Monday 13 October 2014

New code will help tenants and landlords

The Private Rented Sector Code of Practice endorsed, and commissioned, by the Government and drawn up by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has launched.


Another 16 industry bodies, including ARLA and The Property Ombudsman to which, with RICS, we are affiliated, joined RICS in its creation. Some key points of the code affecting landlords are:

- Landlords should choose agents who are members of an accredited body; belong to an independent redress scheme; have client money protection; and have insurances such as professional indemnity.

- Agents should keep client money separate, in a dedicated client account which should be in credit at all times and kept in an FCA-authorised bank or building society. Any interest earned on client money should be credited to the client or tenant.

-Agents should declare any commission received from the repair and maintenance contractors at the time that estimates for work are provided to the landlord.

-Carbon monoxide detectors should be provided in all properties with a gas or solid fuel appliance.

Electrical certificates should be provided to the tenant. Full wiring tests should be carried out every ten years (five years in HMOs). There should also be regular portable appliance tests (PATs).

-If the tenant refuses access, neither landlord nor agent can enter without a court order.


It’s all fairly straightforward but the difficulty has always been that many tenants, and quite a number of landlords, don’t know what to look for when they are seeking a property to live in or, in the case of a landlord, someone to manage a letting on their behalf.

Hopefully, this new guidance will make life easier for those who need to buy rather than rent and we are looking to put all parts of it into practice.

The Code can be downloaded here.

Lisa Simon, 
Partner Head of Residential Lettings
T: 020 7518 3234 

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