STUDENT LANDLORDS – TO RENT FOR 10, 11 or 12 MONTHS?

Traditionally there will often be a history of renting student houses for a particular period in your area and in ours it is either 10 or 11 months, however in a large nearby town it is almost always 12 months. Students usually pay the full rent for the whole of the tenancy regardless of whether it includes all or part of the summer holiday.

'Our houses are let for 12 months'

I have broken with tradition in our area. Our student houses are let for the full rent for 12 months. Our tenancies are from August 1st to July 31st. Students almost always check-out a couple of weeks before the end of their tenancy and we ask their permission to enter the property during this time to prepare for the next group of students. Having established a good relationship with the students and responded promptly to maintenance requests during the tenancy they always agree.

'So, why do students pay for 12 months, when locally most are 10 or 11 month lets?'

We have always quickly let all our properties, because we are in the higher quality end of the student market. There is a local accreditation scheme, run by the District Council, where landlords’ properties are inspected and awarded a certificate, which ranges from basic up to 5 star. All our properties are 5 star accredited and this enables us to charge a premium rent.

We also carefully researched the area and purchased properties in what students consider a more desirable area. Once students have compared our houses with others they almost always snap up our properties regardless of the length of the letting period.

There are some other good reasons to let for the full rent for 12 months.

Students may want to return or stay in their house during the summer holiday to work away from home. They may be on a longer course, for example, medical students and work placements or they may want to store their belongings (and often their many friends!) over the summer. We have known parents stay during this time for a cheap holiday in the area!

Financially landlords have to pay Council Tax and probably water rates and a mortgage during a void. Spreading the annual cost of these over a 10 or 11 month let raises your monthly rent. A property let over 12 months, will potentially bring in a greater annual rent, but could be offered at a comparatively lower monthly rent to other local shorter tenancies.

Renting properties to students is a business and landlords should seek to gain the maximum return on their investment and consider the challenge of promoting a longer let to the norm in their area. Most student properties are let at least six months before the start of the tenancy, so test the water and offer your houses initially for full rent for 12 months.

After your success, other local landlords may follow your example and you will never again have to consider offering your property for half rent over the summer period!

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