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"I can thoroughly recommend the professional service offered by Simon Clarke letting agency. I have been a landlord for several years and have never been disappointed by their service. The staff keep in touch and all tenants are thoroughly vetted and relevant information is sent to the landlord. I find them to be fair to both landlord and tenant with regard to repairs and end of tenancy cleaning etc. Payments are clearly defined at the beginning of a contract and statements of payments are received regularly. Repairs and maintenance are arranged speedily and are cost conscious for the landlord. They are a good team and deserve to do well."
Marian Nash
Renting a property through Simon Clarke is simple; we aim to help you through the process of finding, securing, and moving in to your new home as stress free as possible.
Click on the headings below for an explanation of each step.
If you require any further information or advice, please contact your local office and talk to one of our experienced members of staff.
You can register with us by calling our offices, Whetstone 020 8343 9000 or Finchley 020 8349 9000 or you can visit us in person to discuss your requirements.
Our office opening times are:
9:00am - 7:00pm Monday to Thursday
9:00am - 6.30pm Friday
9:30am - 3:00pm Saturday
Alternatively you can send us an email and a member of staff will get back to you as soon as possible.
You will have an idea on your basic requirements: Price, location, size and type of property etc. Make sure to budget yourself and work out your monthly expenditure. Remember there are more than 4 weeks in a calendar month: i.e. £200 per week x 52 weeks, divided by 12 = £866.67 per calendar month. You will also be responsible for paying Council Tax, Water Rates, Gas, Electric, Telephone and Broadband.
Our staff will listen to your requirements, which will give them a clear understanding of what you are looking for to avoid wasted trips to unsuitable properties. With our longer opening hours we can offer accompanied viewings to suit you, whether this is during the day, in your lunch break, during the evening, or even on a Saturday. The offices of Simon Clarke are situated within close walking distance to Northern Line underground stations in Whetstone & Totteridge and Finchley Central.
Once you have indentified the property you would like to rent we will submit your offer to the Landlord for consideration. We will require a reservation fee (usually 2 weeks rent) subject to any conditions, which may have to be agreed with the landlord. Once the reservation fee is taken then the marketing of the property will be suspended whilst references are carried out.
Each prospective tenant (over the age of 18 years) is vetted throuhg Maras; an independent referencing agency. Each tenant intending to live in the property must therefore complete a Maras reference application form. This application form asks for personal information and is used to conduct a Credit Assessment. Before an application can proceed we also require two forms of identification for each applicant:
1) Photo ID such as a driving licence or passport and
2) Proof of address such as a utility bill, bank statement or Council Tax statement no older than 3
months
The reference/credit checks usually take 4-5 working days to be completed, but this timescale can vary. Our staff can email you the forms to complete and return or you can complete this process online on the Maras website. Simon Clarke charges a one-off Administration Fee of £60.00 + VAT per tenant. This fee covers our costs in the referencing and administration of your application for the property you have chosen. A Tenancy application cannot proceed without a reservation fee, photo ID and proof of address.
Once the references have been satisfactorily completed and approved by the Landlord we will arrange for you to sign the Tenancy Agreements. This is usually on or before the commencement date of the tenancy. The Tenancy Agreement governs all rents, which is a legal and binding document. You will be committed to paying rent until the end of the agreed term and you could be liable to legal action if you break the terms of the agreement. If your circumstances should change for any reason during your tenancy, it is a good idea to tell your Landlord or Simon Clarke as soon as possible.
Before your tenancy begins you will be required to pay the initial rental payment and deposit (the deposit is usually 6 weeks rent, but this can vary). Any money payable to Simon Clarke must be paid in cleared funds (we cannot accept personal cheques). Usually the easiest and quickest method of payment is via Debit Card, Maestro, Switch, Solo or Visa Delta. We can accept credit card payments, but these will be subject to a surcharge of 2.25% + VAT.
When the paperwork has been completed and the deposit and initial rental payment have been paid we will arrange to hand over the keys to your new home. Where possible an independent inventory company is used at the beginning and end of the majority of our tenancies. A check-in is often carried out prior to you moving in to a property and again when you move out. The inventory is to record details of the condition of the property and fixtures, fittings and furnishings. The inventory check-in is paid for by the tenant, and the landlord would normally pay the inventory check out.
