Good News For Landlords

As a property landlord, I think I can confidently state that it seems rare we ever receive good news. When the telephone rings and it is one of the tenants or the letting agent on the other end, the conversation always seems to start with Im sorry to trouble you with this Mr Darraugh, but ... .... There is no escape either when you open the paper to discover that the government has introduced another restriction that affects our profitability, and certainly never any respite from the Royal Mail. So, it is with a certain light-fingeredness that I write about guaranteed net rental schemes for landlords.

A small number of innovative companies have appeared, offering guaranteed net rental schemes for landlords willing to sign their properties over on a long lease basis. There appear to be so many benefits attached to these schemes, it is difficult to know where to begin. The first one, in the context of my opening paragraph, would be that there is no more contact with tenants or letting agents. Once you agree to the company taking over the lease, they handle all of the hassle relating to finding a tenant, collecting the rent, maintaining the property and dealing with any payments. No more telephone calls, no letters in the post and government can jolly well do what they like, because my income is guaranteed for the foreseeable future.

One of the more exceptional bonuses of the scheme is that the guarantee covers any time when the property is between tenancies so, no more rental voids and consequent lack of revenue. I was also very keen on the fact that the maintenance, inspection visits and utility bills are also taken care of by the leasing company and that I now have a completely hands-free investment earning me money rather than causing me continual headaches. Good news indeed!

Obviously, I have done a fair amount of research into these schemes and there is the Doubting Thomas (also known as Mrs Darraugh) who insists that if it seems too good to be true, then it usually is. However, having calculated the income from the guaranteed net rental scheme against the costs and time (and grief) that I will be saving, I honestly believe that I will be far better off financially.

My only problem was going to be how I would spend all the additional time I had on my hands. Apparently, Mrs Darraugh has organised plans for me already. Oh well. Maybe it is not all good news after all!


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Oliver J Darraugh writes independently on the profits and losses of long lease letting for landlords.