Big city council raises stakes to undercut letting agencies
City of York Council's YorHome agency is offering 12-months' upfront rent and cash for improvements to new landlord customers - and says its management fee is lower than agents.
Letting agents in York are facing stiff competition for landlords from an unusual source: the local council.
City of York Council’s own letting agency YorHome is upping the stakes by making a series of special offers to attract new landlord customers.
Rent upfront
The council says it is already offering probably the lowest management fees in the city, at 9% for an all-in package, but is now also throwing in 12-months’ rent upfront and extra cash for home improvements.
We keep landlords costs lower.”
YorHome says its fees are 3% lower than any other agency ‘we’ve seen in York’.
“We keep landlords costs lower still by not charging any extra for inventories or extending a tenancy, for example: it’s just one flat fee,” the not-for-profit agency says.
“Landlords staying with us won’t have to pay the fifth year’s fees, either.”
The agency says some of the homes will be let to refugees.
Running a not-for-profit letting agency means our focus is on the landlords and tenants.”
Michael Pavlovic, Executive Member for Housing at City of York Council, says: “Running a not-for-profit letting agency means our focus is on the landlords and tenants, and giving both outstanding support to ensure properties are well-managed and profitable.
“I’m delighted that we can offer these market-beating benefits for new landlords signing up with us.”
There are other examples of council-run agencies, including Wigan and Salford, which also offers a rent guarantee scheme for a 15% fee. Salford Property Link’s standard full management service costs 10%.
Is this really what the business people in York pay their Business Rates for to fund the council to undercut them. This is a massive loss waiting to happen you simply cannot do the job at 9% with every fifth year free that works out at 7.2% which hardly covers salaries let alone inflation linked pensions. Then to give free money to upgrade properties is bonkers as people will take that then rent the property for a year or until the tenant moves out then sell it with the benefit of the upgrades.
I just find it worrying that the people running this country at all levels seem to have no grasp of basic economics.
How good are York council at doing the basics of running a council? Collecting the bins/rubbish, potholes in roads, crime etc etc?
Jeremy’s comment is bang on, when you are using other peoples money Ie the local tax payer’s then there is no risk for them.
I suggest they stick to the washing. And when they can fill potholes, deal with crime and remove the rubbish then ask the people of York, the voters, if they want their money (For it is THEIR MONEY) used for this ridiculous vanity projects.
If we all had the opportunity to use someone else’s money and were unaccountable for losses, we could cut our fees. Unfortunately we do not have council tax payers money to throw around, as with other such council schemes, this is a vanity/pr project, not a business. When it goes wrong, as they all seem to, everyone involved will just move to another carriage on the civil service gravy train until they can draw their gold plated pensions also paid for by tax payers!
They on another planet. It’s been tried many times, noticeably so with failed Nottingham Council. They need to be doing it for free and paying us double, as they give us the crap tenants and leave the house a mess and as Jeremy says, it goes wrong and the staff member moves on absolving theirself of all responsibility. We left with the mess