What hurdles do landlords in London and Tenants need to overcome?
Landlords in London are going for Gold in the run up to London 2012. Every type of accommodation from Rooms, Mansions, Boats, Caravans, Tents and even converted Warehouses are being prepared to welcome the visitors to our great city for London 2012.
Online holiday rental websites are predicting that homeowners looking to cash in on the London Olympics could generate an average of £4,500 by renting their home during the 16 day-long event.
Direct Line figures state that nearly half of London homeowners would consider renting out accommodation for London 2012 to visitors and estimate that renting out a room for the entire event could yield up to as much as £730.
The average rental price Direct Line believes a room can go for a night would be £43 – although this jumps up to £53 a night in London. There is predicted to be almost 1million visitors to the capital for the London 2012 Olympics and with many hotels already booked out, renting out accommodation could be an enticing prospect for many.
If you too are thinking of letting accommodation for London 2012 during this period, you have a couple of options: pay an Estate Agent, who specialises in short-term rentals, or do it yourself.
Estate Agents typically charge a commission of between 75% – 80% of the first months rent plus VAT. Those of you looking to avoid paying high commissions would tend to put their home on one of the many online property websites available for a fraction of the price. Some of these property websites will spring up months before a major city event and then stop trading once the event is over. Other online letting agents are more established and have the experience in lettings, industry accreditations and safeguards in place for both landlords and tenants.
The team at lettingaproperty.com are experienced enough to know that Landlords look for flexibility. Some Landlords just look to advertise their property and receive potential viewings and others want further services that may include: tenant referencing, deposit protection, rent collection and in many cases rent guarantees’.
Homeowners trying to find tenants for the Olympics are asking for a 50% deposit upfront and for the balance to be paid prior to the keys being handed over. This would appear to be a major hurdle of going down the DIY route. After all, how many people would be prepared to send a £1,000-plus deposit to a stranger in the expectation that they will honor a rental many months later?
Lettingaproperty.com recommends to their current Landlords who want to simply advertise for this period over the Olympics, to use our Silver Service Package. For those wanting a full suite of services and are thinking of letting out their homes regularly as a holiday destination, we would recommend the services of our partners at holidaylettings.co.uk.
The Silver Service Package includes:
• Advertising on www.lettingaproperty.com, Rightmove and other major websites
• Tenant Referencing (tenants within UK only)
• Providing a Tenancy Agreement
For further information on this and other services on offer to help the Landlords of London during the Olympics, visit their website www.lettingaproperty.com or call them on 0844 567 0578
