William Sykes & Son have been letting and managing property for many years now and we have an ever increasing and diverse portfolio of property on our books.

Our charges for handling rented property are simply 10% of the rent collected from the tenants.  Charges do not start until a property is let and generating income, so we get paid when you get paid, not before.  It is thus of mutual benefit to find a suitable tenant quickly.

For the 10% fee we will visit the subject property to take measurements, descriptions and photographs to prepare letting details and discuss the requirements of the landlord including the all important rent to be asked.

The 10% fee includes ‘To Let’ board, letting details, inclusion on our own website and Rightmove.co.uk

It does not include any newspaper advertising but this can be arranged separately in addition to the basic fee if so required.  We would however not incur any costs without a client’s prior permission.

Once we have attracted a prospective tenant then we ask for a credit reference and another professional or personal reference normally from employers or previous landlords and we use the services of a referencing and credit checking company, all costs are paid for by the prospective tenant.

All new lettings are Assured Shorthold Tenancies governed by the relevant Housing Acts, which by law would give a minimum of six months security of tenure to a tenant and therefore six months income to the landlord.

The agreement would contain a brief schedule of condition, which would also, list the fixtures and fittings left in the property, and in addition to the rent we would also take a separate returnable bond.  This is usually equal to at least a month’s rent, which we would hold throughout the tenancy and only return to the tenant at the end of the letting once we have made an outgoing inspection and made any deductions for any damage caused or outstanding monies

We will arrange to take meter readings at the property and inform the necessary utility companies and authorities that there has been a change of occupier.

Throughout the tenancies we arrange to make regular inspections of property to check on the condition so as to identify and then rectify any problems that might occur.

We are normally the first point of contact for tenants should they have any difficulty or problems at a property and with landlords authority we can then arrange for any remedial action to be taken.

The residential lettings are headed up by John Firth, a fully qualified member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) who has a degree in Rural Enterprise and Land Management and a Higher National Diploma in Land Administration (Estate Management) and who also has many years experience in rented property in various different locations but especially the Holme Valley and surrounding areas.