The renter’s guide
Renting a home in London and indeed everywhere else should be an exciting and fulfilling process. Make the most out of your search and future tenancy with our tenant’s guide.
The renter’s guide
Renting a home in London and indeed everywhere else should be an exciting and fulfilling process. Make the most out of your search and future tenancy with our tenant’s guide.
Getting you into the property you love
Renting is competitive and unfortunately, only too often do candidates go up against each other, only to be let down at the last moment on a property they really wanted.
For the best possible experience, choose to rent through an agent who manages your expectations from day one. A communicative, approachable and trustworthy voice is very important in the search for the rental property you love.
We know it can be stressful and sometimes annoying. You may even offer on a property to then be turned down without a valid reason, or no reason at all!
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Talk to your agents first before putting offers in — it’s important to disclose all relevant information from the start. So, whether it’s a pet you have or plan to get, or something like a CCJ (County Court Judgement) that can easily be explained, get it out in the open to avoid damaging your chances to move into the home you want to rent.
Renting with Settle
The Settle difference.
Here is where we help you and handle the renting process in the fairest way we can:
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Register with us and gain a head start on other potential property candidates. If you’re on our books, it means you’re prequalified and we know what kind of home you’re looking for. We also know what properties you can realistically go after as there may be specific criteria set by the landlord or referencing company, so being known to us already means a faster process.
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We don’t want to carry out 40 viewings on a property to get 20 offers and let down 19 people. There is a much fairer way to do this and by limiting the number of viewings on a designated viewing day, we can make your viewing a much better, safer and more relaxed experience.
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We will prequalify you before viewing a property. We request information on who is renting, their occupation and a bit of background as to who you are as people. By doing this, we ensure we won’t waste your time by recommending properties that aren’t suitable. It also means landlords are aware of who is viewing their property and it’s a great way to make a first impression. You may also write this yourself in a cover letter format should you subsequently decide to make an offer, maximising your chances for acceptance.
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The moment has finally come. You love the property and you want to make a rental offer on it, so we build your offer profile and get this sent to the owners as soon as possible. We’ll make sure the steps are very straightforward and keep communication with you at an absolute maximum, particularly if there are other candidates who feel the same as you about the place. We will be as open as we can and guide you to secure your new home quickly and seamlessly.
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Our agents will now handle the offers which are done in stages, so don’t panic if you don’t hear back straight away. A landlord will normally take the evening to have a think and look through the offers received. It’s not always straightforward for the owner to decide (it’s a big decision for them too) so make sure you give us as much information as possible so they can get an idea of who you are. We will update you one final time prior to sending all offers to the landlord to decide if there are multiple offers — to avoid a ‘bidding war’, we will set a cut off on further negotiations. The decision now rests with the owner.
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We hope to help you secure your ideal property and we look forward to you moving into your new home. You will now pay the 1-week’s holding deposit and go through the referencing process (lookout for a link from our trusted third-party referencing company).
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Once you get the agreement signed and pay your final balance, it’s time to come and get your keys. The team at Settle have everything ready and all that awaits is you moving in. You have a new place to call home.
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Share a brief overview of who you are with us. Landlords, particularly private landlords, care about not just your employment status but also your hobbies, interests and your back story. You’re looking for a good landlord, and they’re looking for a good tenant. Knowing a bit more about you as a human being will likely make your offer more attractive in the eyes of the owner.
Welcome home
That’s it! You’ve found your dream rental and you’re finally in. It’s time to settle into your new home, unpack those boxes and get comfy and cosy.
If you haven’t already set everything up, don’t worry. It’s a fair amount of admin and so it can take a few days to get on top of it. You may still need to:
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Set up your bills including Council Tax, gas and electric, water, Internet and any residential parking permits. You will receive meter readings in your inventory report prior to you moving in, so your bills will be as accurate as possible.
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We provide an Inventory Report for you to sign off. It shows the condition of the property when you moved in and becomes a key document, empowering you to handle any potential disputes at the end of the tenancy.
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To enable you throughout your entire tenancy, keep hold of all documents we’ve provided in your Move-In Pack including any communication between yourself and our agents.
Settle any home repairs with ease
Has your first issue come up and you need our help? Don’t worry, we are here to help and will respond to your query as swiftly as possible.
At the start of your tenancy, you will have received a link to join Property File which is where you can report your repair or issue. Fill in all the necessary information and attach images, your availability and preferred means should we need to send a contractor.
We’ll call you as soon as we’ve acknowledged the maintenance report and will keep you posted on next steps.
In case of an emergency, you will have been supplied an emergency contact number which is available after working hours. It is there for your convenience and safety during an emergency. Please make sure to follow the steps of reporting the repair first, however, as will still need the information to log the job and advise the landlord of what has happened at the property.
Stay in control with inspections and routine checks
Between months 4 and 5 of your tenancy, we will schedule a visit to inspect your home. It’s a great time for you to tell us how you are getting on and any snagging issues you want to report back to the owner.
Where works have been carried out, we will run a routine check to make sure all is in working order and completed to the level we expect. Cowboy builders are not welcome with Settle: the last thing we want for our tenants and managed properties are half-fixes on jobs that may cause you more problems down the line.
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Get settled properly. Don’t be scared to tell us if something isn’t quite right and make sure to inform us if you have any concerns. It’s much better to investigate something when it has been noticed than to wait until it’s become a bigger problem. Your landlord wants you to live comfortably in your home and so do we.
If and when you want to leave
Your contract has a break clause which is mutually beneficial, giving both you and the landlord the right to end a fixed term tenancy before the expiry of the fixed term. Break clauses are standard practice and mean you are able to move out early should your plans take you elsewhere.
When it comes to you leaving the property, we manage the process from our side while you notify us and serve your notice according to contract. Subject to changes, your notice period is 2 months. It’s important to notify us at the right moment in order to end your tenancy on time.
Or, if you want to renew your lease, we will call you around 2 months prior to the end of your tenancy to confirm and extend your stay.
Get in touch
Exciting times lay ahead for you and we’d love to be part of your journey. Check out our latest available properties to buy or rent.
If you have a property to sell or rent, get in touch or call us on 020 8124 2522