Taking over management from your agent

There are many reasons why a landlord may no longer require the services of their letting agent to manage their properties. It may be that the cost of employing an agent has become too expensive, or dissatisfaction with the service provided, or even that your circumstances have changed giving you more time to self-manage.

Most of the time, a tenancy will tick over without any issues but there are some things you will need to consider before deciding to take over the management including:

Whatever the reason, taking back the management of your property from a letting agent should be a straightforward process if you follow the steps below.

1. Firstly, check the agent’s terms of business for guidance on how to terminate the business agreement. Landlords are usually required to serve notice to their agent, so you must provide the adequate notice period as stated in the business contract. Be aware you may be liable to pay a termination fee to the agent, so ensure you read the business clauses carefully, and seek legal advice if necessary before proceeding. 

2. Once notice has been served, you need to let your tenant/s know the change in circumstances. Send a letter informing them of the date you will start managing the property from, and include a copy of your own privacy notice to comply with GDPR.

3. The existing tenancy agreement issued by the agent is still be valid once you take back the management, but you will need to check the AST to see the address provided to the tenant/s for them to serve a valid notice to end their liability. If the agent’s address has been used this will need to be updated, therefore you must provide an address in England or Wales to the tenants. You can use the Section 48 notice to document this. Alternatively, you could write a letter confirming this information and include other contact details such as your phone number and email address.

4.The tenant/s will also need to stop paying the rent via the agent, therefore we would recommend instructing them to cancel their existing standing order/direct debit following the final rent payment to the agent. Provide your own bank details and request a new standing order be set up for future rent payments.

5. You should arrange to collect all property keys from the agent, along with any other relevant information they hold relating to the tenancy. For example, the written tenancy agreement, deposit information, all tenant data i.e. application forms, references, credit checks, Right to Rent documentation, check in report and inventory, and invoices for any repairs.

Frequently asked questions

Can I issue my own tenancy agreement or do I have to keep the agent's?

You can issue a new tenancy agreement but you are not required to, the tenancy will continue on the same terms and you may update the contact details via a Section 48 notice.

In general, it will make sense to offer a new one though as it is cleaner and easier option for both you and the tenant. However, before proceeding there are factors which you will need to consider.

Issuing a new agreement will not simply be an extension of the original agreement with the agent, a brand new tenancy will be created. This means you will also need to issue all the relevant start of tenancy documents to tenants prior to it beginning. If you cannot comply with this you may want to consider leaving the tenancy as is until you can. 

If the current tenancy is in the periodic stage, you will typically have to offer the tenant/s a new fixed term. If the tenant/s have resided in the property for more than 6 months, you could potentially offer a short tenancy if your mortgage conditions allow it, however your tenants may be reluctant to sign this. 

Finally, if there has been any new legislation introduced since the original tenancy was granted, then you must ensure that your property meets the new requirements and provide the relevant documentation. For example, if a tenancy is created on or after 1 June 2020 in England, landlords need to have the electrical installations checked by a competent person. They then need to provide a copy of the electrical installation condition report (EICR) to their tenants. This may also involve performing works on the property to bring it up to a satisfactory standard if the report deems it necessary.

My agent has informed me that under the General Data Protection rules, they cannot give me the tenant’s information. Is this correct?

No. The agent is employed by the landlord and ultimately should not be withholding the tenants information from them. 

The agent’s own privacy notice should already provide details of all third parties they can pass the tenant’s information to, therefore if they have not included yourself they must update their privacy notice and send this to the tenants. They can then proceed to provide you with the information.