What are the basic landlord responsibilities that you must adhere to?

Would you like to go and chill on a paradise holiday island? Read on and find out how Abode can make that happen for you!

We speak to a lot of landlords and we are often asked, “what are my basic landlord responsibilities?”

Worringly, it is amazing how many landlords do not know the full extent of what is actually required of them.

So I thought it might be useful to write a list of the very basics that as a landlord you should consider and what are your landlord responsibilities. The outline of this list has come from our friends at the NLA, a great resource for all landlords, whether you use an agent or self manage.

The Basic Landlord Responsibilities

1. Licensing – Make sure your property complies with HMO licensing and selective licensing rules if these apply in your area.
2. Energy Perfornance Certificate – This should be prepared by an accredited assessor and available before you market a property.
3. Electrical checks – Landlords must ensure that the electrical installation and appliances are safe prior to a tenancy.
4. Referencing – Use an established service to check your tenants’ ability to pay and that their financial and tenancy record is without blemish.
5. Right to Rent – It is the landlords responsibility to check the ID of all prospective adult tenants. Tenants must sign, date and retain a copy of the documents on file.
6. Tenancy Agreement – Make sure your AST sets out the expectations and legally binding obligations of both landlords and tenants.
7. Inventory Check In – Whether you do an inventory yourself or instruct an independent provider, make sure one is completed prior to move in.
8. Deposit Protection – You must place the tenants’ deposit in a government authorised tenancy deposit protection scheme within 30 days of move in.
9. Prescribed Information – It is the landlord responsibility to give this information to the tenant within 30 days of the deposit being protected.
10. Tenant information documents – All tenants in England must be given the Government’s “How to Rent” Documents.
11. Gas Safety – Organise an annual gas safety check, and provide your tenant with a copy of the inspection report as evidence this has been done.
12. Gas & Fire Safety – Depending on what locality your property is in, it is within the landlord responsibilities to make sure you comply with all the rules on smoke alarms and co2
13. Health & Safety – It is the landlords responsibility to make sure the property is safe and free from health hazards and keep it in a good state of repair.
14. Utilities – all utility and council tax bills must be put in th ename of the tenants.
15. Liaising with your tenant – You will need to be reachable during office hours so that you can respond to tenant queries promptly, and be aware of emergency calls out of hours and while you are on holiday.
16. Repairs – it forms part of the landlord responsibilities to establish a network of property professionals who can attend to repairs promptly and efficiently.
17. Renewing the tenancies – Diarise the tenancy end dates so that you can arrange the renew.
18. Ending the tenancy – you must follow strict legal procedures if you want tenants to leave your property, even if the fixed term has expired.

If all of the above is making you a bit like this……

Then you know that here at Abode we can take all the worry away from you (and as you can see we have very competitive Manchester landlords fees).

. As yes, you’ve guessed it, as part of our fully managed service we will arrange and take care of the full list of 18 landlord responsibilities. This means that you can get on with your life, which is busy enough already I am sure!!!

We are a team of property professionals, with systems and procedures in place so that all YOUR landlord responsibilities form OUR daily tasks and we LOVE doing them for you!

So please get in touch with Tracy today and see how we can relieve you of your landlord responsibilities and you can go and chill somewhere like this……