Terms
Fees and Terms for Tenants
We take pride in operating with transparency at all times.
Please see below for our terms & conditions and fees for tenants
Standard tariff of tenant charges
Douglas & Gordon want you to be aware of the circumstances where you may incur a fee or charge in relation to a tenancy arranged through us, including during the application process. This Tariff details the current fees and charges, which include VAT at 20%. The fees and charges shown are payable to, and will be invoiced by, us.
This document does not contain details of sums which may be payable to a landlord under a tenancy agreement. You must refer to the terms of the tenancy agreement for this information. It also does not contain details of other costs associated with renting a property, such as gas, electricity, water, telephone, TV licence, Council Tax, and contents insurance. These will all be your responsibility, however, not your landlord’s.
We reserve the right to amend the fees and charges in this Tariff to reflect changes in our operating costs. A copy of the up to date Tariff at any time can be obtained from www.douglasandgordon.com. Where you have signed an Information and Terms & Conditions for Tenants Form no fees and charges in any amended Tariff will affect you unless the amendments are expressly permitted by that Form and have been notified to you.
Tenancy Admin fee - Only applies to non-AST tenancy agreements
Payment is due at the time of payment of deposit and first instalment of rent. Note: the figure shown is the tenant’s usual contribution to the total cost of administering the tenancy and assumes the landlord is using Douglas & Gordon to prepare the tenancy. The fee may vary in other circumstances.
Amount: £500.00 including VAT
Extension of tenancy fee - Only applies to non-AST tenancy agreements
Payable to cover the administration if a tenancy is extended beyond its original term. Payment is due before the extension agreement is signed by the landlord.
Amount: £250.00 including VAT
Replacement, removal or adding a tenant fee
Payable to cover the administration should a tenant(s) in a shared property be replaced by another tenant (with the consent of the landlord). Payment is due before the new tenancy agreement or deed of assignment is signed by the landlord.
Amount: £50.00 including VAT for the first tenant and £15 including VAT for every tenant thereafter within the same change
Mandatory smoke alarm safety test Amount £75.00 (inc VAT)
Early Release fee (with the consent of the Landlord)
To cover the equivalent of the letting fee paid by the Landlord in advance for the term of the tenancy. This includes agreements that have been renewed, extended or where a replacement, removal or adding a tenant has taken place.
Amount: Fee varies based on the number of months remaining on the tenancy agreement.
To cover the Landlord’s cost of administering a new tenancy.
Amount: £500.00 including VAT
To cover the Landlord's cost of registering a new tenancy with My Deposits.
Amount: £30.00 including VAT
To cover the cost of a professional referencing service.
Amount: £50.00 inc VAT per reference for the first 2 references and £25.00 inc VAT for any further references.
To cover the Landlord's cost of the inventory Check-out at the end of your tenancy & Check-In Fee at the start of the new tenancy.
Amount: Varies
Interest on unpaid rent
Calculated on a daily basis from the date upon which payment became due until the date of actual payment.
Amount 3% above Bank of England Base Rate
Information and terms & conditions for tenants
References, Right to Rent & Money Laundering
Douglas & Gordon reserve the right to use a professional tenant referencing service to assess a potential Tenant (and Guarantor if required) and the cost of this would be for the Landlords account. Each named Tenant (and Guarantor if required) will be required to complete an application form. The tenant referencing company will ask you for details of your employer, bank, previous Landlord and a character referee. For your information, your bank will normally make a charge for providing a reference, which they will deduct directly from your account. Your references may be shown to the Landlord or an interested party acting on their behalf.
We are required to undertake document checks to establish whether each named Tenant has the right to rent a property in accordance with the Immigration Act 2014. We must obtain original versions of one or more acceptable documents and check the documents validity in the presence of the holder before the start of the tenancy.
Where necessary you will be subject to Anti-Money Laundering checks which may leave a footprint. We may make a report to the National Crime Agency if we have any suspicions regarding any unlawful activity.
We also require proof of address, e.g. a copy of a utility bill or a bank, building society or credit card statement showing your name and current address (no more than 3 months old).
Payment
The initial payment will consist of the first instalment of rent, the deposit, one half of the cost of the Tenancy Agreement and any referencing/credit analysis charges. Payment may be made by any of the following methods:
- Direct transfer of funds to our bank account, by same day transfer (CHAPS), online
banking or BACS etc.
- Bankers draft (payable to Douglas & Gordon)
- Personal cheque (payable to Douglas & Gordon) –please allow 7 working days to clear
- Due to the Money Laundering Regulations we are unable to accept payment in cash
Our bank account details are:-
Account Name: DOUGLAS AND GORDON CLIENT ACCOUNT
Account Number: 48893252
Sort code: 23-05-80
IBAN: GB98 MYMB 2305 8048 8932 52
SWIFT/BIC: MYMBGB2L
We are aware that some HSBC customers are incorrectly receiving warning messages that the account details are wrong.
Douglas & Gordon must be in receipt of cleared funds in full settlement of the amount shown on the initial invoice before the start of the tenancy.
Rent: Normally payable monthly or quarterly in advance to Douglas & Gordon. Please note the monthly amount of rent payable is calculated as follows:
- Weekly rent x 52 divided by 12.
- Quarterly payments are calculated by multiplying the weekly rent by 13.
- Six monthly payments are calculated by multiplying the weekly rent by 26.
If you are asked to pay to anyone else please check for possible tax implications. NB - please note that for short lets you may be required to make payment in advance for the full term of the tenancy.
Cash Deposit: An amount equal to, five weeks rental is normally required on tenancies where the annual rental is under £50,000. For tenancies where the annual rent exceeds £50,000 an amount equal to 6 weeks is normally required. Douglas & Gordon is a member of MyDeposits Tenancy deposit protection scheme which operates to safeguard your deposit and to ensure that any dispute over the return of the deposit after the tenancy has ended is resolved swiftly, inexpensively and impartially.
Further details are available at www.mydeposits.co.uk
Zero Deposit Guarantee: if you wish to purchase a Zero Deposit Guarantee as a substitute to the Cash Deposit then Douglas & Gordon will introduce you to Zero Deposit. Douglas & Gordon will receive a commission if you purchase a Zero Deposit Guarantee. Eligibility to purchase a Zero Deposit Guarantee is subject to the Landlord’s consent and referencing, and proof of purchase must be confirmed by Zero Deposit before the start of the tenancy.
Further details are available at www.zerodeposit.com
Tenancy agreement – Only Applies to Non-AST tenancy agreements
The cost of this will be £500 including VAT, providing the Landlord is using our services for the preparation of the Tenancy Agreement. Please note that the Agreement may be liable to Stamp Duty and that this is something for which you are responsible. Further information regarding any potential liability for Stamp Duty can be found on the HM Revenue and Customs website www.hmrc.gov.uk.
Subsequent payments
Please note that after the initial payment is made we will ask you to set up a standing order for all future payments. If there is more than one of you living in the property and you are sharing the rent between you, we will ask you to pay the rent from one account only and for a standing order to be set up from this one account. Please note that this standing order must be set up to leave your account (or joint account) 3 working days before the rent due date in order for it to arrive on time.
Term
Usually a minimum of 52 weeks initially with any options for renewal and/or release clauses to be negotiated.
Inventory check-in and check-out
An inventory will normally be checked in at a pre-arranged time on the day the tenancy commences with an independent inventory clerk booked by Douglas & Gordon. It is strongly recommended that the Tenant is present both for the check-in and check-out to avoid any disputes at the end of the tenancy. You must inform us as soon as possible if you have to change an appointment in order to avoid cancellation charges.
Services
The Tenant is responsible for the gas, electricity, water, telephone, TV licence and council tax bills for the duration of the tenancy. Either your Landlord or Douglas & Gordon will contact the utility companies (apart from British Telecom) on your behalf and will instruct them to transfer the accounts into your name at the start of the tenancy. However, you should also contact the suppliers to make sure this has been done. Please do not arrange for any of the utilities to be transferred to a different supplier without letting us know. British Telecom will not accept our instructions on your behalf so please call them on Freephone 150 to arrange to have the telephone service transferred into your name.
Insurance
The Tenant is responsible for insuring their own contents and we strongly recommend that you do so by obtaining a quote through your own insurance broker.
Extension of tenancy – Only Applies to Non-AST tenancy agreements
If the Tenancy is extended beyond its original term, a charge of £250.00 including VAT will be payable by the Tenant for drawing up the necessary paperwork.
Replacement, Removal or Adding a Tenant
If a Tenant in a shared property wishes to be replaced by a new Tenant during the tenancy (subject to the Landlord’s consent and receipt of satisfactory references) a charge of £50.00 including VAT for the first Tenant and £15 inc VAT for every Tenant thereafter within the same change will be payable by the Tenant for drawing up a new Tenancy Agreement or Deed of Assignment. In addition, £75.00 including VAT will be payable to cover the cost of the mandatory smoke alarm safety test.
If a Zero Deposit Guarantee has been purchased as a substitute for the cash deposit please refer to the Zero Deposit Guarantee documentation with regard to the extension of the tenancy/change of tenant. Copies of the documentation will be provided by Zero Deposit and are also available by contacting help@zerodeposit.com
Management
At the commencement of the tenancy we will advise you who will be responsible for the day to day management of the property (this is not always Douglas & Gordon) and provide you with the relevant contact details. Where we are not managing the property we are unable to arrange any repairs or maintenance on the Landlord’s behalf, nor can we control how quickly repairs will be carried out. Where we manage the property it may be necessary in some instances for us to obtain the Landlord’s consent before arranging a repair.
Subletting
By entering into a private residential tenancy agreement you agree you will not, without the prior consent of the landlord, (1) sublet the property; (2) advertise the property anywhere in print or via any other media, including any internet-based marketing websites or any social media or messaging websites or apps; (3) take in paying guests or lodgers.
Early release
If the Landlord consents to a request from the Tenant to be released from the tenancy before the expiry of the term agreed in the tenancy agreement the Tenant will be liable to cover the equivalent of the letting fee paid by the Landlord to us from the date the tenancy is brought to an end early until the earliest date the Tenant could contractually end the tenancy. This does not apply if the tenancy is terminated pursuant to a break clause included in the tenancy agreement. In addition the tenant will be liable for the Landlord’s cost of the preparation of a new tenancy agreement, registering a new tenancy with MyDeposits and inventory check out and check in at the start of the new tenancy. Please note: the Landlord is under no obligation to agree to an early release.
Amendments to the tenancy agreement(Excluding change of Tenant)
If the tenant wishes to make a change to the tenancy agreement (subject to the landlords consent) then the tenant is liable to cover the cost of drawing up of a new tenancy agreement or deed of assignment.
(“DCLG”) and by the National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team to to resolve or settle unsolved complaints and offer redress to consumers.
We are a member of mydeposits which is a Government approved tenancy deposit protection scheme, administered by HFIS plc t/a Hamilton Fraser. who provide insurance backed tenancy deposit protection with free, impartial dispute resolution for when disagreements arise over how the money should be divided at the end of a tenancy. Further details can be found on their website: www.mydeposits.co.uk.
We are also a member of the Client Money Protection (CMP) Scheme run by Client Money Protect, further details of which can be found on their website. The CMP certificate can be downloaded here
NFoPP Regulation is the body responsible for regulating companies which fall within the jurisdiction of the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA).
