Uncategorised (Permissions Allowed) | Warwick Estate Agents

Details: Published: 02 November 2023; Hits: 2917

At, Warwick Estate Agents, we let and manage a variety of furnished and unfurnished properties throughout West, North/West London and surrounding area for rent. As members of the The Property Ombudsman, Safe Agent, and TDS all security deposits are held in a designated Clients Account and fully bonded.

Our site contains a constantly updated register of rental property. Click here to see our latest list. In order to receive a regularly updated list of our available rental properties, please register with us and we will contact you with details of new properties to suit your specified requirements.

For more detailed information or appointments to view please contact us on 020 8960 9988.

Please keep in mind that a range of rigorous checks on all prospective tenants will be carried out and we will require at least one full month’s rent as a deposit and one month’s rent paid in advance. Should you be uncertain as to your suitability or have specific requirements, please contact us.

Tenant’s Guide

Although Letting Agents have different procedures, this guide is intended as a general overview to assist you when renting a property. We have set out below a few significant pointers to assist you.

Your Offer - Once we have found your suitable property, you will be in a position to make an offer to the Landlord for consideration. Please note that any offer you make would be subject to you fulfilling our reference criteria.

At this point, you will be requested to provide a HOLDING DEPOSIT which holds the property for you. However, if the Tenancy Agreement is not signed by you (the Tenant) within 7 to 14 working days after receipt of your application, the Landlord reserves the right to re-offer the property. In these circumstances or, should your references prove unsatisfactory, the reservation/application fee would be non-refundable.

Agreeing the Let - As soon as your offer has been accepted by the Landlord, we will apply for references and draw up the relevant documentation which will form the basis of the agreement between you and the Landlord.

You will be expected to provide:

Identification / proof of residency

All tenants must show proof of address. Only the following forms of identification are accepted
Utility bill (less than 3 months old)
Full driving license
Council tax bill (less than 3 months old)
Mobile phone bill (less than 3 months old)

References

We will also contact your employer and your landlord (if you are in rented accommodation already. Your previous employer will also be contacted if you have recently changed jobs. If you are self employed we will need to contact your accountant. A credit check will also be conducted. To assist us in collating the necessary references, it would be advantageous for you to warn the above individuals in advance that references are required as these can be return to us within a matter of a few days, barring any delays.

Occasionally, a GUARANTOR will be required if, for example the tenant has not been continuously employed for the past 18 months; has been working abroad in the previous 6 months; the tenants’ income falls short of our criteria or the tenants’ employment is considered as changeable.

Please note that the same criteria applies to the guarantor and, furthermore, the guarantor must earn the equivalent of 3 times the yearly sum of the rent, be in full time employment or be able to prove by bank statements that they have “independent means”. All tenants should be able to provide a guarantor and should the tenant be unable to provide one, we will decide that the tenant has withdrawn their application. The tenant will therefore forfeit their deposit.

The guarantor must be aware that they will stand as guarantor for you, (and your partner if you are moving in to the property with some one else), for the entire occupancy of the property, not just for the period of the initial tenancy terms.

How much do I Need to earn to be considered for the Property?

Having passed all the referencing criteria to be considered for the property and, subject to the Landlord’s decision, you must earn at least 1.5 times the yearly rent (however, you will require a guarantor) or at least 2.5 times the yearly rent (you will qualify on the income part of the referencing without a guarantor).

Tenancy Agreement - An appointment will be arranged with you to visit our offices to sign the Tenancy Agreement when all references have been received. The Landlord will also be asked to sign their copy of the document.

Rent and Deposit - You will be required to provide the agreed sum of rent and deposit before taking possession of the property. The deposit is required for the full tenancy against loss, damage or charges payable at the termination of the tenancy. Whilst this is usually the equivalent of one month’s rent, this may vary therefore we suggest that the actual amount is verified via the property description as found on our letting list.

The deposit will be held by Warwick Estate Agents in their designated clients’ account and is fully bonded. It is returnable in full at the end of the tenancy subject to final inspection of the property and it should be noted that deductions could also be made for cleaning should the property (and garden areas) not have been left in a satisfactory condition.

Rent is to be paid monthly in advance commencing on the first day of the tenancy and then on the same day each month thereafter. The preferred method is by bank standing order.

Company Let - Company applications are acceptable where the company will be paying the rent.

Please note that all monies to be paid on the signing of the agreement prior to the occupation and should be paid by bank transfer.

Check in and Condition Report - If we have been instructed by the Landlord, a Condition Report will be prepared of your new home and a convenient appointment will be made with the Inventory Clerk to carry out a Check In report to coincide with your move in day.

All information is provided in good faith. It does not replace the advice of a qualified legal advisor. We will accept no responsibility for any inaccuracies.

Other Points of Interest:

1. The Tenant will be responsible for insuring their own possessions

2. The Tenant will take over all utilities such as Gas, Electricity, Water/Sewage charges, Council Tax & Telephone upon moving into the property and will be responsible for contacting the relevant suppliers accordingly prior to commencement of the tenancy.

3. The Landlord is responsible for any repair/maintenance problems to appliances etc. but the Tenant is responsible for any breakages which should be reported immediately.

4. Decoration of the property must only be done with your Landlord’s permission.

5. No pets are allowed unless the Landlord has given consent.

6. Reasonable notice should be given in the event that the Letting Agent or Landlord wishes to inspect the property outside pre-agreed times. It is usual for the Agent to inspect the property at least twice during the term of your Tenancy and the Tenancy Agreement should cover this eventuality.

7. Most lets are for 12 months, although some Landlords may consider shorter terms of say 6 months.

8. Should you wish to quit your Tenancy earlier than the agreed term, you will be liable for all rent until the end of the agreed Tenancy. However, it may be worth considering negotiating a BREAK CLAUSE with the Landlord which, for example, could entitle you to give notice after 4 months. In this case, you would only be liable for the rent for the notice period of 2 months, releasing you from the remaining 6 months of a 12 month Tenancy.

9. There is no set law regarding the time limit for returning deposits but this is normally subsequent to the final inspection of the property. Letting agents generally encourage Landlords to employ a professional inventory agent to conduct the inspection and produce a report as to the condition of the interior at the beginning of the Tenancy and again at the end but this is not obligatory. In most cases, the deposit will be returned once any damages are ascertained by the Tenant/Landlord/Inventory Clerk and appropriate deductions agreed.

10. The most common type of Tenancy Agreement is the assured short hold used for 6-12 month lets and usually takes the form of a standard contract between both parties.

However, should any “extras” be agreed such as certain furnishings to be provided by the Landlord, you should ask that an extra clause be added to the agreement to this effect. It should be noted that the landlord is not obliged to carry out promises so it is important that your requests are documented.

11. The Letting Agents will deal with the property viewings, references, agreements and getting you moved in. If the agent has been instructed to manage the property then you will normally report any repairs or queries to them. If not, then you will deal directly with the Landlord.

12. The Letting Agent, whilst acting for the Landlord, operates within accepted guidelines in the industry to ensure that you are able to rely on a professional letting agent taking your concerns seriously and advising the Landlord if they are being unreasonable. In this regard, you should be assured that the property conforms to all safety regulations and is fairly priced.

13. You require a professional service and, as such, Warwick Estate Agents is a member of recognised bodies such as TDS, TPO, Safe Agent and have CMP with Safe Agent. This ensures that professional standards are met, for example, the correct Tenancy Agreement is used; proper procedures are in place for reporting and dealing with repairs; safety checks are conducted and a bonding scheme is provide to protect your deposit.

Tenants Fees

Pricing Information

The method we use for calculating the weekly price is: (monthly price x 12) / 52, rounded to the nearest pound.

Letting Fees Information

Deposit is equivalent to five weeks rent (calculated by dividing the annual rent by 52 and multiplying by 5) will be required to be paid at the start of the tenancy.
The holding deposit is one weeks rent (calculated by dividing the annual rent by 52)
Processing charge to change a tenancy agreement e.g. change of sharer (£50 or any reasonable costs incurred if higher)
Payments associated with early termination of a tenancy (capped at the landlord's loss or the agent's reasonably incurred costs);
Utilities, communication services (e.g. telephone, broadband), TV licence and council tax;
Interest payments for the late payment of rent (up to 3% above Bank of England's annual percentage rate);
Reasonable costs for replacement of lost keys or other security devices;

Tenant protection

Tenant protection Warwick Estate Agents are registered with Safe Agent Client Money Protection Scheme.

Details: Published: 02 November 2023; Hits: 3832

Selling your home can be stressful so it is important to choose an agent you can trust who will make this process as smooth as possible. At Warwick Estate Agents, we aim to eliminate the stress and make the experience as easy as possible.

Selling

What to do next

Buying or selling a home? Do you require a valuation? Please contact us for advice or fill in the valuation form

In the meantime, here are a few guidelines which we hope will assist:

Valuation

Firstly, if you are selling, you will require a valuation. At Warwick Estate Agents we can offer you a free, no obligation factual and accurate appraisal of the current market value of your home. Our experienced property valuers will provide you with a valuation based not only on their in depth knowledge of London and Greater London, but also utilising our extensive database of recent properties sold.

See our Valuation page

Instruction of agent / property details

Having received your valuation, and provided that you are satisfied with it, we will then proceed to prepare full sales details of your property. Bearing in mind the importance of presentation, we will ensure that your sales details highlight the vitally important aspects of your property and ensure that your home is shown to its best possible advantage with the aid of full colour photographs and, if required, we can also set up a computerised 360 degree/virtual tour to feature on our website.

Marketing

Warwick’s has been working in the local area since 1998 and created an extensive database which is able to be utilsed with any new property. We offer comprehensive, multifaceted and innovative marketing strategies that are tailored to each instruction and are reflective of the independent nature of the firm.

We have developed a unique ‘dual approach’; a combination of market-leading technology and traditional marketing methods. Once a listing price has been agreed after a thorough market assessment and appraisal, we will create a bespoke and individual marketing strategy for your property.

We will arrange professional external & internal photography and give advice on how to prepare for the appointment. On request we can also organise Virtual Tours and Drone Photography.

We will write an editorial that will appear on all listing details. This will aim to create a vivid impression of your property.

All our instructions are uploaded to all major property portals, ensuring widespread and maximum exposure. This also enables us to provide vendors with real-time market analytics on performance.

See our Marketing page

For sales board

This is the most simple and effective marketing tool, available 24 hours a day.

Office and window display

External and internal photographs will be prominently displayed in our premises in order to optimise exposure to the market place.

Email

Wherever possible, all prospective buyers who register with us are asked to provide email addresses in order to ensure that they are notified of any new properties as soon as possible within 24 hours of receiving your instruction.

Website

This is updated daily and full colour details of your home are placed on our website within 24 hours of being placed on the market.

We also have an optional 360 virtual tour which can assist to further enhance your property.

Besides the exposure on our own site we are also affiliated with the following national property websites which will feature your home:

Rightmove, Zoopla, Find a Property and On the Market

Advertising

We provide regular prominent advertisement of your property in local and national publications to ensure that your home is fully marketed.

Updating on your sale

At Warwick Estate Agents, we pride ourselves on our conscientious sales management. We aim to keep you regularly appraised of your sales process right through to completion and liaise with your purchaser, the legal representatives, surveyors and mortgage lenders in order to ensure that your sale is progressed as smoothly and as stress-free as possible.

Offers

Any offers we receive are promptly verbally notified and then followed up in writing. Our competent sales team will negotiate between you and your prospective applicant in order to achieve the strongest buyer.

We will inform you of the position of the buyers and liaise with you until an accepted offer has been agreed.

Should you require your sale to be completed by a certain date, this is when you should notify us and we will endeavour to satisfy your request wherever possible.

At this stage, you should also provide your list of Fixture and Fittings which will be negotiated separately between the solicitors and forms part of the final contract.

Agreed sale

At this point (if you have not already done so), you will need to instruct a solicitor and, should you require assistance, we will only be too pleased to recommend local firms.

The solicitors will then write to all parties and the buyers will instruct a surveyor to conduct a survey of your property (the “agreed sale” is subject to the contract and any survey) and the buyers’ mortgage offer (if required) will also be subject to the results of the survey.

The sellers’ solicitors will request the title deeds from the lender (if appropriate) or yourselves as the seller and the fixtures and fittings form must be completed at this stage.

The solicitors draw up the draft contract which sets of the Terms of the Sale and sends it to the buyers’ solicitor together with all relevant documents. Any enquiries will then be raised, the Title Deeds and Lease (if applicable) will be checked and local searches carried out.

Once the draft contracts have been approved, it can be signed by both parties.

Exchange of contracts

As long as the mortgage offer has been received and cleared funds placed with your buyer’s solicitor, a mutually convenient date can be agreed upon for the exchange of contracts.

Completion

The completion and your actual house move can be simultaneous, the norm is usually 28 days between the two, but is flexible depending on the buyers, sellers, your respective solicitors and finance.

Get in Touch

Buying

Warwick Estate Agents recognises the fact the purchase of your home is the most important and expensive transaction you are likely to undergo.

Our database features hundreds of properties and we are sure that with our local knowledge and expertise, we will be able to find you a property to suit your needs, be it a straightforward move or a ‘Buy to Let’ investment.

Please Click here to view a list of our current properties, complete with photographs.

To enable you to unravel the complexities of buying your home, we have set out below an overview of the various procedures involved:

Registration

The first requirement is for you to register your details and property specifications which can be achieved in a number of ways i.e. by email, fax, phone, in person of by completing our registration form. This will give us an insight into your personal requirements, thereby enabling us to modify the details sent to you.

Once registered, you are then in a position to receive details from us directly in person, via mail or email or download and print these out from our website. We also offer an SMS text service direct to your mobile phone.

Viewing

Our friendly team are available to arrange those all important viewings of your selected properties. Our offices are open 7 days a week from Monday to Friday between 09:00 - 18:00, although we do make appointments after/before these hours, Saturdays between 10:00 - 14:00 & Sundays by prior arrangement . Please contact us to arrange a mutually convenient time 0208 960 9988.

Mortgage

In order to speed up your house buying process, it is advisable wherever possible; to get a mortgage agreed in principle before any final decision on your new property is made. This has the advantage of providing you with a clear indication of what is affordable and the fact that you have a mortgage agreed in principle is also attractive to sellers.

Making Your Offer

Once you have located your ideal property, your offer will be submitted by us to the vendor for their consideration. This is done both verbally and in writing. NB: Please note that all offers are “subject to contract” and therefore neither party is legally bound until the contract is actually signed.

Accepted Offer/Instructing Solicitors

As soon as your offer has been accepted by the vendor, you should instruct a solicitor to act on your behalf. Your solicitor will handle all legal requirements of your purchase (property conveyancing). At this point, you also need to formally proceed with your mortgage application and instruct your mortgage consultant/broker accordingly.

Survey

The next step is to obtain the Mortgage Valuation, as required by law. This will be conducted by a Chartered Surveyor acting for your Lender. The report is to provide a Valuation i.e. determine whether the amount to be loaned is secure and also deals with the basic condition of the property. Since you as the buyer are also provided with a copy, it allows both parties to evaluate the findings prior to entering into a commitment to purchase.

NB: However, we would not recommend that a buyer relies solely on the Mortgage Valuation survey as the inspection is limited and although it may cost a little more to obtain a more detailed report yourself, this could in the long run save you from making a costly mistake.

There are two types of survey available:

1. Homebuyer Survey/Valuation - This is the mid-range option as it is more expensive than the Mortgage Valuation but less than the Building Survey (see below).

It is a basic service and therefore more appropriate to properties in apparently good condition and conventionally constructed. The survey’s purpose is to highlight any pressing or significant defects and problems which are likely to have an overall impact on the value of the property.

The objective of the Homebuyer Survey is to provide a more in depth report which will assist the buyer in making an informed decision whether to proceed with the purchase and also whether the agreed price reflects the actual value. Moreover, the professional opinion of the surveyor as contained in his report will also set out particular features of the property which may possibly have an affect on the present value and potential future marketability.

2. Building Survey - Unlike the Homebuyer Survey, this is suitable for all types of property whether conventional or unconventional. The term “unconventional” encompasses properties that have an unusual construction, are historic or Listed Buildings, have been extensively altered or where major work is planned.

The Building Survey is comprehensive and lists full technical details of the construction, materials and condition. It highlights the full spectrum of defects from the more serious down to the insignificant and the terms of the survey are therefore tailored to fit the client’s specific needs.

However, it should be noted that this does not include a valuation and is only conducted by prior agreement.

Searches

These are conducted by the buyer’s solicitor who submits a local authority search to the local borough council. Its purpose is to ascertain if there is any planning consented previously granted on the property or if there are any other local issues which may have an impact on the purchase. In some instances, the search may also include an Environmental and Drainage search.

Draft Contracts

The draft contract is drawn up by the seller’s solicitor and is forwarded to the buyer’s solicitor for consideration. Any additional queries or questions will be asked and answered and the contract amended accordingly, subject to final approval.

Mortgage Offer

The Lender is now in possession of the Mortgage Valuation survey and, subject to the findings of this report; receipt/approval of the mortgage application and provided all references and checks have been conducted satisfactorily, the Lender will send a formal mortgage offer to the buyer and their solicitor. The document is then signed and returned and funds requested by the buyer’s solicitor.

Exchange of Contracts

Once the contract has been signed by both parties, a deposit (normally a small percentage of the purchase price) is paid by either bank transfer or banker’s draft. At this stage, the parties agree on a date for completion.

Completion

Completion usually follows a few days or weeks after exchange of contracts, timescales depend on the buyers, sellers, your respective solicitors and finance. The balance of the purchase price is transferred by the buyer’s solicitor to the seller’s solicitor and the keys released.

Congratulations! You are now the owner of your new home!

Details: Published: 11 July 2016; Hits: 932536

Warwick Estate Agents is a leading estate agent providing a comprehensive service to our customers, including Residential & Commercial Sales, Lettings and Management within NW10 (Kensal Green, Kensal Rise, Harlesden, Willesden Junction, Willesden), NW6 (Queens Park, Kilburn, Brondesbury Park, West Hampstead), NW2 (Mapesbury Estate, Cricklewood), W10 (Queens Park Estate, Ladbroke Grove), W9 (Maida Vale, Little Venice) and an uplift in the surrounding areas.

Working in the local area since 1998, creating an extensive database which is able to be utilsed, offering a comprehensive, multifaceted and innovative marketing strategies that are tailored to each instruction and are reflective of the independent nature of the firm.