Online agency launches new charges ‘for tenant fee ban era’

Online letting agency MakeUrMove has launched a new subscription model which it claims will ”ready landlords for the incoming tenant fee ban.”

The new model includes no fees for tenants. 

However, landlords pay £12 per month on a ‘Good Landlord’ subscription to receive Rightmove and Zoopla advertising, tenant referencing, rent collection, legal eviction services, property licence checking, as well as documents and renewals.

The monthly subscription will also offer the option of a number of bolt ons, including guaranteed rent for up to six months in the case of a tenant failing to pay and annual gas safety certificates - but this comes at an additional cost. 

The £12 per month subscription model will be offered alongside a basic package, which will include advertising and one downloadable tenancy agreement. 

There will also be a standard package offered at a one-off cost of £96, which will also include tenancy documents and deposit lodging, rent collection for 12 months and advertising with the major property portals.

Alexandra Morris, managing director at MakeUrMove, says: “The Tenant Fee Bill is going to affect the whole property industry. The most innovative agents will look to technology to reduce costs. We’re at the forefront of this as the first agent to come out and support the tenant fee ban. As a tech platform, we’re constantly developing and will be adding new features as standard to our package. We want to be a landlord platform rather than a letting platform.

“Last year we conducted some research that suggested that 25 per cent of landlords and 85 per cent of tenants didn’t understand the upcoming ban so it’s now our responsibility to prepare landlords. We’re confident that our new subscription model will do this.”