By Steve Roulstone
If being involved in the rental market for over ten years has taught me anything when it comes to increasing rent for a sitting Tenant, then it is that thoughts turn to the subject in the spring, more than at any other time of the year. So much so that it is the time of the year, that as an agency we review all of our rents on behalf of our Landlords so that we can actually advise our Landlords with knowledge of having done the work before we get asked.
Important procedure.
But it is not just a matter of advising the Tenant and awaiting the increased rent to arrive. Far from it! There are several considerations, not least of which, that rent can only be increased once in any one year and perhaps more importantly, rent should be increased by issuing the correct notice, in line with the requirements of the Housing Act 1988.
Once per year.
This sensible rule ensures that Tenants, who are outside of any fixed period as stated in their Tenancy Agreement, know exactly how long they have between rent increases. An increase raised through agreements or renewals, can be the best way to achieve an increase, as the Tenant knows again that the period is fixed and therefore so is the rent for the same period. This also means that after any fixed period and for example after the traditional initial six month period rent can be increased, but only once per year. Now I have had many conversations with Landlords about the impact of increasing rents within the first year of a Tenancy and any such request has be to handled with care to avoid the Tenant immediately giving notice to leave.
Again, by using the prescribed documentation, you can ensure that the procedure is dealt with in accordance with the Housing Act that introduced the legislation, allowing increases to be served whilst Tenants are outside of any fixed period agreement. (Periodic) This ensures that there can be no argument about the legality of the new rent. Also, I cannot write about rent increases without stating that any increase should consider the Tenant, the property and what it would rent for if empty at that time and the market and current financial situation. Then and only then can the increase be justified if the Tenant does question the increase, and yes, it is right and proper that it can be.
Investment requirement.
It is part of the market in the same way that investments can go up or down, that Rent Increases are part of owning a rental property. There have been occasions, most noticeably when property could not sell, that rents have gone in the opposite direction, as Tenants, realising that there were many properties available at the time, made offers to Landlords who needed a Tenant in their property rather than waiting another month for the full asking price. After all, in the lettings market you cannot recover rent for the period property sits empty, but that is not the case now and it has been well documented that rents will increase this year. For Letting Agencies, now is the traditional time to carry out the preparation and be ready to carry out the role on behalf of our Landlords, most importantly, correctly and professionally!
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