09 Feb Getting rent paid on time, James Wyatt comments.

When letting a property, Landlords are interested in very little. They want their property occupied – by someone who looks after the
place and doesn’t moan about irrelevant things. And they want the rent paid on time.

Late rent is every Landlords greatest irritation. Loan repayments may rely on the rent coming in on time, or in many cases, the rent
forms a large part of the Landlords income. For the Landlords Agent too, late rent is a constant downside of the business. Chasing errant tenants isn’t much fun, and neither is it pleasant having a Landlord haranguing you on how to do your job better.

My accounts lady Julia, is masterful at chasing late rent. Phoning every day to listen to the latest excuse – “it’s in the post”, which
invariably means it certainly is not. “I’ll go to the bank today” – they won’t. “I’ve had a family bereavement” – Virginia Water seems to mirror TV’s Eastenders for the staggering number of ‘family bereavements’. “I’ve got friends staying” – so what!

What I have learned over the years is to choose tenants very carefully. The very occasional hunch that something doesn’t seem right with a
potential tenant has usually proves correct. Rigorous referencing is helpful but it is just a part of an important decision. We continually aim for corporate tenants – the likes of Coca Cola aren’t going to run out of money any time soon.

Sometimes though, it all comes right. At this very moment, Barton Wyatt has every rent paid up to date with not a single rent even one day overdue. I wonder how many letting agents are in that smug position? jw@bartonwyatt.co.uk

01344 843000.
www.bartonwyatt.co.uk