danielrv – Page 3

October 22, 2013

How to find landlords for your letting agency

“How to find Landlords?” is perhaps the most frequently asked question for all Letting Agents. It is such an important question because new Landlords/property listings are vital to the Letting Agent surviving in today’s competitive market as well as ensuring the business grows.

The answer to this question is not just one simple solution; there are many tools which the Letting Agent can use to find new landlords. Some of these tools have been around for many years and very popular while other tools such as SEO marketing, while in existence for some time have not been embraced by the masses yet within the lettings industry. Today’s Letting Agent needs to embrace all of the tools at his/her disposal; otherwise opportunities for new business are unnecessarily missed. Give yourself the best chance – don’t limit yourself or your business by not using the following tools:

How to find landlords using Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

With the explosion of Smartphone use and better broadband connection speed over the last couple of years, we are increasingly connected to the internet. With Google being the no 1 search engine to find local based letting agents you need to be found under the keywords your landlords are typing. When thinking about how to find landlords, you must think about how landlords find you in searches.

For instance, if you were based in Manchester and looking to be found under ‘Letting agents Manchester’ you would need do some search engine optimisation on your website for this term in order to direct traffic to your site. This is a very competitive term with 720 searches per month for “Letting agents Manchester”. To put things in perspective for your business; if just 10 of these landlords found your website and only 5 of these 10 landlords signed up for your management fee this could result in over £6000+ in revenue per annum from fees. Optimising is worth the effort.

Adding your business to Google Places for business will help your search engine ranking too! To find out how, click here.

How to find landlords using pay per click advertising on Google

Google adwords allows you to advertise your Letting/ Estate Agency directly to landlords who are looking for Letting Agents using specific search terms. The reason Google is so successful for business is because the user who is typing is usually very close to the point of sale. When a landlord types in a long tail keyword term they are usually really specific about what they are looking for. An example of a long tail keyword is ‘letting agents Birmingham’.

When you are setting up your pay per click Google campaign you should research the keywords you would like to be found under. Google will request you join Google adwords which is free but you may need to sync a credit card with the account. You can then use the google keyword tool planner to see which keywords are being currently used in searches and you can then tailor your campaign around these keywords.

how to find landlords using seo — What Google keyword planner looks like

How to find landlords using Referrals

Receiving a referral from your existing landlords should be an easy process if you have proven your excellent Letting or Management Service to your Landlord. Build on this good working relationship with your landlord by picking up the phone or emailing and checking in with your landlords – don’t be afraid to ask if there are other landlords they may know who would be interested in the same service. Most landlords will know at least one landlord or friend who has a rental property; if you can secure their contact number and reference back the landlord, that’s brilliant.

Offer a deduction on future Lettings or Property Management for landlords who refer you on to other landlords, this is a great way to keep existing business with your current landlords and leverage them for a referral to your existing database. Make sure any deal is in writing and last for a specified period i.e. 1% reductions on management fees for a 12 month term.

How to find landlords using Local Free Newspapers

Local Free Newspapers have a wide readership and are a great way to reach Landlords in your chosen area. These have proven successful for local letting agents for many years but their impact may be on the wane. The Letting Agent can advertise in these papers by

Firstly paying for a banner advertisement.
Secondly the Letting Agent can list the current property listings in the newspaper, although uploading your property to property portals may have replaced this revenue stream for the local newspapers.
Finally the Letting Agent could negotiate with the local paper to do an editorial/advertising feature on the Letting Agency itself.

An editorial gives you the opportunity to showcase the services on offer and also presents the Letting Agency staff to the Landlord, which is the first step in building a relationship with potential Landlords.

How to find landlords using leaflet drop in recent or newly built development

Leaflet drops in new or recent developments can be effective in sourcing new Landlords. With new developments come new Landlords and opportunities for new business. The letting potential for new developments is normally quite good as the properties are usually high spec and will rent quickly to quality tenants. However the cost associated with the leaflet drop should be measured against the return on investment. The leaflet itself be attractive and stimulate interest in the reader. It should contain at least the following:

the company logo & contact details
a picture of the staff or letting agent
outline of services offered
Landlord testimonials
Motivation to take immediate action by highlighting limited special offers

How to find landlords using Property Exhibitions and Work Abroad Exhibitions

Property exhibitions are really relevant to Letting Agents when trying to find new Landlords as the majority of the attendees are property investors keeping up with latest legislation or networking with other property professionals. There are a couple of these show held around the UK each year and would definitely be worth visiting or exhibiting if held close to your market.

Work Abroad Exhibitions although not directly related to the property rental industry are also a good place to engage with potential landlords. With the economic downturn and migration more popular than ever, a portion of the people emigrating are property owners and will have to rent out their UK property whilst they are abroad. These new landlords will not only need a letting service but also a management service. This is another great opportunity for you, the Letting Agent to secure new letting and management clients.

October 10, 2013

Rental Property Inventory – Compile inspection reports & save hours of time

Why is it important to carry out Rental Property Inventories?

When managing a rental property, it is imperative to conduct a full condition property inventory report on the property rather than just writing down the items in the property. Previously, letting agents would conduct inventory reports at the property with a note pad; writing down each item in the room, itemising each item and taking photographs of the condition of the property.

Modern technology has allowed letting agents, landlords and inventory clerks to do things quicker and more efficiently, helping reduce time, costs and potential disputes.

Most letting agents’ letting & management services will include a check-in rental property inventory report and optional check-out property inventory report (depending on the service which the Landlord opts for – an interim inspection may be required).

3 common solutions used by Letting agents and landlords when conducting the rental property inventory reports:

1. The mighty pen and paper and photo taking

Before the digital age and probably still common now, is the use of pen and paper and a trusted camera. Some letting agents will still use this method to conduct their property inventories, mainly because they are not aware of a better way of conducting a property inventory report or because they are stuck in their ways.

The agent or landlord will go through each room and inventory of items, writing down the quantity and condition of the item while taking some photographs. Armed with all this data it is back to the office to compile the report which is something a letting agent won’t be looking forward to. Out comes Microsoft word to start re-writing the property inventory report for the second time, resizing images and compiling the property inventory report.

Time is money and re-writing property inventory reports takes too long. The fact is, the pen and paper method takes too much time and taking a photograph with a camera, resizing the images and creating your own report will take even more time – up to three hours in some cases. I am sure there is better ways to utilise your time if you are a letting agent or landlord!

90 minutes compiling the report with pen, paper and camera
90 minutes preparing the final property inventory report when you return to the office

2. Hiring a professional Inventory Clerk or Company to compile the rental inventory report

Inventory clerks are professional companies or individuals who conduct an independent inventory report on a rental property. Some of these companies are members of the Association of Independent Inventory Clerks and adhere to the member’s Code of Practice. The clerk will conduct a thorough check of the property items and condition producing a detailed report of the exact condition of each item, rooms and outside spaces.

Inventory Clerk – How much does it cost?

Like most industries, you can find a more cost effective service provider and the inventory clerk or company is no different. A quick search on www.google.co.uk for a property inventory clerk will yield hundreds of results for different services and associations. With prices starting from £50 for check in’s and up to £150.00 for check outs (depending on the size of the property).

Fee price from http://www.smart-inventory.co.uk/fee-rates/

Inventory & Check In	Unfurnished	Furnished
One Bedroom	£90	£100
Two Bedrooms	£100	£110
Three Bedrooms	£110	£120
Four Bedrooms	£120	£130
Five Bedrooms	£130	£140

Check Out	Unfurnished	Furnished
One Bedroom	£70	£90
Two Bedrooms	£80	£90
Three Bedrooms	£90	£100
Four Bedrooms	£100	£110
Five Bedrooms	£110	£120

3. Digital Inventory software

Using rental inventory software from your Smartphone or Tablet

With the emergence of the Smartphone and tablet there is a new way for Letting Agents and Landlords to conduct their Rental Property Inventory Reports. With most people now owning a Smartphone anyone with access to a credit card and the right lettings knowledge and experience can produce an inventory report.

A quick search on the app store will bring up 7 results for ‘inventory rental’. Our own easy to use Inventory app ‘Rentview Inventory’ is available for download for free from the App store.

Once downloaded to your Smartphone or tablet, you quickly sync the Rentview Inventory app to your Rentview account. Any data collected will be published to your online account for editing.

Users start collecting data by following the simple steps below:

Inputting the rental property address
Select a pre-defined template such as a one bed template
Select the rooms of the property + outside spaces
Take photos of the Floors, Ceilings, Walls, Windows, Furniture, Inventory
Use the voice notes to dictate the condition of the property. (notes transcribed 4hrs later)
Click ‘done’ and your report will be ready shortly fully branded to your agency

check out the video demonstration on the Rentview youtube channel

The most important benefit of using the Rentview Inventory app is the time saved conducting and generating the report with an average of two man hours shaved off the old process. The cost benefits versus employing an inventory clerk are plain to see below.

Admin time for a rental portfolio of 50 properties for a start-up letting agency

Comparison of your time and money

Inventory	Method	Time	£
DIY	Pen & paper	3 Hours	0
Outsourced	Inventory clerk	0	50 to 150
DIY	Digital inventory app	45 mins	£5

Thankfully for both Landlords and Tenants as well as Industry Professionals, there is code of practice in place for all licensed estate agents who are responsible for ensuring any inventory inspection is carried (be it check-in, interim and final check-out). I have listed below a summary of the code relating to inspection inventory reports. The provision in the code of practice protects both Landlord and Tenant and helps avoid any potential dispute in the future.

Code of practice for licensed estate agents from the NAEA

Drawing attention to the benefits of a properly prepared Property Inventory

2h: You must draw to a potential client’s attention the necessity and benefit of a properly prepared full Inventory/Schedule of Condition.

You must outline to the applicant any potential fee or charges

6f: Prior to an applicant’s offer being formally accepted, you must set out in written form any significant pre-conditions for the letting, including the circumstances in which the applicant may have any potential financial liability for fees, charges or penalties relevant to:

– The processing of his/her application to rent the property

– His/Her withdrawal, at any stage of their application for the tenancy or the clients rejection of it

– The initial settling up of the tenancy including Inventory / Check in costs

– Any ongoing or future liability for fees or charges payable to you for the applicant to extend, renew or terminate the proposed tenancy including Inventory Check-out costs

Make sure that you have a fully detailed and up to date property inventory report

8c: You should take care, upon appropriate instructions from the client, that – at the start of a tenancy – any Inventory/Schedule of Condition prepared for the client by you, or an appointed sub-contractor, is sufficiently detailed and up to date to allow it to be used as a fair measure at the end of the tenancy

You must give the tenants enough time to read and comment on the check-in report

8j: The tenant must be given sufficient time to read and comment upon the check-in report and inventory. The tenant should also be asked to sign a copy, which you should hold on file and the tenant must be given a copy to retain. You must make it clear to the tenant that their failure to sign and return the inventory can be taken as their agreement that it is accurate.

Property inventory check out report or end of tenancy reports

12b: The checkout should be done thoroughly and a sufficiently detailed report or summary prepared with specific reference back to the Inventory/Schedule of Condition prepared prior to the tenancy.

Click here to check out the full NAEA code of practice

How do you create your property inventories?

October 8, 2013

Television Licence

Your Television Licence – what do you have to pay?

A television licence is a certificate that states that you have paid the appropriate fee to the government and contributed to the cost of public service broadcasting in Ireland. Your television licence is issued for 1 year in general. If you have a Television you must have a TV Licence. A TV licence In the Republic of Ireland costs €160.

New Television Licence Regulation

However, what if you don’t watch television? Well a new regulation will mean that you have to pay a television license whether you watch it or not. According to the Independent, “Nobody will be able to refuse to pay the new broadcasting charge on the basis they don’t have a TV as it will be legally binding on all homes regardless of what devices they own.”

The Government is hoping to have this regulation fully in place by January 1, 2015. The cost increase to €160 is to combat the current 18% evasion rate. The increase in laptops, tablets and PCs is likely to be a cause of people “not watching” television, as they are no longer watching on a television set. However,the definition of a Television set is (Section 140 (1) of the Broadcasting Act 2009):

“television set” means any electronic apparatus capable of receiving and exhibiting television broadcasting services broadcast for general reception ( whether or not its use for that purpose is dependent on the use of anything else in conjunction with it ) and any software or assembly comprising such apparatus and other apparatus.

Despite the digital switchover in 2012, analogue televisions are still required to have a television licence too. All premises at which a TV is located require a TV Licence regardless of its use, therefore businesses need television licences too, even if they only use their television for training purposes.

Do you need a television licence for each television you have?

If the equipment capable of receiving a television signal (for example a television set or a laptop) is held in a household (an apartment, flat or a house), then one television licence will cover multiple pieces of equipment. If you have a television set in your kitchen and another in your living room, one television licence covers both sets.

Tenants, Landlords and Letting Agents should take note however that if the building in which the equipment is kept is sub-divided into flats or apartments or other separate living quarters, then a separate television licence must be held for each of these quarters. This means that an individual licence must be held for each separate flat, apartment or other dwelling.

Owners of holiday homes also need separate television licenses for each household.

Who should pay the television licence in rented accommodation?

This is something the landlord and tenant must work out between them. If you are a tenant living in rented accommodation with a television you must have a television licence. This applies irrespective of who owns the television (whether the television belongs to you or the landlord). The law states that anyone resident on a premises in possession of a television set must have a television licence. Most good residential lettings agreements will stipulate who is responsible for the TV licence

According to An Post:

You can buy a television licence in the following ways:

Pay online using Laser, Mastercard or Visa
Cash/cheque at any Post Office
Direct Debit
LoCall 1890 228528 using Laser, MasterCard or Visa
Post a cheque (crossed and made payable to An Post) to your local TV Licence Records’ Office
TV licence stamps available at your local Post Office (this is a good way to avoid being stuck with paying the full €160 at once)
Cash at selected Postpoint outlets

To renew your television licence at the post Office, you’ll need your current TV reference number, which is on the reminder notice sent from the TV Licence section. To avoid delays in Post Offices it is important to bring your reminder notice with you as the notice is scanned at the counter.

Some other things to note:

You should receive your TV Licence within 10 working days.
If you purchase a TV Licence through the call centre, it will be posted to your address 10 to 14 days after the licence was purchased.
A new 17 digit TV reference number and PIN are generated each year and supplied with your TV Licence reminder notice.
First reminders are posted 2 weeks before your TV Licence expires.
If you are moving house, it is possible and highly advisable to have your television licence transferred to your new address. Simply bring your existing licence to your nearest Post Office, together with evidence of your new address (that is a household utility bill or a bank statement). Staff in your Post Office will then amend the details on your record and your licence will be updated and re-issued to you. This service is free.
If you are aged over 66, are receiving a social welfare pension and nobody in your household is employed or receiving Unemployment Benefit or Unemployment Assistance, you may be entitled to a free television licence.
If you believe you may be entitled to a free television licence, you should contact the Department of Social Protection at LoCall 1890500000 to get an application form for the Households Benefits Package. Fill this in and return it to the Department, Free Schemes Section, Pension Services Office, Freepost, College Rd., Sligo. They will issue the free licence to you.
“An inspector is sent to premises if a licence is more than six weeks out of date, if a new record is added to the database which doesn’t have a current licence, and where there are unlicensed addresses.”” (journal.ie)
Be sure to print off a receipt of payment if you have paid your Television Licence fee online to show to the TV Licence inspector if you have an inspection prior to receiving your TV Licence in the post. You will also receive an email with a text version of the Transaction Summary (if you have supplied an email address).

People give many reasons for not paying their licence, but they won’t work. And the repercussions can be serious; over 272 people were jailed for not paying the charge in 2012. Some excuses are downright ridiculous

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6d5bTZ1Cts

So don’t get caught out!

If you have a query you should contact your local TV Licence Records Office.

Further information can be found at An Post and Citizens Information.

September 26, 2013

Branding

What is branding or brand consolidation? Well it’s an important part of marketing your agency or business so that potential customers identify with and recognise you as a viable option when they need to use your service. Here are some key points to remember about branding your agency:

Logo and tagline

Superman made good use of his logo – make sure people think of you when they see your logo!

It is a good idea to have a solid logo and tagline or strapline, which will help to tie your brand together and tell the consumer what you do in a clear, concise manner. For example, in advertising, we use ‘Rentview- Letting Agency Software‘ because that’s who we are and what we do! Our logo is an open book because our product is all about transparency. It is definitely worth investing in a quality logo design that tells people something about your company values and what you do.

You may want to include your key mission statement or tagline within a logo… but try to keep it relevant.’Always Coca-Cola’ or ‘Share a Coke’ be a recognisable tagline for a brand, but what does it mean? They’re Coca-Cola, they’re established enough to do as they please, for your own business branding, you’re better off being specific. Your tagline needs to make sense, if you are including one. Clarity beats jargon, remember!

Beware though, taglines can sound cheesy to the modern consumer. but if you’re prepared for that and you are clever about your choice of words, they can work really well.

Trust matters

For the letting and property management industry, the core selling point of your business tends to come back to trust. Landlords need to know that you are a responsible agent and that you care about their business beyond their money.

If you can somehow leverage that into your branding, that will be very positive for your marketing in general. Every time some (including potential customers) sees your logo, they will (hopefully) think positively about it, or at least once you have brand consolidation across all advertising, media etc., they will recognise you.

Brand recognition

Brand recognition is another important part of marketing and branding any business, including property. Think about how you can make your brand stand out, do you use the same colours consistently, for example? Particularly in any industry where a service is being provided; in this case lettings and property management, word of mouth or testimonials are the #1 factor that consumers take into account when spending. Therefore, if someone is looking for a particular service and they ask around about who is best to provide it, you want yours to be the brand people recall, recognise and even more, the one they recommend.

The one way to achieve recommendations is to provide good customer service and value to your clients. If you have high standards when running your agency, ask for customer feedback and listen to suggestions, this shouldn’t be a problem.

This is why branding your agency is so important – if you are recognised, you’ll have more authority. No matter if you are an independent agent or large franchise, having a recognisable brand name and logo is key for your marketing strategy to succeed.

September 20, 2013

Some tips on managing a property

How to manage a property effectively

It is no secret in the Letting industry that property management is a staple source of reliable income – it is the “bread and butter” for agencies when lettings are slow. Although it is guaranteed income, it is also guaranteed hard work – but it is worth it.

Managing a property can be a time-consuming job depending on a few factors which may or may not be beyond your control. If you are a letting agent trusted with the responsibility of managing a property, it is vital that you do your job properly to ensure this steady stream of income and of course to make sure you get your renewal/re-let fee.

I have briefly outlined below the aspects of property management:

Managing rent payments

Rental payments should be monitored meticulously, any delay in receipt of rent should be acted on immediately, while keeping the landlord updated at all times. Failure to deal with rent arrears effectively makes your landlord lose confidence in your management service. For you as an agent, if the issue of rent arrears is not resolved from the get-go, it can lead to a pattern of late payments, which are a headache for you as the letting agent, having to regularly chase payments. For advice on this, check out our recent blog on How to collect rent

The most efficient method of managing rental payments is through standing order or direct debit. In my experience, if the standing order or direct debit is not set up initially, it leads to future problems and extra work/costs for the Letting Agency such as:

Rent is not paid on time and the agent has to spend time chasing up the late payment.
The rent is dropped into the agency office in cash, meaning the agency incurs cash lodgement bank charges, not to mention the additional time spent having to accept these cash payments and travelling to the bank to lodge them.
Unreferenced bank lodgements – as Standing Orders and Direct Debits are always set up with a reference, it is easy to reconcile the rental payment to your landlord’s property. If the rent is lodged to your client rent account with no reference attached, it can mean an admin nightmare for your office administrator, as well creating a delay in paying your landlord. A delayed payment means an unhappy landlord!
Disruption of the rent payment ecosystem; Tenant pays agency, agency collects fees and pays landlords rent minus manage fee.

Managing maintenance requests – down to the nitty gritty!

Being organised is the key to a successful and stress-free day in the life of a property manager. Maintenance covers many areas, from priority tasks such as leaks and broken showers etc. to non-emergency tasks such as changing a light bulb (yes its true!) or replacement of furniture.

To manage the various maintenance requests efficiently it is essential for the property manager to have a good Task Manager System in place. A Task Manager System that allows you to track your tasks to completion and alerts you to overdue tasks and also allows you to assign different tasks to property managers within your office is the most important tool in maintenance. Swift action and the correct solutions to property maintenance tasks ensures both landlord and tenant remain happy.

Managing your landlord’s accounts

If you are working in a mid-size or large letting agency, then dealing with the client’s accounts may not be your forté as most independent or franchise operators will have full time administrators to deal with the accounts side of things. Unfortunately for a start-up letting agency or a one-man-band property manager, this will mean many hats need to be worn and the main one from the operation of your agency is your client’s accounts.

Cash handling of rents and deposits

Having an effective method of collecting rents and deposit is extremely important as I mentioned above, standing order or direct debit as the most commonly used methods. Your agency may have a preference for a particular Tenancy deposit scheme when dealing with the tenants’ deposits and you can choose from 4 UK tenancy deposit schemes, Deposit protection , My deposits , Tenancy deposit scheme and the Capita TDP scheme with some of them offering a custodial or insurance-based scheme.

Automating your agency fees

Making sure your letting fees, managing fees or renewals fees are paid on time is the life blood of your agency and this is why it is important to manage the rental payments efficiently. When you have a good system in place automating your management fee deductions and reminders for renewals then is of the utmost importance for your cash flow.

Staying on top of your trades invoices

When managing a rental property, you must be prepared for all the pending property management issues which will happen. With this comes the invoice deductions for your tradespersons and being organised will save you stress in the long term.

I have seen first hand tradespersons’ invoices getting mislaid in the office, not paid by landlords because of discrepancies in their work or big delays because landlords didn’t receive them in time. What will happen in the long run in this case is that your trusted tradespersons will become disgruntled with your ability to pay them if you have a policy of only paying once funds are in.

To manage this effectively, request your tradespersons to email you a scanned or PDF copy of the invoice so you can send a copy immediately to your landlords or upload them to be deducted from the rent. Make sure that it is in your agreement with your landlord to make the necessary deductions, as some agencies have a limit on what work they can get done on properties without consulting their landlords.

Apartment management service charge

If you are managing a property for a landlord and the property is under the control of the property management company then you may be required to deduct the landlord’s service charge from the monthly rent. Keeping track of these deductions and allocating them to the landlord’s statement can be a time-consuming process and you should look to automating these deductions to save you time.

Non-resident landlord tax deductions

When you are a managing a property for a non-resident landlord, it is compulsory that you deduct the correct tax at the time of receiving the rent, not when paying it to the HMCR. For more information, check out this blog on the non-resident landlord scheme for the UK.

Regular property inspections:

It is good practice when managing a property that you inform the tenants of any pending inspections scheduled on the property. Most letting agencies will have a policy of doing 2-3 regular inspections on the property if the lease term is 12 months. If you highlight the inspection policy to your tenants when they sign the lease, then you have a greater chance the tenants won’t leave the property untidy.

September 18, 2013

Your Property blog – a guide to blogging for the property industry

Property blog

BLOGGING GUIDE

For the purposes of connecting with your customers, increasing consumer trust and brand awareness, and also in order to increase your search ranking on Google and other search engines, having a property blog is important to explain about your services and industry to your customers.

How SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) works in terms of property blogging

(or any kind of blogging, for that matter!)

Google takes a variety of factors and data into account when determining how to rank your website; having fresh, good quality content that is updated regularly is one of the most important elements of this.

Some people might be sceptical about writing a property blog, however it can have many benefits for your agency, including:

connecting with your customers
making your agency brand visible
sharing your knowledge
improving your writing skills
enabling you to update clients on what you’re working on
networking with others in the industry

All of this will help you to earn money!

If your stuck on ideas of what to write about in your blog take a look at this – 10 blog topics for your letting agency.

Some tips on writing property blogs

Keep it relevant and short: Ensure you’re writing about what your customers want to know. Note that reading on a screen isn’t as enjoyable as reading on paper, so avoid really long pieces. 1,000 words is a good length to aim for; short pieces of 300 words or so would be perfectly acceptable (and achievable!)
Use bullet points: Bulleted lists are a good way to display the main points of your post.
Keep paragraphs short: due to having to scroll a lot when reading on a screen, paragraphs tend to be shorter so a whole thought can fit in a browser window.
Highlight important points: Online readers tend to skim through pieces, so use bold type for key points so that your readers can easily find the important parts.

Linking

Linking to other sites is also a feature of blogging. Blogs take advantage of the ability to link to other work, either to offer up references for example, if writing about letting agency news, there might be a relevant article on Letting Agent Today so you could embed the link either in anchor text such as ‘relevant article‘ or ‘for a relevant article, click here‘.

Alternatively, you can post the full URL (what what see in your task bar – for this post it should be https://rentview.co/blog/property-blog-guide) but this is sometimes a bit overwhelming on the eye, to use the example above that would look like this:

see this relevant article; http://www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk/news_features/Rightmove-and-Zoopla-gear-up-for-November-deadline-on-agents-fees

So a little overwhelming, definitely, plus it’s generally considered a little outdated to post full URLs although it can be useful if send plain-text emails for example.

Here’s a quick video guide to hyperlinking in wordpress, the principle is basically the same for all hyperlinking and icon stays the same across platforms and Microsoft Word etc.

You can have internal links , which are links to previous blog posts and external links, which are links to an outside web page. Links can also be used to continue conversations started elsewhere, such as a link to a post on another blog which you are writing a response to.

Creating content

There are many blogs on the Internet, but only a small number of them are truly active. Luckily within the property industry this means you’ll have a better shot at doing well and getting your blogs read and shared – which will be beneficial for your business ultimately. There is a great payoff for a little work. Some blogs don’t survive because people are ‘too busy’ to keep them going, they run out of things to say, or even worse, they feel like they are talking into a void.

Tips to help you maintain your property blog :

Quality content writing – Most importantly you have to write quality content. Who will read your site if you’re writing poorly, or if it’s boring? No one! No one will publish your guest posts, and no one give you backlinks. You’ll be unmotivated to write, because it will feel as though no one is reading what you write, and because you won’t be happy with the quality of the work. This is a recipe for frustration. Remember, you have the knowledge simply from working in the industry, so develop your voice.
Get your blog out there – Let people know you have a blog. Put the URL on your business cards, add it to your email signatures, put it in your profile on social networking sites, include it when you post to forums, and so on.
Schedule for posting- When you begin writing your property blog, commit to posting regularly, be it once a week, or once every two weeks, and make some time in your schedule to do that. When you start out it’s okay to have a low posting rate — if you find you have enough time to post more, it will be a pleasant surprise for your readers (as opposed to the disappointment of readers used to seeing you post every day when you start posting every two weeks).
Brainstorm post ideas – Sit down with a notebook and write out 100 (or whatever you can — but set the bar high) topics you could write about. Even better, create 100 titles of forthcoming posts. You can even go another step and write quick outlines of how the post might look. When you are stuck for something to write about, pull out your notebook and write one from your list.
Stay ahead of schedule – Build up a backlog of three or more posts by writing posts before they’re due to go out. This can be difficult if you’re stuck for time, however it will give you a cushion in case you find yourself stuck for a topic down the road, and you can also use the post scheduling feature included in WordPress.com other blogging platforms such as Blogger to set up posts for the future if you are going to take a break. In wordpress you simply select ‘schedule’ when you’re going to publish a post.
Link to other blogs – When other bloggers see you’ve linked to them, they’ll check you out — and may link back to return the favour. If they link to you, say thanks, courtesy goes a long way.
Network – Comment on other people’s blogs and be active within the blogging community in your niché. People will see your comments and clock the link to find out more about you. Plus, you’ll make friends in your area of interest.
Write a guest post: Check your favourite property-related blogs and check if there is any information about contributing — if you can’t find anything, email the blogger and ask if you can write a guest post for them. This is where networking is important and commenting on blogs matters.

Remember blogging helps people to put a human face on your company and this is important, as trust is a key factor in whether or not someone will hire you to let or manage their property. You or your company will be researched on the Web, and if the searchers don’t find your site, they’ll find what others have said about you — or nothing at all. It’s much better to have autonomy and take control of your online footprint, and a property blog is an easy and cheap way to get started.

So what’s stopping you?

Let us know how you are managing and if you have questions, ask away!

September 11, 2013

Non-resident landlord scheme UK

The Non-resident landlord scheme in the UK

The Non-resident Landlord Scheme is something you’ll need to be aware of if you are dealing with non-resident landlord accounts in the UK. There is great potential for letting agents to increase their portfolio with non-resident landlords, however a working knowledge of the legalities is needed. Below is a quick summary of some of the key points about this scheme.

What is the non-resident landlord scheme?

A simple definition:

According to Revenue and Customs in the UK, “The Non-resident Landlord (NRL) Scheme is a scheme for taxing the UK rental income of persons whose ‘usual place of abode’ is outside the UK”

A more detailed definition:

According to Revenue and Customs in the UK: “The Non-Resident Landlord’s (NRL) Scheme is a scheme for taxing the UK rental income of non-resident landlords. The scheme requires UK letting agents to deduct basic rate tax from any rent they collect for non-resident landlords. When working out the amount to tax, the letting agent can take off deductible expenses. Letting agents and/or tenants don’t have to deduct tax if HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) tells them not to. HMRC will tell an agent/tenant not to deduct tax if non-resident landlords have successfully applied for approval to receive rents with no tax deducted. But even though the rent may be paid with no tax deducted, it remains liable to UK tax. So non-resident landlords must include it in any tax return HMRC sends them.”

Letting agent’s obligations regarding the non-resident landlord scheme

“Letting agents of a non-resident landlord must:

• deduct tax from the landlord’s UK rental income; and

• pay the tax to HMRC’s Accounts Office, Shipley.”

Further details

Revenue and Customs provide a guide to the scheme. Guide notes can be found here. Key points from the guide are to:

Deduct tax at the basic rate (% for 2013) from the rent, after first taking off any deductible expenses.
Calculate the tax at the time you receive the rent, not when you pay it to the landlord.
Pay the tax to the Inland Revenue’s Accounts Office at Cumbernauld using a form NRLQ within 30 days of the end of the quarter it relates to. The quarters end on 30 June, 30 September, 31 December and 31 March.

Letting agents must include the following details on the return form:

• the total amount of tax due in respect of all their non-resident landlords for that quarter; or

• where there is no tax due in the quarter but the letting agent is due a repayment, the amount of the repayment claimed. Also “Letting agents who have to operate the NRL Scheme must register with HMRC PT International within 30 days of the date on which they are first required to operate the scheme.”

Letting agents’ obligations

Letting agents who have to operate the Non-resident Landlords (NRL) Scheme must:

• register with PTI;

• account quarterly for any tax to HMRC Accounts Office, Shipley;

• complete an annual information return;

• where they are required to account for tax, provide their non-resident landlords with a certificate each year; and

• keep sufficient records to show that they have complied with the requirements of the Scheme.”

Also of note

Applications by non-resident landlords for approval to receive rent with no tax deducted “Non-resident landlords who are eligible can apply at any time for approval to receive their UK rental income with no tax deducted. This includes applying before they have left the UK or before the letting has started.”

Conditions

Conditions for applying to HMRC for approval to receive rental income with no tax deducted Non-resident landlords can apply to receive their rent with no tax deducted on the basis that either:

their UK tax affairs are up to date
they have not had any UK tax obligations before they applied
they do not expect to be liable to UK Income Tax for the year in which they apply
they are not liable to pay UK tax because they are sovereign immunes (these are generally foreign Heads of State, Governments or Government departments)

Useful links regarding the non-resident landlord scheme:

For landlords – FAQ

Important information on tax returns – relevant for those dealing with the non-resident landlord scheme.

September 6, 2013

30 Ideas for Marketing to landlords

Marketing to landlords

Finding new landlord clients is one of the biggest challenges letting agents face in today’s rental market. With so many agencies competing for business marketing to landlords in the traditional sense is going to eat into any annual marketing budget rapidly. But don’t worry there is many ways to promote your services and find new landlords for your letting agency whilst not costing you any upfront marketing spend.

I am sure if I said to you today that if I would pass you on new landlords and list their properties with your letting agency at 75% of your listed fees you would jump at the chance, right?

Well keep reading because here are 30 ideas for marketing to landlords that will surely land you new landlords and cost you nothing upfront. In fact, in over half of my suggestions on marketing to landlords will cost you nothing at all.

30 Ideas for marketing to landlords

Offer a referral scheme to current landlords to invite their family and friends and receive a discount. This way you retain your current landlord and it does not cost anything to win a new landlord. Word of mouth is powerful!
Ask your tradespersons to recommend your services to landlords next time they are on site repairing a rental property. For every referral, give them a commission. It’s a great way to promote your letting agency.
Place an advert on some free local websites in the property classifieds section. Landlords tend to look at how other units are priced here also.
On completion of your services, ask a landlord for a referral for a family member or friend who may be interested in your services. Always push to offer great customer service, and finding new landlord referrals will not be a problem.
Contact end of tenancy cleaning companies offering a referral scheme where you both recommend each others’ services. Cleaning companies would also appreciate your business, and your services can complement one other.
Attend a local networking event. There are always landlords and investors at such events and they are a great place to meet new clients.
Join your chambers of commerce; networking is what the chambers of commerce is all about and by attending them, your name will circulate within the business community quickly.
Place a business card and note on the notice board of an apartment complex where you have just let out a property explaining you require more in the complex. Landlords conducting showings are sure to pass by, and it’s a great way to promote your letting agency.
Contact your local mortgage advisors informing them of your services along with working an affiliate scheme. Look for a buy to let specialist; you are bothworking with the same type of customer.
Place magnet branding stickers on your car whilst out meeting landlords and conducting showings. You would be amazed at how this can help push your brand… Be sure to be a polite road user however 😉
Maildrop leaflets in an apartment complex the next time you let out a property enquiring more units with a special offer. This is a great, quick way to get units in a complex, as landlords will be emptying post boxes whilst conducting showings. You can leaflet 100 units in 2 minutes.
Call previous landlord clients on lease anniversaries offering your services. Just because the tenants stayed on for another 12 months and the landlord renewed the papers doesn’t mean you shouldn’t keep in contact.
Call in to properties which have been sold recently and are getting renovation works offering your services. This means keeping on eye on your territory and simply dropping in when workers or a landlord is on-site.
Attend local property investor meet ups. Simply search for these events and you would be surprised with the number going on in your area.
Call landlords advertising properties to let in classifieds section of your local newspapers. Many landlords still use print media, they may not get as much attention as they could online and this is where you can step in.
Email and or call landlords marketing properties to let on local websites. Landlords advertising on free listing sites may simply not be marketing to their audience correctly. Most tenants search property portals now for property.
Go to the next distressed property auction in your area and hand out leaflets with a promotion at the front of the venue. These auctions are like bee hives for bees, landlords swarm to them so make your presence known.
Place a notice on a local supermarket notice board looking for a property in an area you have just let one. You would be surprised the number of landlords which use these to let properties. Its also a great are to find new landlords contact details.
Leave business cards at your local key cutting business where you get keys cut. A landlords is one of a key cutter’s best customers and so are you most likely.
Join an affiliate scheme with a locksmith who changes locks from bad tenants. Many landlords get new locks fitted when tenants are exiting and this can be a great way of getting your name to them.
Write a letting agency blog about the area where you wish to attract new business. Lots of people search their area on search engines and by blogging about an event or area, you are sure to rank high.
Drop a card into a property which has a private to let sign at the front of the property. Landlords are most likely visiting the property daily so let them know about your service.
Promote your services through local online community pages on Facebook. Many communities now have an online presence so why not drop by and say hi and mention your letting agency promotions.
Promote your services to other businesses in your area via social media. Use a Hashtag on all your comments. It’s a great way for someone in your community to come across your services.
Leave your business cards in a networking jar or on a board in your local bank. Most banks are now promoting local businesses and services; make sure your letting agency is promoted.
Offer a free prize of one of your services for a local charity event. Whilst it may cost you time to provide, the promotion of your brand within the community will be well received. It’s also a great way for PR in local papers and online.
Offer free advice to landlords online, through your office or local citizens advice centres. Many landlords who need help with tenants often research for advice and by offering it for free they are sure to use yourself if anyone when employing an agent’s services.
Connect with an estate agent who only sells property offering either a referral scheme or commission structure. Lots of properties are sold by estate agents for the BTL market.
Partner your services with a local appliance sales or repair company where you recommend each other’s services. Most landlords will outsource repairs and it’s another great way to pick up landlords.
Leave business cards in your local DIY store. Landlords always have a couple of DIY jobs to complete between lets, so get your card beside the cash register.

So now you know how to increase your marketing to landlords with no marketing spend, i’ts time to start implementing your letting agency promotional plan. You may also be interested to read a blog posting on Finding landlords

September 4, 2013

Non-resident landlord – potential for letting agents in UK

Non-resident landlord in the UK

A property having a non-resident landlord is increasingly common, what this means for letting agents is that there is a potential untapped market out there. If you think about it, there is far more profit to be made from a client who requires more than a let-only service.

What kind of services does a non-resident landlord require?

Most likely, they will need a full property management service, along with someone to find new tenants. They will need to feel that they can trust the letting agent with their property; remember, they can’t just check up on the property if they are abroad. Without a doubt, accountability and transparency are the key here. Lack of communication between letting agent and landlord may cause the landlord to change letting agent – they do not want any extra stress.

It’s just a matter of finding the landlords, or making it easier for them to find you. Attracting a landlord via the internet is therefore vital. That’s where a non-resident landlord will go if they are looking for someone to manage their property.

Is there really much potential with a non-resident landlord?

Short answer – yes!

It is estimated by UK Revenue and Customs that approximately 5 per cent of the 1,930,000 landlords who answered ‘yes’ to q4 of the SA100 tax return form in 2010-2011 since only 5 per cent reported a non-UK address. Question 4 is ‘Did you receive any income from UK property (including rents and other UK income from land you own or lease out)?’ This means that around 96,500 potential non-resident landlords could be looking for your business in the UK.

Google searches are another thing that must be taken into account. There are currently at least 3500 searches per month relating to property management and letting agents in the UK, made from outside of the UK.

For example:

There are 1,450 searches per month

made outside the UK

through Google and Google search partners (This would include YouTube, which is owned by Google now)

for these terms: letting agents london, property management london, letting agency london, letting agent london, rental agency london, property manager london, rental agent london

Now granted, some of these searches may be from future tenants looking for somewhere to live before moving to London, however a great deal could be from property owners. This is something we have no way of knowing yet but

This means that within the London area alone, there are potentially 1,450 non-resident landlords per month looking for a letting agent to let and/or manage their property.

Where are these searches coming from?

Well as you’d expect, there are strong numbers from countries where English is spoken and there are strong migration patterns to and from the UK.

Searches came from:

US 250

India 170

Canada 130

Australia 90

Ireland 80

New Zealand 70

South Africa 60

Where are they searching from?

Now to market to those landlords!

August 28, 2013

Property manager tasks

Do you need a task management system to deal with them?

Rentview have developed a complete property management task manager which is designed to allow letting agents, property managers, brokers and admin staff to manage multiple task management, in one easy to use property management software.

Letting Agency Administrators

With the Rentview task manager an office administrator who is manning the phone and generic email addresses can simply upload tasks which need attention to the correct property manager. By centralising all tasks within one system letting agencies will remove the chance of having tasks lost or forgotten about.

All property manager tasks are view able in either pipeline view or list view, allowing users to quickly track and complete property management tasks more efficiently.

Pipeline View

The pipeline view allows the user to see tasks assigned to themselves or to other property managers within the office. It also allows them to view the status of the task from ‘in progress’ to ‘complete’. Our drag and drop feature makes task management more interactive and is designed to lessen the time it takes property managers to complete tasks. Property manager tasks can be dragged from the ‘in progress’ status to ‘complete’ with ease.

List View

The list view will show all tasks assigned to property managers showing the address of the property, date due and status of the task. We have built some really cool alert buttons which illustrate to users the priority levels of each task with red illustrating late, orange; due today, white; due soon and green; complete.

And lastly, you can also see a list of all historic tasks associated with a property giving you better reports on which properties you are working harder on.

Property Manager Tasks

Property manager tasks can take up the majority of a letting agent’s day, but by using the task manager software from Rentview you can dramatically improve your your efficiency.