Published on 15 Jan 2016

How our property letting fees work http://www.mccartanlettings.co.uk or telephone 01792 430100.

Q. How do your property letting fees in Swansea work?
A. We try to keep things as simple as possible. With the let only service we have one set up fee that covers everything and there are no additional costs during the tenancy. So all of the landlords are fully aware of what the costs are going to be at the start and then they get their rent from there on.

With the fully managed service we are not the cheapest but certainly not the most expensive. We charge a percentage of the monthly rental income and that includes everything. We don’t have extras for maintenance because surely that’s what management fees are for?

So it does make me cross sometimes when I see other agents charging as much as 18% on top of what the landlord has to pay. I’m a landlord myself and know that the bottom line in business is making money and we need to do that as cost effectively as possible.

Q. Other agencies can appear cheaper but the hidden costs actually make them more expensive?
A. Yes. Also, if you are going for a cheaper agent are they going in and checking the property properly; are they dealing with the maintenance? Because it’s all about capital appreciation of their property as well. So we need to make sure that we are maintaining the standard of the property.

It is so important, if you let a property degrade over 2 or 3 years … if you want to sell would you get as much as before?

So it is really important to maintain the property and manage the tenants accordingly … where needed … to make sure the property isn’t degrading.

Q. So Do I Have To Keep Spending Money Refurbishing After Each Tenant?
A. We need to be doing a little but often as it is always more cost effective to invest a little bit over a long period of time rather than having to rip everything out in a couple of years and start again.

And you can get longer term tenants as well so you start with a good foundation.