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James - I hope your agents are regulated by one of the following: ARLA, RICS, or NAEA as these bodies have bonded client accounts - that is if the agent uses the clients monies and goes bust you can claim through the governing body.
What I would do is get the money from the agent 1st and if none regulated sack them in favour of a regulated agent.
As an ex-agent I can tell you that BACS takes 2-3 working days to reach your account. The fact they pay on the 1st and probably sit on the money for many days only makes this situation worse.
As a general rule (not saying in this case James) cheap agents do not mean good agents. Ensure the agent is regulated otherwise they can run off with YOUR MONEY and you have no recourse through anyone but them - if you can find them when the office shuts down!!
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If still don't pay you could camp outside their office with a sandwich board telling the world how they are stealing yout money until you get a bankers draft from them!
In Manchester one none-regulated agent a few years ago used £ millions of the client account and one desperate landlord who was owed thousands chained himself to their front door!! Needless to say it got in the papers.
The agent suddenly changed their name to something else but are still not regulated! Crazy world!! |
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Sack them and find another agent.
Can you not do the job for yourself? Why pay these thieving money grabbing bastards?
Sack them and let them know exactley why you are doing so. |
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Hi James,
I had the same problem with my agent in Scotland, absolute bloody liberty holding onto MY rent for weeks until THEY decided to do the statemments at the end of the month and yes, it did take about 5 - 7 more days after that for the money to reach my account.
I asked them about BACS and the like and they claimed they didnt know how to do it....yeah right!!
What is the name of your agent James?
Simon |
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To everybody,
I have just changed agents and found out that a long running tenant who was not intending on leaving decided to leave the very day I swapped agents.
I later found out that this tenant was told by my old agent that I was to increase the rent from £300 - £400 per month...which was an absolute lie.
My question is this, am I able to take this further, I believe this is illegal and that letting agent shouldnt be able to do this again?
The funny thing is, the new agent I am with now, is 1000% better than the last one and I laughed when I heard what they had done....just shows you...some letting agents can get really bitter and twisted!
Any thoughts most welcome.
Cheers
Simon |
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James,Can you do the job yourself?
If you have good tenant he can pay you direct perhaps? |
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"I asked them about BACS and the like and they claimed they didnt know how to do it....yeah right!! "
Anyone with a computer, internet connection and an online account can do it. Hope you got rid of them very quickly. |
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"I have a very good tenant in there, that pays on time every time, and is planning on staying there a long long time, so it would be stupid to lose him."
Contact the tenant directly, just before the tenancy runs out and take them on directly or through another agent. |
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Yeah, I think they were just playing dumb. I paid them when I had work done by BACS, so there shouldnt have been a problem for them.
I suspect they were using the rent as wages or to keep them afloat in the business.
Yes, they are now rid, but actually funny enough, they terminated my contract...they said I crossed a line!?!?!
Funny that the very email after I requested the keys back for 1 of my properties which had eneded its tenancy with a tenant, was the email I received to terminate....hmmmm!
They realised I was peeved off with them, from the hundreds of emails I was having to send to them, so decided to release me....wooohooo! I couldnt believe it....result!
Now I am with another agent in Scotland and they have been excellent so far. |
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Yeah, I think its to do with the data protection act, well, thats what the agent says.
Perhaps if you were to send a letter to the tenant at the address to arrange a meeting. Then maybe you could speak to the tenant and tell them you wish to deal with this without the agent.
Worth a try. Then when you do give notice to your agent, the tenant will just stay where they are. |
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That last point by Simon is worth its weight in gold (or rent perhaps!). Thats what I would do... Make contact with the tenant directly, afterall you know the full address, and indeed should have a copy of the tenancy agrerment to show them: if not get one... All you need to do is be able to prove who you are...
Contact the tenant then organise a direct link between yourselves: you might want to make a gesture of reducing the rent by a couple of quid to help oil the wheels... No real loss, and the tenant is yours... Sack the agent.
Regards, Malik |
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James, what does it say in your contract about getting rid of them? |
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James - there are two things here which you initial you must not confuse. One is the contract between you and the agent commonly known as the agency agreement and the other is the tenancy agreement usually a contract between you the landlord and the tenant. Usually there is no contract between agent and tenant and therefore the lease should not be affected if you sack the agent.
What I would do here is read the agency agreement between you and the agent with a fine tooth comb particularly the section about paying you. If they have breached their agreement with you I suggest you sack them on the basis of their breach of contract without penalty to you.
If they have no timescale in their agency agreement about paying clients you may not have a leg to stand on.
Like most things in life it is down to the small print. |
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Name and shame the thieving b@stards. |
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James,
This happened to me when I let my agent go.
They tried the "let only" fee scam....I simply told them that as I had been paying them their management fees for the last 2 years, there would be no reason for them to charge another fee on top of the one I paid initially for a fully managed service and that they had made quite simply enough from that.
Tell them you do not wish to use them on a "let only" contract either and that you wish to find tenants & manage the flat yourself.
See how you go with that. It worked for me anyway, see no reason why it shouldnt for you.
Cheers |
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Sorry Rupert it had been a very long day! |
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No problem Simon - have plenty of those too! |
