Renting Out a Property – Private Landlord or Letting Agent?

Many landlords wonder what the best choice would be to manage their rented property. It sounds fairly straightforward and less expensive to manage your own property, but is that really the case? In this blog post we weigh the options to help you decide what works best for you.

Private Landlord

Private landlords typically fall into two categories: professional landlords who own and let out multiple properties as a business; and ‘accidental’ landlords who rent out their home or a second property that has been purchased as an investment. Both are increasingly common. Aside from not having to pay agency fees, the biggest benefit of going it alone as a private landlord is being able to personally meet, assess and selected tenants. You have full control. But with this comes a great deal of responsibility, hassle, and time commitments.

It can take considerable effort to find the right tenant, so you may have to meet and assess multiple viewers. You will have inventory checks, tenancy agreements, deposits and references to take care of. You will need to get to grips with over 70 pieces of complex legislation to ensure you’re compliant as a landlord. Regular inspections will be required to make sure your property is being properly cared for. If anything goes wrong, you will need to respond quickly and arrange repairs yourself.  And when the tenancy ends, you’ll need to go through the entire process again. Oh the joy!

Letting Agency  

Renting out your property through a letting agent offers greater security and peace of mind for both landlords and tenants. Agencies are highly regulated by professional bodies, such as the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA) and Property Ombudsman, which have strict codes of practice that members are required to adhere to.

Benefits of a letting agency

At Clyde Property, we have been letting property for 30 years and are in a good position to offer advice on simple and affordable ways to make your property more appealing and marketable, thus allowing you to receive maximum rental income. We have a large database of tenants and can market your property more efficiently.

We arrange property viewings and thoroughly vet potential tenants, as well as take care of negotiations, paperwork, deposits, disputes, emergencies and repairs are taken care of on your behalf.

With the experience of renting property on behalf of so many landlords, we know the ins and outs of all required regulations and make sure your property is A full inventory and inspection of the property is carried out prior to the tenant moving in.

A full inventory and inspection of the property are carried out prior to the tenant moving in as well as regular inspections are conducted to ensure your property is kept in good order and remains compliant.

Whilst many people believe agencies do little for their fees, we believe the efficiency, assurances and benefits of professional management far outweigh the cost.

What Our Landlords Say

 “Efficient and professional letting management service”

The Edinburgh staff were friendly, helpful and reliable and gave good advice and direction at every stage of the letting process. I would highly recommend as an efficient and professional letting management service.

Roddy Mackenzie

Letting client, Edinburgh branch

October 2016

“Friendly, approachable and very helpful”

Clyde Letting have been acting as my letting agents for many years. Steph Plant and her team in Clarkston are friendly, approachable and very helpful. They provide timely and accurate advice and support and as a consequence I have had very little voids relating to my flat occupancy.

Guy Tassie

Letting client, Clarkston branch

October 2016

Letting out your property with Clyde

 With an award-winning letting service, unbeatable knowledge of the Scottish rental market, and a huge database of tenants looking for their next home, Clyde Property is in an unparalleled position to help you maximise your rental income and find the perfect tenant. We do all the hard work for you, taking the stress and uncertainty out of the letting process. And with property inspections every two months, you can leave the worrying to us and get on with the more important things in life.

Clyde Property is a leading independent, multiple award winning estate and letting agent with 30 years’ experience in selling and letting property in Scotland. Just call your local Clyde Property branch today, for friendly, impartial advice on letting out your property.