Landlords should partner with a good agent - Parkgate Estate Agents

Industry insights

Why landlords should partner with a good local letting agent

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As a local estate agent which deals heavily in lettings, it won’t be a surprise to know that we fully encourage tenants to use an agent when they are trying to find a place to live.

But it’s always good to have this conviction backed up. And the latest State of the Property Nation research from Zoopla has done exactly that.

It found an increasing proportion of renters are turning to letting agents, with the number using an agent to find a suitable home rising by 12% in the last year.

A significant uplift

The research revealed that almost half of tenants (48%) used a letting agent to source a home in 2018, a notable rise from the 36% recorded in Zoopla’s 2017 State of the Property Nation report.

Zoopla’s data found that 28% of lettings agents plan to increase their use of technology over the next 12 months, while 22% will do more marketing to grow the number of rental properties on their books.

Although there are challenges ahead – not just with the letting fees ban, but also the outcome of Brexit and concerns over rental supply – there are also opportunities. And the rising number of tenants turning to letting agents is a very positive move, with a good, reliable local agent able to fill a rental property with the right kind of tenants in a reasonable amount of time.

Demand remains strong

Another positive is the continued high demand for rental properties, with the private rented sector set to carry on its rapid growth in 2019. It now accounts for 20% of all households in England, according to the most recent English Housing Survey, making it the country’s second largest form of tenure.

In London, it is the largest tenure, with an increasing number of middle-aged and family renters joining the students and young professionals who have traditionally made up a large chunk of the capital’s renter population.

And this trend for renting homes shows no signs of dying down. Of the 6,000 people surveyed by Zoopla, some 62% said they expect to rent for at least the next three years. Of these, almost a quarter (23%) said they are likely to be renting indefinitely – whether through choice or necessity.

Assistance for landlords

Although demand remains strong and landlords can feel confident of securing good returns on their investment – particularly in high-demand, thriving areas with good transport links, strong local amenities and a busy events calendar – there are a number of challenges landlords face in the current environment.

While the flood of new regulation and legislation entering the market in recent years has calmed down a bit of late, there is still a lot that landlords need to be aware of. According to the Zoopla data, 39% of landlords say they struggle to keep up to speed with increased regulation, while 36% are concerned about how future legislation will impact on them.

This, again, is where a good, reliable letting agent earns their corn – taking the hassle and stress away from you, the landlord, by keeping on top of all new rules and regulations and putting you at ease throughout.

The biggest challenge for landlords, though, according to the findings, is sourcing suitable tenants (56%), closely followed by ensuring that tenants look after the property (55%) and making sure they pay their rent on time (47%).

Once more, however, these challenges can easily be overcome by partnering with the right letting agent – one with excellent knowledge of the local market and the ability to source suitable tenants.

A good agent will also manage your property effectively – ensuring that it’s being kept in a good state of repair by carrying out regular inspections and handling any repairs or maintenance tasks – and chase up tenants if rental payments are late.

Here at Parkgate Estates, we have more than 40 years’ experience of working in the Richmond, Sheen, Mortlake and Putney areas, which means we have the knowledge and expertise to help you get the most from your rental properties.

We can help you to create a stress-free tenancy while also maximising your returns on investment – the dream win-win scenario, in other words. We offer various services – including property management, rent collection and let only – and pride ourselves on our attention to detail, our reasonable fees and our ability to market your property in an effective, efficient manner.

You’ll have a dedicated property manager on hand during a tenancy, to reassure that you your homes are in safe hands. We also offer a full project management service, which means if you require a new bathroom, roof or kitchen we can manage this process for you from start to finish.

As the above research states, it’s more important than ever that landlords partner up with a letting agent to face head on the various challenges that are being posed.

With figures suggesting that awareness of legislation changes among landlords is quite low – only approximately a third are aware of some of the biggest regulatory changes of recent years – there is a need for letting agents to share their knowledge and educate landlords further about the legislation already in place and the new legislation coming into force in the future.

To find about more about how we can get your home let, and why a letting agent’s role in the rental process is so crucial, please get in touch with Parkgate Estates on 0208 940 2991.

If you’re thinking of letting your property and would like to know how much it could be worth, you can request a free and instant online valuation.

Emre OvacıkEmre Ovacık
08:38 01 Sep 23
Very responsive, informative and always kind people. We didn't have much time, but they helped us with creating some time in their agenda and squeezing us in. We rented our place just in time, thanks to them.
Branka ObradovicBranka Obradovic
12:21 22 Feb 23
Parkgate has been my agent of choice for a number of years now and has secured good tenants for my properties. They are hard working, respond in a timely manner and best of all are always friendly rather than aggressive or overbearing, which is the case with many of their competitors.
Jorge RodriguezJorge Rodriguez
15:01 02 Feb 23
Excellent service throughout.We rented a property that they manage for 4 years.Parkgate team is very professional and approachable. Way better than dealing with a big agency, they offer a more personal approach, always available and willing to solve any issues.From the tenancy agreement to handing the property back, it has been a real pleasure working with them.
Catherine BrownCatherine Brown
12:16 30 Aug 22
I have had an eight year relationship with Parkgate, in fact they originally sold my flat to me 12 years ago in Putney. Their service and professionalism is unrivalled. They managed the leasing of my flat from 2014 and assisted me to negotiate the successful sale just now in 2022. Chris has been there throughout with an open door and no request too trivial to assist. Klaudia negotiated my sale and worked with amazing tenacity throughout. I would not hesitate to recommend Parkgate to anyone in the Putney/Richmond area, they know their stuff.
Ali ChampkinsAli Champkins
10:16 31 Jan 22
We have had a wonderful experience with Parkgate and would highly recommend them. Chris was brilliant on the valuation - what we liked is he was totally honest about our chances of selling and gave us the positives and negatives about our property (such as facing a council estate!). Other agents tend to just gush over the good bits which is great, but actually not that helpful.The selling process was great - we were given good feedback from the viewings and got the price we wanted within about 8 weeks.We really have nothing but praise for Klaudia and Chris, it's been really enjoyable, easy and stress free and we will be recommending Parkgate to all our friends in the area and our building.***** Thank you! *****
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