Interested in the OR viewing service and whether its worth considering.
How long do you allow for each viewing and do you have some standard questions you ask. I’ve found the following list of questions to ask potential tenants during the viewing:
Are you planning to move in with anyone else who isn’t here today?
Will you be able to prove your ‘right to rent’?
When are you looking to move in?
How do you plan to pay the rent?
Any advice/feedback appreciated.
You need more questions than that
search this forum for viewing questions and you’ll probably dig up old posts on this. If not, tons of suggestions on the interwebs…
Erm depends how much to see- a five bed house with a garden will take longer than a studio flat? and some people will dawdle others will walk through in 5min. 15min per viewing is enough for most people max 20min and allows you to schedule multiple people in quick succession so people will see there ‘s plenty of interest. But choosing a new place is a big decision people don’t want to feel rushed. I certainly wouldn’t put more than 30min apart tho.
There are lots of lists of standard questions to ask tenants - search online or in fora like this- but most of them including these you should be asking either before or after a viewing. The main purpose of a viewing is for them to imagine themselves in a place and ask you any questions they have, not really for you to interview them.
You should ask people’s income, how many occupants and their occupations etc when they express an interest in viewing - there is no point in organizing a viewing with people who can’t afford it nor with a family of 5 if your property is only big enough for two etc. Otherwise you are wasting your time and theirs. And if they can’t provide basic info like that before viewing either their comms skills aren’t good enough or it’s suspicious. I think having right to rent is something I’d check before doing referencing but not before a viewing unless they have already eg told me they are foreign.
I wouldn’t ask when people when looking to move in during a viewing it’s presumptuous they may not like the place or even if they do may need to consider and negotiate an exit date at t h eir current place. Or they may well be looking at multiple places
The questions to ask in a viewing (if any) are the ones where you want to be able to see their face/response as it’s harder to lie to someone ‘s face. So eg
“I see you said you don’t smoke- can you confirm nobody who will be in the tenancy agreement is a smoker as I need to know for insurance purposes ‘
‘Can you confirm you don’t have or want to have any pets in the place?”
‘How long were you at current place and why are you leaving ?’
‘If we get to referencing, is there anything I should know about beforehand like CCJs’
-if they hesitate before answering or you think they are lying obv not good
also ‘Is there anything you want to ask me?’
and generally try to get to understand them a little bit and where they are in their renting journey - treating them as humans looking for a home to understand their wants and needs and desires not someone I’m trying to sell something to - remember it’s potentially the start of a business relationship you are trying to work out if you can trust then with your very valuable asset. If a couple I might well ask if their first time renting together. If previously in a houseshare before they may well volunteer why they now want own place etc. You might ask where they would be traveling to work esp if property is close to transport links or ask if they are familiar with the area. I might ask how long they have been looking or mention anything important about the property that’s not obvious/not in the advert (eg I have extractor fans on continuously at a v low inaudible level to avoid damp/mould issues; and I live locally a few miles away so can easily sort when/if there are any issues).
Good luck
In my opinion, you need to be asking those questions before you arrange a viewing. This will help you select those applicants that you consider you might be able to rent
I usually allow 20–25 minutes for flats, keep 10–15 mins between slots so people dont pile up, makes it less stressful for viewers. Ask who’s moving, move-in date, how they’ll pay rent, permission to take refs and check Right to Rent docs under the Immigration Act 2014, and ask about pets..saved me a couple of headaches personally.
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