Hope someone can advise a novice please. I have what sounds like a good tenant, but I'm worried about dealing with the agent. Having looked more closely at them I don't think the agent knows their own business. Therefore I'm not prepared to sign a contract (I haven't yet) in order to pay them their commission, in case problems crop up later. The agent has been vague and confused about who they're acting for, the vetting process etc.
I don't want to be unscrupulous and deal with the tenant directly, not least because I don't want to end up in court. But I don't want to miss out on this tenant either, or for them to miss out on our house which they really like. I've got myself into the situation and I can't quite see a way out of it which is fair on everyone.
The agent hasn't done anything obviously damaging yet so I'm not sure about my grounds for cancelling the verbal arrangement we have. However I've got no faith that they will get things right as things progress so I'm unwilling to have any more dealings with them if I can help it. Any thoughts would be really appreciated.
I can set out the full story if you'd like more detail but I realise long posts can put people off!
If you are uneasy about a letting agent then it is often wise to go with someone else. Once you are committed it can be a bit of hassle getting out of a contract and once the tenant is in the property there are all sorts of barriers a letting agent can throw up. On top of that if the letting agent doesn't do his/her job properly then you could end up with a bad tenant anyway and be out of pocket that way...
I don't want to sound down on letting agents though as there are plenty of good ones out there. You need to do a bit of research before you commit (what their vetting process is, who they use to do work and the costs involved etc).
I'm not sure where you stand with regards to the tenant, maybe speak to another letting agent and see what they think of the situation. Either way it's better to miss out on a potentially bad tenant and months of hassle than to be stuck in a situation which will eat up your time ad resources.
uneasy about letting agent - how to withdraw from
Posted - 30 September 2009 : 15:49:00
