Renting a flat via letting agent - help please?

[augustus]

I'm in the process of renting a flat via a letting agent (Gatekeeper in Swindon) as a tenant (as opposed to landlord). Having always rented privately from people I know in the past, I've never dealt with an agency and as such am not sure if what they're asking is reasonable or not... For a start, my credit check failed due to my not being registered on the electoral roll at my current address (I've always been registered at my mum's because I've moved around a lot since leaving home and I know she's always going to be there!) and because of an existing outstanding debt at my current address which was not in my name. So now, having paid £250 admin fee, I have to pay another £125 for my mum to be made a guarantor. She has had to complete all the same paperwork as me (including the tenancy agreement) and the agent is yet to get back to me about whether or not they will also need my mum's bank account details (I can't see why they would, given that it's clear from my salary that I can afford the place I'm moving in to). Anyway, I'm also concerned about their other charges:

End of Tenancy - £120+VAT
Renewal of Fixed Term - £75+VAT

Change of Tenancy Start Date - £55+VAT
Guarantor - £104.06+VAT
Fast Check In - £150+VAT
Short Tenancy - £250+VAT
Non Standing Order Rent - £25+VAT (per month)
Returning Overpayment (i.e. if I overpaid them) - £25+VAT
Adding or removing names from tenancy - £100+VAT
Cancelling or non payment of tenant insurance - £125+VAT
Late/Out of Hours/Aborted Check In/Property Inspection - £55+VAT
Landlord Permission Request (for things like allowing Sky to be connected) - £25+VAT
Call helpline for non emergency - £55+VAT
No fault found call out - £55+VAT
Failing to switch utilities back before vacating property - £37.50+VAT

Does this seem right? Obviously there are some things which will never apply to me, but it seems there are a lot of ways they can get extra cash out of me without me even doing anything!!

Any advice very gratefully received!

Thanks,

Sam

[lalla3]

Sadly this is fairly standard, which is why renting is typically higher than it should be, 75% of rent money covers the estate agent fees, you could rent it privately and avoid all the excess expenses

[freedom97]

As someone who has just left a flat I can tell you two things - 1) letting agents are some of the worst people you will ever meet, and 2) those charges look ridiculous.

We had no charge for ending the tenancy, we had no charge for renewing the fixed term, we didn't have a "fast check in" charge, we weren't charged for having a short tenancy, we weren't charged for permission requests, we weren't charged for calling the agents in 'non emergencies', we weren't charged if they came and found no fault, and we weren't charged for changing the utilities.

I can't comment on non standing order charges or returning overpayments, because we paid by standing order and never overpaid, and I can't comment on the guarantor payment because we didn't have one. What I would say is that it looks like they are taking the piss completely with the other charges, though.

[marlan43]

Fees vary depending on where in the country you are. IMHO these are extortionate.

Their actions regarding the need for guarantor are about right, an they will do a credit check on your mum because they need proof that she can afford what she is guaranteeing.

Unfortunately, although the fees are high, you have 2 choices - accept them or walk away. I would ask them how long a 'slow check in' will take (do they advertise their normal service as slow!), I would ask them how they define 'short tenancy', I would ask them to define 'emergency'.

Tip: At the end of your initial contract you don't have to have your contract renewed - the law gives you a monthly contract (section 5, 1988 Housing Act). Why pay them £90 for re-printing your contract with different dates?

Tip 2: Once your tenancy begins, ask in writing for the landlords contact details (they have to give them) then you can write your own permission requests and save £30 a time.

I don't believe they can force you to take their own insurance - check with the CAB. They also can't stop you changing utility supplier but whether they can charge you ????

[mace]

I was a landlord for years and while some of these make sense, many of them are news to me.

the non-payment and time-wasting charges are reasonable enough, but I never heard of them charging you to contact the landlord. the landlord will be paying them a monthly fee too and this should cover picking up the phone once in a while.

you should have tenant insurance - but don't you arrange it? And to charge you for a helpline call - what???

the credit check will fail if you are not on the electoral roll - but shouldn't for someone else's debt.

if you want the flat and this is who the landlord uses, you'll have to suck it up -but it all seems a bit much.

[ern]

I wouldn't touch them with a bargepole! There one and only priority is to screw you for every penny they can get. When something goes wrong, they won't want to know, unless there's a fat fee at the end of it.

They're thieving scumbags of the highest order, don't encourage them, try and find somewhere else.

[drystan]

I wouldn't touch them with a bargepole! There one and only priority is to screw you for every penny they can get. When something goes wrong, they won't want to know, unless there's a fat fee at the end of it.

They're thieving scumbags of the highest order, don't encourage them, try and find somewhere else.