We have been voted the number 1 letting and estate agent for customer reviews in Gateshead on allAgents, the UK’s largest directory of reviews. So how...
We have been voted the number 1 letting and estate agent for customer reviews in Gateshead on allAgents, the UK’s largest directory of reviews.
So how do you tell a good letting agent from a bad one?
What I find strange is when a new landlord comes across to us because of a bad experience with another agent, they did not do any research on that agent before choosing them. At NGU Homelettings we all work hard and want to be the best in the industry. I personally pride myself on my work ethic, high standards and my relentless will to succeed. I work from 5:00am in the morning till 7:30pm at night. This work ethic is upheld by both my staff and I and has allowed me to categorically answer the top 8 questions you need to ask to find out if a letting agent is any good.
Here are the top 8 questions to ask:
1) What do your online customer reviews say about you?
Answer – they voted us the number 1 agent!
http://www.allagents.co.uk/league-tables/gateshead/
2) Are you a member of any regulated organisation unlike an average run of the mill letting agent?
Answer – we are proud to be a member of the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA). There are only a handful of letting agents in the North East who are a member of this.
3) How long have you been doing this work?
Answer – we started the company in 2007 and like you we are landlords ourselves so we have a profound understanding of this business. We currently own over 150 properties and we started NGU Homelettings because we felt that there was a gap in the market for a letting agent who was not just your average 9 to 5. We offer longer opening hours to allow more enquires to be captured and give personalised feedback to landlords when a property becomes empty. Operationally we have broken down the company into specific parts meaning there is one person solely dedicated to inbound rent, one for outbound rent, one handling inbound maintenance and another responsible for outbound maintenance etc. This allows each individual team member to be an expert in their field as opposed to the traditional letting agent model where staff performance is expected to be acceptable in each area rather than excellent in a specific role.
4) What qualifications do you hold?
Answer – we have committed to put every one of our staff members through the Association of Residential Letting Agents training program. At the end of the year every member of the team will have an industry recognised qualification. I do not know of any other letting agent in the North East which is committing to something like this.
5) How big is your lettings operation?
Answer – we encourage any new landlord to speak to us and come to our office so you can see the scale of our operation. We have 17 different team-members who are here to make sure your investment property is looked after. If you would like to speak to some of our current landlords to see what they think, please do
6) Can you provide me with any evidence/stats that demonstrate your performance?
Answer – this is where most letting agents will just fill you with sales talk. I like to sum it up with the most important fact that effects all landlords-money in your back pocket!
RENT IN 2013-
-Rents up 3% in a falling North-East market.
-99.9% rent collection within one month of being due.
-Collection of historic arrears from previous tenancy’s. Rent collected vs expected rent was 100.4% (we recovered historic debt when taking on sitting tenants).
7) How much do your services cost?
Answer – we offer half price management to any new landlord’s as a way of showing what we can do. For the first 6 months the management fee is half price at 5% plus VAT.
8) Is it difficult or time consuming to transfer my property across to another letting agent?
Answer – we are not charging a handing over fee to take your property on in the month of November – we will do all the running around for you to make the process hassle free!
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Never Give Up
Chris Fitzakerley
Managing Director
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