Staying a Step Ahead – London Lettings Market

The London lettings market is unique in its competitiveness and demands. As rents rise so do tenants' expectations. Rupert Collingwood of the London Management Company offers some pointers on realising the full benefit of your investment

Owning a property in prime central London, is a significant investment, and one, much like any other asset class in the worldly goods portfolio that has to be well maintained and managed to ensure that its intrinsic value is protected.

A no-frills 2 bedroom flat in a prime location in central London currently sells for in excess of £2m. Its rental value can be well over £1,000 per week. With a rent bill of £52,000 per annum, tenants will quite rightly expect their property to be kept in prime condition with any necessary repairs fixed in a timely and professional manner.

With increasing numbers of absentee landlords owning and letting in London, this burgeoning supply of rental property means that tenants have more choice as to where and with whom they rent. By definition, these properties run the gauntlet of being vacant for longer periods. In fact, for every month that a property stands empty, its overall yield can be reduced by as much as 8%. With rental yields in central London rarely breaking the 3% barrier, such a figure is hard to ignore. It stands to reason therefore, that a good property management service can have a significant impact on top line returns.

Good management doesn’t however just apply to rental property. As a rule of thumb, homeowners should spend approximately 1% of the value of their house on its upkeep every year. In London this is perhaps a little conservative given price growth versus inflation, however the principal remains the same. Running and maintaining a property is, in reality, no different to maintaining a car or a yacht. Servicing the engine, replacing the fluids, repairing dents and scratches and cleaning the windows are no different to servicing a property’s boiler, flushing the plumbing system, repainting the sashes and yes, cleaning the windows.

Offering a prospective tenant a professionally managed property in London speaks volumes – not only about an owner’s property, but also about them as a landlord. It minimises their need for involvement and helps ensure the tenancy follows a positive pathway, and perhaps, more importantly, that their property’s asset value is protected.

The London Management Company understands that running a property from long distance is far from straight forward. It’s for this very reason that our clients retain our services to manage their London investments and homes on their behalf. We cover every aspect of owning a house or a flat, either as a Homeowner, Landlord, Property Professional or Freeholder. From the annual service of your boiler to organising a fully project managed refurbishment of your home, we can take care of it all.

Our services enable clients to concentrate on important matters such as family or work, whilst we devote our attention to ensuring the home runs smoothly. We attend to alarms, trim the wisteria, service the boiler, make sure the property is secure and much more.

We only use contractors with whom we have positive experiences over many years. Our aim is to build enduring relationships with clients ensuring confidence that when they work with us, they are using a team they can trust to care for their assets.

All of our clients are granted access to our management portal which includes an online site as well as Ipad, Iphone and Android apps. From here they can inform us of maintenance and other issues, order an array of services as well as track the progress of the tasks we have to do. Our system offers our clients a unique way of managing their property no matter where they are in the world.

For more information on the products and services provided by The London Management Company, please visit: www.thelondonmanagementcompany.com