Referencing/estate agent fees?

DervBurner · 9th October 2012, 18:22

me and my better half applied to rent a house yesterday and had to pay the agent a 420 pound non refundable referencing fee to even start the application fee! seems like daylight robbery!

what did everyone else pay in this situation? seems alittle step to me.

The_Saint · 9th October 2012, 18:29

Think I paid around £300 for a place in Glasgow 3 years ago. However I would strongly advise not to rent and save for a mortgage.

I know not everyone can however, my mortgage cost is £292 PCM....if i was to rent my property i would be paying in the region of £600 a month. Almost double the actual cost.

Just my 2 cents.

civicnewbie · 9th October 2012, 18:58

Quote:

Originally Posted by The_Saint

Think I paid around £300 for a place in Glasgow 3 years ago. However I would strongly advise not to rent and save for a mortgage.

I know not everyone can however, my mortgage cost is £292 PCM....if i was to rent my property i would be paying in the region of £600 a month. Almost double the actual cost.

Just my 2 cents.

Yep, rip off, they claim it is because checking refs and emploment/credit history is time consuming, even allowing £20 per hour I cannot see it taking 20 hours

DervBurner · 9th October 2012, 19:29

wish i could buy but havent got enought for a deposit grrr, was just abit taken back at how they can justify that cost, could understand if it was refundable if the application wasnt excepted but seems quite excessive with no chance of a refund, just going to have to cross my fingers it all goes through!

michael3011 · 9th October 2012, 19:39

I know round here its a minimum of £100 per person + vat... then £50 for any extra's e.g. guarantors...etc

NoNumpty · 10th October 2012, 08:57

Shouldn't these fees come out of the owners costs?

Syx · 10th October 2012, 09:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by The_Saint

Think I paid around £300 for a place in Glasgow 3 years ago. However I would strongly advise not to rent and save for a mortgage.

I know not everyone can however, my mortgage cost is £292 PCM....if i was to rent my property i would be paying in the region of £600 a month. Almost double the actual cost.

Just my 2 cents.

Mine is 3 times that...

Warwick1984 · 10th October 2012, 09:56

mine is 4x that lol! paying for a reference £400 odd quid is a joke thats just a money making shceme especially if you dont get acccepted then your screwed

leunger · 10th October 2012, 11:09

my wife and i rented 2 flats via 2 different agencies up here before and we never have to pay such fee. IIRC

First flat was ok, the agency was mainly for the paperwork and all other issues were deal with direct with the landlord during the entire time we were renting it.

then we had bad experience with the second agency, so end up bite the bullet and bought our house even though we were trying to save money for our wedding at the time because the landlord didn't want to go private and we just had enough of that agency.

i would advice to go private if you can.

RobertUtley · 10th October 2012, 11:31

I would find where the house is and knock the door and ask for landlords details.

Chuck the landlord a £100 sweetner and its all good i got my house with a friend for under market rent with £0 deposit just because i did that and he liked my approach and trusted me with it.

We signed contracts etc for mine and his safety but i also pay it into their bank account which is not registered to his houses so its really cash in hand for him.

Warwick1984 · 10th October 2012, 11:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by RobertUtley

I would find where the house is and knock the door and ask for landlords details.

Chuck the landlord a £100 sweetner and its all good i got my house with a friend for under market rent with £0 deposit just because i did that and he liked my approach and trusted me with it.

We signed contracts etc for mine and his safety but i also pay it into their bank account which is not registered to his houses so its really cash in hand for him.

Agreed and as above make sure you have contracts signed otherwise you are both opening yourselves up to a world of pain. My old man rents a few houses to people and has never used an agency because they take to much of a cut

RobertUtley · 10th October 2012, 14:34

You can search in gumtree, freeads etc or just go around asking people is better i talk abit like dell boy gift of the gab kinda bloke which people tend to trust abit of the "old school" from a young bloke goes down well/

DervBurner · 10th October 2012, 15:29

thats some top advice cheers! really wish i thought of that.

RobertUtley · 10th October 2012, 15:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by DervBurner

thats some top advice cheers! really wish i thought of that.

No Problem Rodders

michael3011 · 10th October 2012, 20:30

I would disagree slightly, the majority of these houses wont have things like Gas Safety Records - a LEGAL requriement for EVERY property that is rented out. I've heard a couple of horror stories about private rentals, followed by explosions...people end up in prison, other people dead. Obviously there are 2 x extremes, and I know I'd rather go through an agency and make sure the legally binding factors are in place to save a couple of £££.

Warwick1984 · 10th October 2012, 22:02

Yes but regardless if agency or not these things still need to be on place and it's easy enough to ask the landlord to see copies even when u go private. It's a boiler safety check I believe not a specific gas safety check

michael3011 · 10th October 2012, 22:06

The legal requirement is for all gas appliances, but the electrics check is "recommended and not legally required" - I was generalising and my point was that with an agency they will be in place (except in human error) and privately I think the odds would be around 2/10 had the correct things in place? But I agree, you could ask them for it.

Big ant · 10th October 2012, 22:09

I've just paid £125 in fees today and thought that was extortionate itself! Wish I has the money for a deposit so I could just buy a house. It's going to cost £975 all together just to move in including bond and upfront rent. Going to be my first place and never realised the cost u have to pay initially

michael3011 · 10th October 2012, 22:15

I know of a local agent to me.... hold on to your wallets...
£300 + VAT per couple...or individual as a minimum
£100 + VAT for a guarantor

So 1 person needing a guarantor would be £400 + VAT!!!

9th October 2012, 18:22	#1 (permalink)
DervBurner Supporter Car: 2007 2.2 SE Join Date: 3rd September 2012 Location: Portsmouth Posts: 186 Thanks given: 266 Thanked 19 Times in 18 Posts iTrader: (2)	Referencing/estate agent fees? me and my better half applied to rent a house yesterday and had to pay the agent a 420 pound non refundable referencing fee to even start the application fee! seems like daylight robbery! what did everyone else pay in this situation? seems alittle step to me.

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9th October 2012, 18:29	#2 (permalink)
The_Saint Supporter Car: FN2 Type R Join Date: 7th June 2011 Location: Glasgow Posts: 345 Thanks given: 13 Thanked 61 Times in 60 Posts iTrader: (1)	Think I paid around £300 for a place in Glasgow 3 years ago. However I would strongly advise not to rent and save for a mortgage. I know not everyone can however, my mortgage cost is £292 PCM....if i was to rent my property i would be paying in the region of £600 a month. Almost double the actual cost. Just my 2 cents.

9th October 2012, 19:29	#4 (permalink)
DervBurner Supporter Thread starter Car: 2007 2.2 SE Join Date: 3rd September 2012 Location: Portsmouth Posts: 186 Thanks given: 266 Thanked 19 Times in 18 Posts iTrader: (2)	wish i could buy but havent got enought for a deposit grrr, was just abit taken back at how they can justify that cost, could understand if it was refundable if the application wasnt excepted but seems quite excessive with no chance of a refund, just going to have to cross my fingers it all goes through!

9th October 2012, 19:39	#5 (permalink)
michael3011 Supporter Car: 2006 1.8 5 Door Royal Blue! Join Date: 17th April 2010 Location: Oldham, UK Posts: 1,455 Thanks given: 43 Thanked 77 Times in 72 Posts iTrader: (5)	I know round here its a minimum of £100 per person + vat... then £50 for any extra's e.g. guarantors...etc

10th October 2012, 08:57	#6 (permalink)
NoNumpty Supporter Car: 2008 2.2 i-CTDi ES NHB Join Date: 20th May 2008 Location: Cheshire UK Posts: 4,104 Thanks given: 57 Thanked 340 Times in 325 Posts iTrader: (0)	Shouldn't these fees come out of the owners costs?

10th October 2012, 09:56	#8 (permalink)
Warwick1984 Car: 2007 Type-R GT Milano Red Join Date: 22nd March 2011 Location: Birmingham Posts: 792 Thanks given: 41 Thanked 80 Times in 77 Posts iTrader: (3)	mine is 4x that lol! paying for a reference £400 odd quid is a joke thats just a money making shceme especially if you dont get acccepted then your screwed

10th October 2012, 11:09	#9 (permalink)
leunger i-vtec shut off yo! Car: 58 1.8 ES, Sliver Join Date: 21st August 2012 Location: aberdeen Posts: 347 Thanks given: 40 Thanked 65 Times in 60 Posts iTrader: (1)	my wife and i rented 2 flats via 2 different agencies up here before and we never have to pay such fee. IIRC First flat was ok, the agency was mainly for the paperwork and all other issues were deal with direct with the landlord during the entire time we were renting it. then we had bad experience with the second agency, so end up bite the bullet and bought our house even though we were trying to save money for our wedding at the time because the landlord didn't want to go private and we just had enough of that agency. i would advice to go private if you can.

10th October 2012, 11:31	#10 (permalink)
RobertUtley Muscles From Brussels Car: 2007 1.8 CTS Nighthawk Join Date: 1st December 2011 Location: Reading, UK Posts: 3,142 Thanks given: 168 Thanked 618 Times in 500 Posts iTrader: (6)	I would find where the house is and knock the door and ask for landlords details. Chuck the landlord a £100 sweetner and its all good i got my house with a friend for under market rent with £0 deposit just because i did that and he liked my approach and trusted me with it. We signed contracts etc for mine and his safety but i also pay it into their bank account which is not registered to his houses so its really cash in hand for him.

10th October 2012, 14:34	#12 (permalink)
RobertUtley Muscles From Brussels Car: 2007 1.8 CTS Nighthawk Join Date: 1st December 2011 Location: Reading, UK Posts: 3,142 Thanks given: 168 Thanked 618 Times in 500 Posts iTrader: (6)	You can search in gumtree, freeads etc or just go around asking people is better i talk abit like dell boy gift of the gab kinda bloke which people tend to trust abit of the "old school" from a young bloke goes down well/

10th October 2012, 15:29	#13 (permalink)
DervBurner Supporter Thread starter Car: 2007 2.2 SE Join Date: 3rd September 2012 Location: Portsmouth Posts: 186 Thanks given: 266 Thanked 19 Times in 18 Posts iTrader: (2)	thats some top advice cheers! really wish i thought of that.

10th October 2012, 20:30	#15 (permalink)
michael3011 Supporter Car: 2006 1.8 5 Door Royal Blue! Join Date: 17th April 2010 Location: Oldham, UK Posts: 1,455 Thanks given: 43 Thanked 77 Times in 72 Posts iTrader: (5)	I would disagree slightly, the majority of these houses wont have things like Gas Safety Records - a LEGAL requriement for EVERY property that is rented out. I've heard a couple of horror stories about private rentals, followed by explosions...people end up in prison, other people dead. Obviously there are 2 x extremes, and I know I'd rather go through an agency and make sure the legally binding factors are in place to save a couple of £££.

10th October 2012, 22:02	#16 (permalink)
Warwick1984 Car: 2007 Type-R GT Milano Red Join Date: 22nd March 2011 Location: Birmingham Posts: 792 Thanks given: 41 Thanked 80 Times in 77 Posts iTrader: (3)	Yes but regardless if agency or not these things still need to be on place and it's easy enough to ask the landlord to see copies even when u go private. It's a boiler safety check I believe not a specific gas safety check

10th October 2012, 22:06	#17 (permalink)
michael3011 Supporter Car: 2006 1.8 5 Door Royal Blue! Join Date: 17th April 2010 Location: Oldham, UK Posts: 1,455 Thanks given: 43 Thanked 77 Times in 72 Posts iTrader: (5)	The legal requirement is for all gas appliances, but the electrics check is "recommended and not legally required" - I was generalising and my point was that with an agency they will be in place (except in human error) and privately I think the odds would be around 2/10 had the correct things in place? But I agree, you could ask them for it.

10th October 2012, 22:09	#18 (permalink)
Big ant Car: 2008 2.2 type s Join Date: 7th September 2012 Location: Sunderland Posts: 41 Thanks given: 4 Thanked 8 Times in 6 Posts iTrader: (0)	I've just paid £125 in fees today and thought that was extortionate itself! Wish I has the money for a deposit so I could just buy a house. It's going to cost £975 all together just to move in including bond and upfront rent. Going to be my first place and never realised the cost u have to pay initially

10th October 2012, 22:15	#19 (permalink)
michael3011 Supporter Car: 2006 1.8 5 Door Royal Blue! Join Date: 17th April 2010 Location: Oldham, UK Posts: 1,455 Thanks given: 43 Thanked 77 Times in 72 Posts iTrader: (5)	I know of a local agent to me.... hold on to your wallets... £300 + VAT per couple...or individual as a minimum £100 + VAT for a guarantor So 1 person needing a guarantor would be £400 + VAT!!!