Despite the depreciating value of UK houses and a challenging macroeconomic climate, it’s apparent that the buy-to-let property market is continuing to boom on these shores.
However, there’s an increased focus on tenants’ rights as inflation soars and the cost-of-living rises, while landlords are bound by laws and regulations when it comes to safeguarding those who reside in their properties.
But what steps can you take to be a good and compliant landlord in 2022 and beyond? Let’s find out!
#1. Be Easy to Contact
As a landlord, you’re responsible for maintaining the amenities and features included in the home at the time of purchase, including the boiler and certain appliances.
Similarly, you’re duty-bound to inspect the electrical wiring of all gas appliances in the property, providing certification for their safe performance every year. This is a legal requirement and one that you’ll have to make a priority every single year.
This means that you’ll need to be easy to contact from the perspective of your tenants, providing a phone number and email as a matter of course.
We’d also recommend creating and sharing business cards with tenants, which should include all of your relevant contact information.
#2. Be Proactive and Resolve Issues Quickly
If you are contacted about issues in the property or are due to attend and carry out electrical and gas checks, it’s also crucial that you’re proactive in your approach and look to resolve challenges quickly.
This requires a professional approach and one that treats property ownership like the commercial venture that it is.
To help underpin your approach and sense of professionalism, you should put in place a detailed tenancy agreement while also outlining the details of where the tenants’ security deposit is securely held.
This should also encourage you to give adequate notice when attending, as while the property belongs to you, it’s the tenants’ home and should be treated as such.
#3. Maintain Open Communication and Accept Feedback from Your Tenants
As you can probably tell, being a good landlord and maintaining a rapport with your tenants requires you to sustain open lines of communication at all times.
This allows for honest and transparent communication, making it easy to share information both ways and ensure a mutually beneficial arrangement.
As a part of this approach, you should also welcome feedback from your tenants, in terms of how you can improve and operate better in the future. This may include notice periods before visits or arranging on-site work, while they may also have feedback on tradespeople whom you’ve hired to work on the property.
Similarly, this creates an opportunity for you to provide honest feedback to the tenant, especially in terms of the rules included in the tenancy agreement and how the rental payments are made.
