If you’re considering renting out a property, or you already are, it’s important to know your responsibilities as a landlord and to be aware of any potential issues when renting out your property.

Renting out a property ultimately guarantees an income, as the tenants will pay you rent. However, the money you gain from renting can quickly turn into money that needs to be spent maintaining your property.

We’ve put together a short guide to help landlords be mindful of their responsibilities and regulation checks so that you can be prepared for any challenge that’s thrown your way.

1. Be sure that your property is right for rental

Renting a property is no small feat. There are many elements that go into a successfully rented property, and it’s important to be aware of what they are.

• Location—Your property should be in an area that suits what people are looking for. Letting agents usually have good knowledge and advice about property locations.
• Cost to renovate - Properties can sometimes seem like a good investment, but then cost a lot to repair. Check that it’s within your budget and be aware that unexpected costs could crop up. 
• Tax - Be aware of how taxes will affect your rental income. It most likely won’t be the same as where you personally live, such as income tax.
• Choosing tenants - It’s hard to know which tenants will pay on time, be good to their neighbours, and look after the property. Working with a letting agent can make this easier.

2. Meet the HHSRS Criteria

HHSRS stands for the Housing Health and Safety Rating System. It’s put in place by your local council to ensure that properties in the area are safe for people to live in. There can often be health and safety issues in rented properties, but the local authority inspects properties to ensure they are safe for tenants.

The inspectors check for hazards in the home, where they can give you an improvement notice, bill you for the changes that need to be made, or stop you from renting out the property. This is why it’s important that your property is free of hazards. 

Plus, hazard inspections ultimately protect the health and safety of your tenants and your property because a hazard could ruin the property and the tenants' health and safety.

You can find out more about how to protect your tenant’s health and safety here! {Link to blog about H&S}

3. Check the pipe systems in the house

The landlord is absolutely responsible for ensuring that the pipework in the house works safely. Pipework is used for boilers, central heating, water and gas pipes, and radiators. They’re an essential part of the home, and plumbing issues in a rented property will severely disrupt the ability to live in the property.

The Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 outlines a landlord's legal obligation to ensure that the property has a supply of heating and hot water and that it is consistently repaired. Boiler issues in a rented property must be fixed as soon as possible because a broken boiler means there’s no hot water or heating. 

A decent amount of time is given to a landlord to fix pipe issues, and it must be done within this time. Failure to carry out these duties puts the tenants and the property at risk.

4. Gas safety checks

In any property, the gas supply and appliances must be safe. They should be checked regularly by a gas-safe registered engineer and repaired and fitted by them too. It’s the landlord’s responsibility to ensure these checks are carried out to ensure the safety of the tenants and the property.

5. Electrical safety checks

To ensure that tenants are safe in a rented property, it is the landlord's job to ensure that the electrics are safe. This requires regular checks of the electrical system, as well as a qualified electrician to check the electrical safety of the property. 

It’s also important to keep the safety report until the next test is due and provide the tenant with a copy of the report. If safety checks are not done, faults with the electricity may lead to electrical fires.

6. Fire safety checks

Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms should be checked regularly and placed in the correct positions within the property.

Fire doors and extinguishers are also useful in a property as they provide another element of protection against fire.

Steps should also be taken to prevent fires, such as following the above details about electrical safety.

7. Be available if the tenants require it

Sometimes unexpected events can happen, including the power supply in the house going out. Ideally, your rental property should not be a long commute from where you live so that you can access it quickly if necessary.

This might involve checking the fuse box, getting help to fix it, or contacting the tenant’s electricity supplier to understand why there is a problem.

As a landlord, you shouldn’t be ‘on-call’, but if there’s an issue or fault, it is your responsibility to handle it. Being close and available to help fix it will keep the issues short-term, preventing them from developing into bigger problems.

8. Invest in Landlord Insurance

Even the most reliable tenants can face financial difficulties. They might have been made redundant, experienced personal issues, or just can’t find the money for one month. As a landlord, what are you meant to do if this happens?

To prevent losing out on rental income, Rent Guarantee Insurance is an incredible way to ensure that you still receive rent even when your tenants can’t pay it or withhold rent.

To help with rental damages, you can claim Contents Insurance, which protects all property contents against theft or damage.

Buildings Insurance covers the cost of repairing or rebuilding your property if it is damaged in a fire, flood, storm, falling trees, or vandalism. It also covers malicious damage by tenants.

Landlord Liability Insurance includes cover for any injury to third parties or damage to the property. If you’ve followed the previous steps, these issues should not occur, but the insurance is there as peace of mind.

9. Keep on top of maintenance works

It’s natural for a house to become worn down, externally and internally gradually. It’s up to the landlord to keep it looking presentable and liveable.

• Insulation should be kept to a high standard. This would lower heating costs because better insulation would trap more heat.
• Gaps and cracks in the walls need to be fixed, as do windows that don’t seal properly.
• Ensure that light fittings and furniture are of good quality.
• Keep track of how old your appliances are (dishwasher, fridge/freezer, etc.) and ensure they work to a good standard.

How LetsInsure Can Help

LetsInsure is an experienced provider of Rent Guarantee Insurance, Home Emergency Assistance, and Deposit Replacement Insurance for landlords of rental properties. We offer personalised protection and compliance with professionalism and specific attention to detail.

If you want to ensure that you and your property are safe from potential issues and hazards, you can sign up to our services for free or contact us with any questions you may have and we will be more than happy to help!