TENANT INFORMATION BROCHURE

Transcription

1 TENANT INFORMATION BROCHURE

2 Victor Michael tenant brochure About us Victor Michael Property Group was established in 1988 and is one of the longest serving independent Estate agency groups in East London and the county of Essex. We are accredited to ARLA and NALS and are also members of the property ombudsmen for residential sales and Lettings. We have four branch offices to serve the local communities in Stratford, Leytonstone, Canning Town and Woodford Green. What Next Once you have found a property you like, you need to place a holding deposit with us, then we ll put forward your offer to the landlord for consideration. All offers are subject to receipt of satisfactory references and the signing of the Tenancy Agreement by both parties ( Subject to contract). When you agree to take a tenancy through us we ll require a holding deposit of 500 which enables us to put your offer forward to the landlord for consideration, once we have there authority to proceed, we will appoint our reference providers to start there initial credit and personal identification checks, this process will include obtaining employers and past landlord references, further information maybe requested at this stage. The 500 holding deposit payment will be deducted from the total first payment at the beginning of the tenancy including but not limited to rent, security deposit and agency administration costs. If we do not proceed with your tenancy, we will refund the holding deposit less any reasonable reference charges that may have been incurred. We require all tenant applicants to provide the following personal information in order to proceed:- Completion of a Victor Michael application form. Provide a Passport and /or Driving licence. Provide copies of your last three months bank statements. Provide a copy of your latest utility statement. Last 3 monthly payslips. If self employed last three years tax returns and accountant s details. If the tenancy is to be taken out in the name of a company a public limited company or a limited by guarantee company we will require the following:- Completion of a Victor Michael company application form. The last three years audited financial trading accounts of the company. At this stage we provide all the information you have supplied to our reference providers, who will in turn complete all there necessary credit & personal searches and obtained employers and landlords references. Once this task is completed, usually within 48 hours, however this maybe longer depending on your employers turn around period. Once all the checks are back from the reference providers we will consult with the landlord (owner) to see if they now wish to proceed with the tenancy, once we have there authority we will confirm verbally and in writing with you.

3 Signing your tenancy agreement and paying your rental balance of monies:- We will arrange for a mutually agreeable time and date for you to attend one of our branch offices to complete the formalities of signing the tenancy agreement and legal notices. At this stage you must also pay the balance of the rental monies due for the rent, security deposit, and agency administration costs minus the 500 holding deposit already paid. Payment should be by debit card / credit card, bankers draft, company cheque or building society cheque. Payment may also be made direct to our bank account online. Any cash payments will be subject to a 30 administration charge. No tenants will be allowed access to any of Victor Michael properties without the tenancy agreement being signed by all parties and all monies due being paid in full and cleared in our bank account. Note: Please ensure you read all the documents before signing and if you require any explanation don t hesitate to ask for clarification. We d like to point out that you ll be signing a document to which you will be legally bound once signed. The Security Deposit The deposit is used to offset any costs which may be incurred as a result of damages, dilapidations or breach of contract caused during the term of the tenancy or invoices left outstanding by the tenant. Some landlords request up to two months, particularly if the tenants have a pet. This is held throughout the term of the tenancy and will be returned to you at the end of the tenancy (less check out costs) provided all rent has been paid and there are no dilapidations reported by the inventory clerk at the checkout inspection. Under the Housing Act 2004 and the Tenants Deposit Protection Scheme a tenants deposit has to be protected in either a custodial or insurance back government recognised scheme.if the deposit is held by Victor Michael Limited Estate Agents as stakeholder your deposit will be held under The TDS Scheme and you will be given a certificate to confirm your deposit is registered and protected under There terms and conditions. When the landlord holds the deposit, in compliance with the law he must inform you within 30 days where your deposit is held. If at the conclusion of the tenancy and after the presentation of the check out report, if there are any damages or dilapidations found other than general wear and tear. We will advise you in writing of the cost of the repairs which we intend to deduct from the security deposit after consultation with the landlord. If you are in agreement with our deduction figures we will repay the deposit balance within 10 days from your written acceptance. If you do not agree with our deductions you have the right under the TDS scheme of an independent arbitrator review. You can contact them using the following contact details on how to proceed with security deposit reviews: TDS Scheme Tel no: or Fax no:

4 Postal disputes documentation TDS Scheme Po Box 613 Eastleigh S050 0UJ General Post Tenancy Deposit Scheme ( TDS) Po Box 1255, Hemel Hempstead, Herts, HP1 9GN. Monthly Rental Payments This is paid in advance and your rent will become due by standing order on the same date every month thereafter. Administraton Fees 250 plus vat a Per applicant. 210 plus vat Per applicant for 2 or more people. 95 plus vat Fee to extend your tenancy. 10 plus vat TDS Deposit registration fee, per applicant. 100 plus vat Guarantor reference per applicant, if required. 65 plus vat Copy of inventory & schedule of condition report. TDS Deposit fee for 10 not applicable to self management, where the landlord registers deposit. Inventory Most landlords will compile an inventory and schedule of condition of the contents of their property, if applicable. On the day you sign your tenancy agreement, we will ask you to sign an inventory, schedule of condition you have seven days from this day to notify us of any issues you may wish us to investigate, note or amend to the inventory. Council tax & Utilities The terms of the tenancy require you to pay the utility charges and council tax demands for the property, unless otherwise notified. Council tax is a local authority lax levied against occupants of residential premises. We re obliged to inform the local Council officer of the names of the new occupants. * Charges are assessed according to the status and number of occupants in each property.

5 Meter readings should be taken at the start and the end of the tenancy. The gas / electric / water companies should be informed of your name and the metre readings submitted to them. Telephone All tenants must contact the telephone company directly and are liable for all costs and expenses. Smoking You and your guests are strictly forbidden from smoking in any of our properties. Pets It s forbidden to keep animals or pets of any description within the premises unless the landlord has given consent prior to the commencement of the tenancy. Insurance Whilst the landlord is obliged to insure his / her building and contents, they are not liable for your pocessions.victor Michael recommend you insure your personal belongings and also insure against any accidental damage caused by you to the landlords possessions or premises under an All risks policy. We can offer you information from two specialised Landlord and Tenant insurance companies, if you like, we act as a introducer only, please specify our agency name at the outset when calling one of the following companies. LET RISKS Wessex House Upper market street Eastleigh S0509FD HOMELET Hestia House Unit 2, Edewest Road Lincoln Property Management Victor Michael has a dedicated Property management department who will deal with all maintenance issues relating to your property. They will also deal with tenancy queries, leases extensions and check out reports and deposit returns. Our state of the art maintenance reporting system is linked to our website this allows you to report the exact problem, but in certain instances you can provide a detailed helping hand, by specifically identify the problem and what is needed to resolve the issue. The system translates into 40 different languages, and is available twenty four hours a day. If the system cannot help, it will ask for further information so we can assist and send our contractors to rectify. All emergencies regarding Gas, Electricity, Water can be dealt with by calling your local utility companies who have 24 hour helpline assistance or emergency services, if required.

6 Contact details Tel no: Open hours are Monday to Friday 9am 5pm and Saturday 9am 2pm Complaints Procedure Victor Michael Limited aims to provide the highest standards of service to our tenants, but to ensure that your interests are safeguarded, we offer the following:- If you believe you have a grievance, please write in the first instance to Mr S. Garvey at the address Victor Michael Limited, 74 Leytonstone Road, Stratford, London, E15 1SQ The grievance will be acknowledged within 3 working days and then investigated thoroughly in accordance with In house procedures. A formal written outcome of compliant will be sent to you within 21 days. If we require longer than the timescale we will advise you in writing and confirm our revised response date. If you remain dissatisfied with the result of the internal investigation, please contact Mrs C. Barford who will review the complaint. Following the conclusion of our in house review we will write to you our final written statement. If you are dissatisfied with the conclusion of the in-house review complaint, you can refer the matter to The Property Ombudsman (TPO) Redress Scheme:- The Property Ombudsman (TPO) Redress scheme Victor Michael Limited is registered with the Property Ombudsman (TPO), a governmentapproved redress scheme which is the largest of its kind with 65% of UK letting agents following TPO s unique Code of Practice. Our membership with TPO means we fully comply with the legislation, which means in the event of a dispute arising, if you are unsatisfied with the result of our own investigation, you can have your complaint independently reviewed by the Property Ombudsman, which provides a free, fair and impartial service. The Property Ombudsman Milford House, Milford Street, Salisbury, Wiltshire, SP1 2BP Tel no:

7 Useful telephone numbers for utility companies and council numbers :- Useful Gas Numbers National Grid British Gas Scottish Power N-Power Useful utility number-electric EDF Southern Electric Useful utility number Water Thames Water Council tax numbers Epping Forest Council Waltham Forest Redbridge Newham

8 Branch offices Stratford ( Head Office ) 74 Leytonstone Road, Stratford, London, E15 1SQ Tel no : Canning Town 265 Barking Road, Canning Town, London, E13 8EQ Tel no : Leytonstone Church Lane, Leytonstone, London, E11 1HG Tel no : Woodford 449 High Road, Woodford Green, Essex, IG8 0XE Tel no : Website : management@victormichael.com