Our Service Details

Initial Setup

There will be quite a flurry of activity shortly after we receive your instruction, which will settle down after a couple of days.

Some of the things that will be happening are:

• Digital signing of the agency agreement between you and Western Lettings
• setting you up on our IT systems (SME landlord portal, Fixflo maintenance portal, and Asana)
• Identity checks.
• Introduction to your property manager
• Arrranging access for marketing photos
• Collection and copying of keys
• Instructing any maintenance tasks you’ve asked us to do prior to marketing

All of the IT systems are optional.  We’re happy to deal with you by email or telephone if that’s what you would prefer.

If there is more than one landlord, we may have to do a little more setup.

If there is more than one property, we’ll make sure you don’t get duplicate information about your property manager and our IT systems for each property.

Systems We Use

Although we have invested heavily in the systems described below, our aim is to provide an excellent customer experience for every client, including those who not wish to use any online system.

Landlord Portal (SME)

Your landlord portal is accessible from our website under landlords->landlord login.  Your login details will have been emailed to you shortly after we received your instruction.  Please get in touch if you need any help with logging in.  The portal contains the following information:

• landlord statements
• routine inspection reports
• invoices from contractors
• tenancy agreements
• inventories

You can also print bespoke statements for any of your managed properties for any time period.  This is very useful when preparing annual reports for tax purposes.

You can also see if any charges have been made against your next statement and if we are holding any rent on your behalf.

Maintenance App (Fixflo)

The Fixflo app is mainly used by tenants to report maintenance issues to Western Lettings.  However, you are able to download the app and engage with live maintenance issues should you wish to do so.  You will have received an invitation to download and log in to Fixflo shortly after we received your instruction.

Fixflo is used to instruct property compliance as well as ad hoc maintenance.  You will be notified when we are about to instruct any compliance.  You can log in and view compliance certificates at any time.

Letting Process (Asana)

We use Asana for managing all our internal workflows.  When a property is placed on the lettings market, we invite the landlord to collaborate on the task so they can see the steps involved.  You will be able to comment on progress and your property manager will respond directly in the shared task within Asana.  Instructions for setting up a free Asana account are sent out shortly after we receive your instruction.  Please get in touch if you need help with any aspect of setting up Asana.

Property Managers

Last, but not least, you have the support of your property manager.  Your property manager will have introduced themselves to you by email shortly after we received your instruction.  Part of our customer service pledge is that we will pick up your call within six rings and we will respond to your email on the same day, provided it is received before 4:30 PM.  Our intelligent phone system will route your call directly to your property manager or their backup, if they are unavailable.

Compliance

Part of our job is to ensure that all aspects of your property are compliant with current legislation.  By default, we will ensure that checks are made and, where work is required to bring your property up to the current standard, we will liaise with you to complete the work.  We have reasonably priced, qualified, insured and approved contractors.   If you have contractors who you’d prefer us to use for any aspect of compliance work, please let us know.

Certificates

We will normally instruct the following checks around six weeks prior to the expiry of the current certificate.

• Legionella Risk Assessment (LRA)
• Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR)
• Landlord Gas Safety Certificate (GSC)
• Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)
• Portable Appliance Testing (PAT)

Since an EPC is only required at the point of marketing, we will not normally re-instruct an expired EPC until a tenant serves notice.  Also, PATs will only be renewed either when a new tenant is about to move in or when an EICR has been instructed due to the expiry of the current certificate.

Heat and Smoke Detectors

Nearly all heat and smoke detectors have a ten-year life.  We will keep track of the renewal dates and instruct replacements to be fitted prior to the expiry date.  Current legislation does not require mains-powered detectors, so we will normally arrange for compliant battery-powered detectors to be installed.  When the expiring detectors are compliant and mains powered, we will normally replace them with mains-powered detectors.

Carbon Monoxide Detectors

These will be checked at each annual landlord gas safety inspection.  A replacement detector will be fitted where the installed one is non-compliant or close to expiry.

EICR Remedial Work

In some cases, upgrading of the electrical installation will be required to bring a property up to an acceptable standard for letting
purposes.  This is particularly true with older installations where an EICR has never been carried out previously.  If it is discovered at the point of the inspection that remedial work is required, our contractors will carry out the work as part of the inspection, if in their view, the installation can be brought up to an acceptable standard at a total cost of £150 or less.

Landlord Registration

Currently, it is not possible for us to complete these applications on a landlord’s behalf.  We therefore ask you to do it and then handle the renewal every three years.

Timing

If you elect to have Western Lettings instruct compliance work, we will normally wait until around a week before the tenancy starts before asking our contractors to do the work.  The reason we don’t instruct the compliance work earlier is simply that your situation may change, and you may decide not to let your property after all.  Our contractors are accustomed to working to hard deadlines and we will always inform them of the proposed check-in date so that they can schedule the work.

The only exception is when there is reason to believe that there may be remedial work required for a satisfactory electrical inspection.

If you decide to arrange the compliance work yourself, please forward the certificates to us in good time for your tenants’ check-in.  We will send a reminder around a week prior to the check-in.

Key Handling

How Many Sets?

We normally require one set of keys per tenant and one set for management purposes.  It makes things a lot easier for all concerned if we can get several sets early in the process, especially if you have asked us to do some improvements and/or maintenance before placing your property on the market.  When we have a new property which requires compliance, maintenance and marketing photos, the biggest single constraint on how quickly we can bring it to market is the number of sets of keys we have.  We get keys cut almost every day and achieve good discounts, which are passed on to you.

Security

All keys are numerically coded as soon as we receive them.  Nobody has access to the property address except our property managers.  We use state-of-the-art computerised key panels for storing the keys, so that we always know where every set is.  Each set has a tag which can be scanned by authorized contractors to view the property address on their mobile phone.

Marketing

Your property will be advertised on most of the letting portals available in Scotland, including Rightmove, Citylets, and S1 Homes.  Our own website is ranked in position number one for most letting related searches on Google.  We’ll capture good quality digital photographs as well as a 360 virtual tour.

All of our property descriptions are individually composed by the property manager who carried out the marketing photos.

Asking Rent

During our initial valuation we will have provided you with a recommended asking rent.  This suggested rent is designed to quickly attract good quality tenant applicants in the prevailing market.  If you would prefer to try a higher asking rent, we are always happy to do so.  While marketing is underway, your property manager will review progress at the end of each week.  If they feel there is something that could be done to improve appeal, they will get in touch with their suggestions.

Viewings

We normally review applicants as they apply using the “I’m interested” button on our website.  When your property manager has an applicant who ticks all the boxes, they will ask them for a holding deposit.  If they pay the holding deposit, we’ll let you know and, with your approval, proceed to referencing.  At the same time they will be invited for an in-person viewing.

Viewing Notifications

If you, or any relative or friend, are resident in your property while it is on the market, we will notify you by text at least 24 hours prior to any viewing taking place.   You can always cancel the viewing at that point.  If you wish to place any constraints on available viewing times, just let us know and we can implement them.  If a viewer cancels, you will be notified straight away.  If you’d like regular reports on viewings just let us know and we can have them emailed to you.  We will review activity levels when your property is on the market and inform you when we believe action should be taken to generate more activity.

Securing Tenants

We will always honour your preferences when screening applicants, in terms of

• students
• mature students
• pets

When we find an applicant who meets your preferred profile and who we believe to be a good candidate, we’ll ask them to pay a holding deposit.  They will be given one business day to make the payment before we move to the next applicant.  If they pay the holding deposit, we will contact you to let you know and ask if you’d like us to proceed with referencing.  Basic information about your applicant will be shared at this stage.

If we receive approval from you we’ll start the refencing, which normally takes a day or two.  We use an external agency to gather the referencing material.  When we receive the references, they will be  shared with you.

Assuming the referencing doesn’t raise any concerns, we’ll start arranging things for your tenant’s check-in.

Prior to the check-in, we must ensure all compliance is in place, the inventory is up to date and the property is in good condition for the tenancy start date.  Shortly before the check-in date, after we’ve received the balance of the rent and security deposit, we’ll prepare the tenancy agreement for digital signing. Each tenant and their guarantor (if they have one) will be invited to sign the agreement.  When all tenants and guarantors have signed, we will sign on your behalf.

If the tenant has one or more pets for which you have given approval, we will draft a pet agreement for them to sign.

All documents will be uploaded to your landlord portal.  This may include

• tenancy agreement
• inventory
• invoices for compliance updates
• pet agreement

Compliance certificates themselves will be available on your Fixflo app, if you have chosen to download it.

Avoiding Dodgy Tenants

The main way to avoid dodgy tenants is to set the asking rent at a level which will attract good quality applicants.  It will then be straightforward to select an applicant who is a good fit for your property and who also looks likely to sail through referencing.

Security Deposits

Current Legislation

The legislation allows us 30 working days to protect your tenant’s security deposit in one of the three approved government schemes.  We also have to provide your tenants with a Prescribed Information Sheet, which details  where and when the deposit was protected.  The maximum deposit permitted is two months’ rent.

How Much Security Deposit Is Due?

We normally ask for one months’ rent plus £200.  If you have agreed to allow your tenant to keep a pet, we’ll draw up a pet agreement and ask for an additional £200.  If the deposit amount is too high, it could discourage some good quality applicants.  The deposit amount will be detailed in the tenancy agreement and in the prescibed information sheet provided to your tenants.

Tenant Check-in

You will be notified of the planned check-in date following the completion of satisfactory referencing of your tenant applicants.    We will ensure everything is in place and visit your property one or two days prior to the check-in to capture check-in photos and meter readings.  The utility companies (gas, electricity and council tax) will be notified.

On the day of their check-in, tenants will collect keys from our office.  The following documents will be shared with them using cloud storage:

• PRT tenancy agreement and easy-read notes
• compliance certificates
• condensation factsheet
• tenant information sheet
• client money protection certificate
• balance receipt

The property inventory will be provided to them via the Inventory Hive app.

The first routine property visit will be scheduled for six weeks after the tenancy start date.

Scheduling

We normally schedule check-ins to take place a minimum of two business days after the previous occupant moves out.  This allows one full business day for updating any compliance, carrying out a check-out inspection, cleaning, check-in photos and dealing with any maintenance issues.  Please bear this in mind when scheduling your move prior to your tenant’s check-in appointment.

Pre-tenancy Cleaning

If you have asked us to take care of this on your Management Information Form, there will be no issues. We only use tried and tested cleaning contractors who are familiar with the standard that is expected.  If you have opted to organise it yourself, your property manager will verify that your property is up to scratch prior to the check-in.  Tenants can be very demanding, and we want to do everything we can to ensure that we get off on the right foot.  If any issues are discovered, your property manager will get in touch to try and resolve them before the check-in.  Bear in mind that the pre-tenancy clean prior to the first tenancy is the only one you should ever have to fund.

Mattress Protectors

Where appropriate, we will install replacement mattress protectors prior to the start of each tenancy.
A charge of £15 will be applied for each protector.  This will avoid disputes with tenants and prolong the life of your mattresses.

Routine Property Visits (Inspections)

Inspections, or routine property visits, (as we prefer to call them) start six weeks after the start of the tenancy and will normally be scheduled at six monthly intervals afterwards.  If we discover a good reason to attend sooner, we will.

Purpose

By doing regular routine property visits, we send a clear signal to your tenants that any serious breaches of the tenancy agreement will be discovered and dealt with.  This signalling is the single biggest reason for doing them.  During a routine property visit we will check the following:

• breaches of the tenancy agreement
• major maintenance issues such as roofing, gutters, leaks
• garden maintenance
• issues with dampness or condensation

If your tenants are present we will make sure there are no issues with maintenance that they have not yet reported.

Property visits are not intended to address lifestyle issue such as poor cleanliness or general untidiness, unless it is likely to cause excess wear and tear to your property.

Reports

You will receive an inspection report on your landlord portal on the day of the inspection.  The report will be date and time-stamped and signed off by the person who carried out the visit.  Where possible, the visit will be carried out by your property manager.  We never out-source routine property visits.

Maintenance & Repairs

We have a good selection of reasonably priced tradesmen available for maintenance work on your property.  We will take action to handle any issue which we believe can be resolved for less than £150.  If your property manager believes the work will cost more than £150, they will consult with you before taking action.  Even when we act without consultation, you will be informed by email immediately, so there will always be time to intervene if you are not happy with the action we’ve proposed.  If your tenant reports an emergency, we will act immediately in any case.

Fixflo

If you’re interested, you can download the Fixflo app to keep tabs on any on-going repairs or maintenence at your property.  You should have received an email explaining how to get started with the app.

White Goods Repairs

The normal process for handling reported issues with white goods is to have our regular contractor visit to attempt a repair.  If the appliance is deemed uneconomical to repair, they will supply a quote to supply and install a like-for-like replacement.  The quote will include removal of the old appliance, and the original call-out to attempt a repair.

Preferred Contractors

If you have preferred contractors, we are more than happy to work with them as long as they have public liability and professional indemnity insurance.  If they are unwilling to collect keys, we will deliver and collect them at a cost of £30+VAT.

Dealing With Factors

We will deal with factors on your behalf as part of our standard service.  This includes liaising with them about common repairs and dealing with them in the event of an insurance claim (if they handle the building policy).  They will normally require an email from you authorizing them to deal with us on your behalf.

For overseas landlords, we will settle factor bills and recover the outlays from rent if you would like us to do so.

Rent Processing

We normally set the rent due date to the date of the month on which the tenancy started.  If the tenancy started on the eighth day of the month, the rent will be due on the eighth day of every month.  This means we receive rent for some properties every business day.  The accumulated balance of the rent account is paid out to landlords each Tuesday and Friday.  The payments are set to be paid on the next business day, which will be a Wednesday and Monday (unless bank holidays delay payments).

You will receive a statement by email each time a rent payment is processed, which will be uploaded to your landlord portal at the same time.

Any charges or invoices from contractors will be itemized on your statement.  You can view any invoice by clicking on the relevant statement line.  All invoices are also permanently available on your landlord portal.

Rent Part Payments

Sometimes tenants who are sharing will pay their rent on different dates. If a payment run is made on a date between receipt of the two part payments you will receive the balance of the first part payment.

Tenant Check-Out

Provided we have done our job well during the tenancy, check-out inspections should proceed without drama.  Good tenants in well managed properties tend to pay their rent and behave well in the run-up to the end of their tenancy.  We will send them an explainer video and check-out instructions in good time, so that they are aware of what is expected of them.  We’ll capture photos where appropriate and make updates to the inventory.  You will receive a check-out report from your property manager detailing their findings.

Sometimes there will be proposals such as cleaning or redecoration.  Any cleaning required will be taken from the departing tenant’s security deposit.  If there is any dispute, we will attempt to reach an agreement which you are happy with.  If an agreement cannot be reached, we will enter dispute on your behalf.

Meter readings will be taken and passed to you and the utility companies.  The council tax office will also be informed.

Final Rent Payments

Because most tenants are able to end their tenancy at any time by giving 28 days’ notice, their final rent payment will normally not be for a full month.  We will calculate the pro-rata amount and let them know.

Security Deposit Deductions

Security deposit deductions can be made to compensate you for any loses which you incur as a result of unreasonable behaviour by your tenant. Unfortunately there are too many potential deposit deductions to cite them all here.

In the majority of cases we are able to agree deductions for things like cleaning and garden maintenance without the need to go to dispute with tenants.

Where a dispute is unavoidable, the burden of proof falls on the landlord.  If Western Lettings was your agent at the start of the tenancy, we should have the evidence to support any claim.  If we don’t, and you suffer a loss as a consequence, we will make an appropriate compensation payment to you.

Mail Handling

You should arrange for your mail to be re-directed.  When we discover mail for you at viewings or inspections, we will bring it to our office and let you know we are holding it so that you can let us know what to do with it. We can forward it, dispose of it, or hold it for collection.  If we don’t hear from you, we will hold it for 30 days and then dispose of it.

Our Pledge

Our customer pledge:

• If we mess up, we mop up.  If we make an error that results in a financial loss for you, we will make good the loss as well as compensate you for the hassle.
• We guarantee to answer your call within six rings.  If you call us and your call goes to voicemail before we answer, we will credit your account with one months’ management fee.
• We guarantee to respond to your emails on the same day.  If you send us an email before 4:30 PM on a business day and we fail to respond on the same day, we will credit your account with one months’ management fee.

We are not aware of any other letting agent who offers a service guarantee this solid.

There are no tricks here.  We’re not sending your calls to an answering service who will promise to get someone to call you back, of making automated responses to emails to meet the guarantee.

When you call our main number, our intelligent call routing system will direct your call to your property manager.  The majority of the time they will pick up and resolve your issue.  If they are not available, the call will route to their backup.  And if they are not available, it will go to the whole team.

There can be no doubt that this is a tricky business to nail.  Nevertheless, that’s what we’re aiming to do.  We discuss and improve processes every day to make the service increasingly robust, so that the chance of us having to pay compensation because we made a mistake is minimal.