Terms & Conditions
Sales Disclaimer
All negotiations are subject to contract. The Agents are not authorised to make or accept any contractual offer unless prior written notification to the contrary has been given on behalf of the client. In no other case whatsoever are the Agents (or any employee or sub-agent) authorised to make or give any representation or warranty on behalf of any party, and whilst information and particulars are given in all good faith intending purchasers and lessees must satisfy themselves independently as to the accuracy of all matters upon which then intend to rely. Measurements or distances referred to are approximately only. We have not carried out a survey or tested the services, appliances or specific fittings.
TERMS OF BUSINESS
Services and Fees Structure
RESIDENTIAL LETTINGS
INFORMATION FOR LANDLORDS
Sub-Letting
If you are a tenant or lessee it is essential for you to make certain:
i) That the intended letting is permitted by your lease.
ii) That the proposed tenancy is for a period expiring prior to the termination of your lease.
iii) That your Landlord’s written permission, if necessary, is obtained for the sub-letting.
iv) That the furniture (if any) is compliant with The Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 (amended 1989 & 1993).
Mortgages
Where the property to be let is subject to a mortgage, permission is normally required from the mortgagee to sub-let the property. We strongly advise that you obtain your mortgagee’s permission to sub-let (if required) in principle, at the earliest date rather than applying for this when a tenant is found.
Insurance
You should make certain that your property and contents are adequately insured against damage and / or personal injury – and that your policy covers lettings; many household policies do not do so. We would recommend you take out a separate “Landlords Insurance Policy”.
Non-Resident Landlords
Non-resident landlords are persons (this term includes individuals, companies and trustees) who have UK rental income, and a usual place of abode outside the UK.
The Non-resident Landlords Scheme is a scheme for taxing the UK rental income of non-resident landlords. The scheme requires UK letting agents to deduct Basic Rate tax from any rent they collect for non-resident landlords.
Letting agents don’t have to deduct tax if HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) tells them not to. HMRC will tell an agent not to deduct tax if non-resident landlords have successfully applied for approval to receive rents with no tax deducted. But even though the rent may be paid with no tax deducted, it remains liable to UK tax. So non-resident landlords must include it in any tax return HMRC sends them.
Non-resident landlords who are eligible can apply at any time for approval to receive their UK rental income with no tax deducted. This includes applying before they have left the UK or before the letting has started.
We would recommend you instruct your UK accountant to complete a Form NRL1 and seek approval on your behalf to receive rent with no tax deducted.
Further guidance is available at www.hmrc.gov.uk/cnr/nr_landlords.htm#40
Management Company
If your flat is in a managed block, you must notify your management company that you intend to let your property.
Rental
Unless otherwise agreed, the rent quoted to a tenant by us on your behalf must be inclusive of all outgoings for which you are responsible (ie: ground rent, service charges etc.).
Holding Deposit and Deposit
(a) An initial one weeks rent will be requested from an applicant to be held as a “non refundable holding deposit” to take the property off the market and as a sign of good faith on the applicants part. In the event the landlord changes their mind, the holding charge will be returned to you. In the event the landlord changes their mind as a result of your referencing not being passed, or false or misleading information being provided by you to either the landlord or the referencing agency the holding charge will not be returned.
(b) The six weeks deposit forms part of the Tenancy Agreement and is taken by this firm and paid into the Deposit Protection Service (The DPS) within 14 days of receipt and protected in accordance with the Terms and Conditions of The DPS. The Terms and Conditions and ADR Rules governing the protection of the deposit including the repayment process can be found at www.depositprotection.com
Enfranchisement or other Sale of Property
If the tenant introduced by us or an associate of the tenant acquires an interest in the property (other than a transfer extension or renewal of the tenancy arranged by us) then we shall be entitled to a commission of 3% of the purchase price plus VAT which shall be payable on exchange of contracts.
Transfer
This contract for our services is personal to you and shall not be transferred by you. It shall terminate on you disposing of your interest in the property or a receiver being appointed over the property, but without prejudice to our continuing entitlement to be paid by you our outstanding fees or our fees due to any extension or renewal.
LANDLORD OBLIGATIONS
GAS SAFETY (INSTALLATION & USE) REGULATIONS 1994
It is the duty of any person (ie: the Landlord) who owns a gas appliance and pipe work installed in the premises to ensure that such appliance and pipe work is maintained in a safe condition so as to prevent risk or injury to any person.
The Landlord must ensure each appliance is inspected on an annual basis by a CORGI registered engineer. In addition any Warning Notice that is issued for any appliance (which doesn’t conform to the legal requirements) must be rectified.
A record of each inspection must be kept by a Landlord or Managing Agent – by law. If these regulations are ignored the Landlord could be liable for a fine or imprisonment upon conviction.
ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT (SAFETY) REGULATIONS 1994
The Landlords and Tenants Act 1985 requires that the electrical installation in a rented property is:-
a) safe when the tenancy begins and
b) maintained in a safe condition throughout the tenancy
The Landlords and Tenants Act 1985 makes it an implied term of every tenancy that the landlord will ‘keep in repair the structure and exterior’ of the property and ‘keep in repair and proper working order the installations in the dwelling-house for the supply of water, gas and electricity, and for sanitation, space heating and heating water’. The landlord cannot make the tenant responsible for these repairs.
The landlord is responsible for carrying out Portable Applicance Testing on an annual basis. It is your responsibility to ensure the above requirement is met and continues to be met. By signing these Terms of Business you are accepting we have made the above recommendations to you.
FIRE & SAFETY REGULATIONS 1988 amended 1993
From 1 st March 1993 all newly rented furnished properties should only be furnished with contents that meet ‘cigarette test’, and are labelled accordingly. Furniture that was manufactured prior to 1950 is exempt from the regulations. All furniture manufactured after 1983 should already comply with the regulations. If these regulations are ignored the Landlord could be liable for a fine or imprisonment upon conviction.
SMOKE & CARBON MONOXIDE ALARMS
Landlords will be required by law to install working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in their properties, under measures announced by Housing Minister (11 March 2015). The measure took effect in October 2015, and comes with strong support after a consultation on property condition in the private rented sector.
ENERGY PERFORMANCE CERTIFICATES
An EPC is required by law when a building is built, sold or put up for rent. An accredited domestic energy assessor will carry out an assessment and produce the certificate which is valid for ten years. This EPC must be available to a prospective tenant, free of charge and must be provided at the time of going to market.
Failure to provide an EPC at the time of going to market can result in Trading Standards officers issuing a fixed penalty notice of £200.00.
Jeremy James & Company will arrange for this inspection to be carried out, at your cost (usually £60.00, depending on the size of the property), and upon receipt of payment in advance. The certificate will be made available to any other agent, should you decide to multi-instruct at a later stage.
RIGHT TO RENT CHECKS
Private Landlords are required to conduct immigration status checks on their tenants. Financial penalties of up to £3,000.00 can be imposed on Landlords who fail to undertake the immigration checks or who rent a property to a person whose immigration status means they do not have a ‘right to rent’.
BEFORE A TENANT TAKES OCCUPATION
Please ensure all services (gas, electricity, smoke alarms, carbon monoxide detectors and telephone) are connected and that all appliances are in working order.
Please ensure there is a working telephone line connected to the property.
1. Letting
Please see a full outline of our available Letting services in the ‘Professional Services / Fees’ section of our website
Letting only Service – Fees 10% plus VAT (12%) for the initial term and any renewal or extension thereof, or
Letting and Collection of Rent Service – Fees 12% plus VAT (14.4%) for the initial term, and any renewal or extension thereof, or
Letting, Collection of Rent and Full Management Service – Fees 15% plus VAT (18%) for the initial term plus any renewal or extension thereof, plus
Administration – £250.00 plus VAT (£300.00)
The full amount of our commission will be payable at the commencement of the original tenancy, or where there is a six month break option in two six monthly instalments. Any further commission payable as a result of any extended or new tenancy granted to the same tenant is payable at the commencement of the extended or new tenancy.
Our commission is payable even though you may in the interim dispose of your interest in the property.
In the event the tenant we have introduced to your property progresses to purchase the property at any time our fees in the matter would be 1.75% of the purchase price plus VAT.
2. Medical Letting
SERVICES
The services included in our commission (if required by you) are:
i) Introduction of tenant.
ii) Taking up references but not including any charges for company investigations.
iii) Instruction to both lawyers to prepare contracts.
iv) If required, consents from Howard de Walden.
FEES
On our finding a tenant who is accepted by you or whom you have given us authority to accept on your behalf and who completes the Tenancy Agreement, our commission will be charged as follows:
i) 10% plus VAT of the total first year’s rent reserved under the contract,
ii) 7.5% plus VAT of the total second year’s rent reserved under the contract,
iii) 5% plus VAT of the total third years’s rent reserved under the contract
The full amount of our commission will be payable at the commencement of the original tenancy.
Our commission is payable even though you may in the interim dispose of your interest in the property.
3. Management
SERVICES
(i) Outgoings – We will pay where instructed the outgoings as invoiced, such as service charges and ground rent. In all cases you must give written instructions for invoices and demands to be sent to us for payment and provide us with copies of the correspondence for our records. Please note that we will only pay invoices or demands if we hold sufficient funds, and this service does not include verification of the invoices.
(ii) Tenancy Changes – If there is a change of tenant during our management we will deal with the preparation of the property for the new tenant.
(iii) Inspection and Defects – We will inspect defects which are clearly and adequately brought to our attention by the tenant or which are apparent on our visits, provided such defects are readily accessible. Defects which are not readily accessible will be reported to you with an estimate of the cost of investigation for your instructions. Such inspections are not in any way a structural survey of the property. We cannot accept responsibility for not discovering hidden or latent defects.
(iv) Repairs and Replacements – We shall have authority to arrange for minor repairs and replacements to be carried out at your expense where the cost does not exceed £300 for any one matter. Where the cost is likely to exceed £300 (except in an emergency) we will obtain and submit to you for approval an estimate of the cost. If the estimate is approved then we will arrange for the work to be carried out. As your managing agent we shall have authority to instruct contractors in your name.
(v) Vacant Property – Our management does not include the supervision of property while it is unoccupied, notwithstanding that there may be periodic visits by our letting staff during the normal course of offering the property to let.
(vi) Tenant Relations – We will deal with normal enquiries and requests from the tenants referring any matter which we consider significant to you for your decision.
Terms of Appointment
Except where special arrangements are made, because for example you intend to reoccupy the property, our appointment is for an agreed initial period and thereafter subject to two months’ notice to terminate on either side. We must be given sufficient funds at the commencement, and if necessary, during the term of the management to enable us to meet all expenditure prior to the next rent collection. It is essential that we hold the working balance as we cannot agree to pay any liability beyond the available cash from time to time in our hands on your account.
FEES
i) Our management charges are 5% (plus Vat at the current rate) of the total rent reserved under the terms of the Agreement and any extensions and will be in addition to our letting fee.
ii) Our minimum management fee is £500 (plus Vat at the current rate).
CLIENT MONEY HANDLING
We have a written procedure in place for the handling of Client Money which can be provided if requested, free of charge.
COMPLAINTS
We have a formal complaints procedure in accordance with the requirements of the Property Redress Scheme. A copy is available by emailing jeremy@jeremy-james.co.uk.