Deposit - PHEW just made it!

It's one of the things being a landlord that you often have to juggle a number of balls at the same time.  Property management, a career, family, domestic commitments.

All this makes it very easy to overlook critical things, actions and events.  Take for instance, my own recent example.  I have just let a property to a new tenant.  The check in and property handover was carried out be my letting agent who transferred the rent and deposit straight into my rental account.  Given that all this was automatic I sat back and forgot about the letting and carried on with my very busy life.

Sudden panic

Then a few day ago, just before I was going to bed I suddenly had a horrible thought.  'Did I protect my new tenants deposit?'.  This has been a requirement since April 2007.  However, the legislation has recently been tightened removing the loopholes that existed to allow landlords to avoid prosecution. The answer that came thudding back was NO......  arrrgh!  I rushed to the internet convinced that I had 30 days now to protect the deposit from initial receipt but not so sure when the letting agent had collected my deposit.

Protected deposit at midnight & slept a lot easier

This incident just highlights that when you are running a rental business whether small or large you have to keep your witts about you.  Having found the DPS website I sat about protecting my tenants deposit. I was still also required to send the tenant the prescribed information on how I decided to protect their deposit.  Luckily now Property Hawk's PM 3.0 allows you to create the correct section 213 notice and then email them directly.  I managed to both protect my new tenants deposit and send him the new 213 notice all before midnight.  Then bed!  I slept well.

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