchasa newceiling andother water-damage repairs. Whether it’s abrokenwindow, aproblem with theheating,aleaking taporalost key, dependent on the nature of the incident, landlords have to accept that it is up to them– not the tenant - to resolve the problem. As well as thefinancialimplicationsof ignoringmaintenanceissues,there arealso


areseeingthe rental market asaviable alternativeto selling


legalrepercussions to consider,which can result in theprosecution of anylandlord found to be negligent. Landlordsare responsible for having an up-to-date gassafetycertificate (CS12) for their property to ensure that any gas cookers, boilersorother appliances aresafe. If this is neglected, it couldresult in carbon monoxideemissionswhichhaveled to fatal accidentsand prosecutions.Landlordsmust also have electrical appliances PATtested to checkfor faults that mightbedangerous to a user.Inaddition, complaints aboutmildew,


Propertyowners


investment your


cooker and electrical appliance services annually


dampness andwater ingressthatare left unresolvedare also likelytobring abouta visitfrom an environmental health officer. As abasic levelofmaintenance, alandlord must expecttocarry outboiler, gascookerand electrical applianceservices annually,aswell as plumbinginspectionsevery threemonths. Cutting cornersmay prove extremely costly. Beyond regular checks required by law, it is


worthnoting that the landlord’s obligations do notariseuntilhehas beenalerted toaproblem andhas hadreasonabletimetocarry outany repairs required. This will be judged according to theextentand nature of thedisrepair.


Three sTeps To success nEnsure youstart off on theright foot and


create acooperative andfriendlyrelationship with your tenants.Make it easy forthemto contactyou to report aproblem, nomatter


howsignificant or insignificant it is; nProvide your tenants withemergency contactinformation andensurethere will


always be someonetoattendtoaproblem; nRemember that alandlord should never enterapropertywithout thetenant’s permission. Insteadarrange property inspectionsinadvance –givingatleast 24 hours notice●


richardClarke is chairmanofLondon-based plumbing, heating andresidentialpropertymaintenancespecialist 1st Action tel 08001 123 999 email rc@1staction.com webwww.1staction.com


Autumn2012 Flat Living


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