Cancelling my tenant find contract with my letting agent

Landlord Discussion
1

Hi,
I am on Open rent trying to find a tenant and also put this with another letting agent for tenant find only. They have only provided 2 viewings, one of which I sent them from open rent. Can I cancel my contract with this letting agent and continue to do tenant find myself via Open rent?
Regards Helen

2

Hi Helen, I would say it depends on your contract with the agent.
We have been through similar and have had to give 3 months notice to our current agent.
We are attempting our first property on open rent and will decide what to do with the other 2 based on our experience. However we have already found we have done probably 10x more viewings than he ever did due to his lack of advertising.

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3

Yes, I am having the same, finding my own tenants via Open rent whilst the letting agent is doing nothing.
I cannot see anything in the contract I signed to say I can’t cancel them. Just wondering if other people have this experience.

4

some of you must have bad letting agents I have just let two places thru an agent >They sorted thru the applicants and I was very happy. My partner advertised thru Openrent and sifted thru 104 applicants she was tired but also happy. Whatever floats your boat.

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5

What did the agent say when you asked them?

6

I have not asked them yet. I am just trying to find out if I am tied in.

7

read the contract or ask them

8

oh they’ll definitely tell you… and if you pop in with your contract handy, I’m sure they’ll very eagerly help you find the clause. If not, you can hand them the letter giving them notice that you’ll have prepared anyway.

9

Nothing in the contract and no terms and conditions!
Yes, will ask them, just checking to see if anyone else had this experience.

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10

Well, I’ve had the experience of ending a contract with a letting agent. The contract stated that 3 months’ notice were required so that’s what I gave. It didn’t matter when I gave that notice. With one agent I did it immediately after they found a tenant for me because I returned from overseas to live in the UK between them finding a tenant and the tenants moving in.

11

Thanks that useful. Did you have to pay a penalty to the agent?

12

No because I made sure that I read the contracts carefully before I signed them (two different agents) and I knew that there was no financial penalty but only a notice period.

I’m always amazed that many people don’t actually read every word of contracts that they legally bind themselves to. If I’d realised this in my teens, I would have become a lawyer :laughing: