Renting properties. (Renting a Home)

Member Name: stephbond89

Product:	Renting a Home
Date:	26/03/09 (49 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Any work that needs doing is not your responsibility, can be great!

Disadvantages: Needs alot of research otherwise you could make a very bad choice!

I am very recently married, and I rented my very first property away from my family home in June of last year, I must admit we rushed into it a little too quickly, me and my then fiancee had been living 60 miles apart, and so it was difficult to see each other much, and so one day when I was in the town he lives in seeing him, we went to a letting agent, and ended up signing a contract on the first property we viewed.

The letting agent we used was Hot Property, and I must say I'd never use them again.

The flat we viewed was two bedrooms, a brand new build. It was on the top floor of a 4 story building with no lift, and next to a busy railway line, the stairs didnt bother us until it came to moving stuff in and the first shopping trip we had!!!! But the trains, we were told by the agent who showed us around, could not be heard from in the flat, and were not very often, this we found to be a lie when we moved in!! But, the flat was pretty, and needed nothing doing to it, and had all the white goods in it which was handy to a young couple.

The rent was £500 which was a little over budget, but we were ok with that.

A year later, there are cracks all over the walls, the paint which had been used was "builders paint" which when it gets wet, comes off, meaning you can't wipe down any marks on the wall, the laminate flooring is coming up, there is a gap around the windows where the sealant has come away and the gaps let cold air and rain water in. When emails and pictures were sent to the letting agent, nothing was done, and even though they were first informed of the issues nearly 5 months ago, still nothing has been done, and they actually had the cheek to send em a very snotty email this morning about it.

My advice is, if your renting a property, to most definitely have at least 2 viewings, look at all the flooring, walls etc, if there is anything your not sure about, mention it to the landlord or letting agent, and make sure its sorted before you sign anything!!! Negotiate the price if its a little too expensive, alot of landlords are willing to knock down the price by £10-£50 a month especially if the property has been on the market for a while with not much interest.

I would definitely tell you to make sure you love the place your looking at, and can see yourself living there, make sure you trust the letting agent, and read reviews on the service they give before you go anywhere near them!!!
If the landlord lives a long way from the property, do NOT bother with it!!!! If anything goes wrong, they will not be able to sort the problem out quickly and efficiently if they're living over 100 miles away!

Before you sign anything visit the property area at night, to ensure its as nice then as in the day, check with the council at what the banding of the property is.

Do not rush into it like we did, we have had nothing but trouble with the place we live, council tax been double what we were told it would be by the agent, vandals getting into a building which is supposedly secure and safe.

Renting is excellent, it means you don't have to get expensive mortgages, and it means if you need to move, you don't have to worry about selling up, but it can be unstable, you miss one rent, and they can kick you out within a month, but I suppose, its the same with a mortgage.

If your thinking about renting a property, please ensure you look into it alot, and any properties your looking into are researched alot!! Please take my advice, I don't want other people getting into the mess I did!!!

Summary: I'll rent again, but this time I'll make sure i take my time!