Plugging into a more reliable private rental online service
With about 760,000 tenants and 230,000 landlords in Scotland, the private rental sector (PRS) can stir up mixed emotions.
It’s the best thing since sliced bread allowing aspirational tenants to live in a property they might not be able to afford to buy, whilst giving them the versatility to move to a different property in another city if their heart desires within – generally – one month. On the other hand, if tenants don’t respect the tenancy by not paying their rent on time or breaching the lease agreement, it can cause stress, damage the relationship between tenant and landlord and have considerable impact on the landlord financially, resulting in possible eviction notices and/or a visit to the courtroom.
So what’s a happy medium for both parties involved? From the start of December, all private residential tenancies are now subject to core rights and obligations, with the Scottish Government providing its own model form of agreement for use by landlords. The Letting Professionals’ Model Tenancy (LPMT) launched by Lettingweb builds on the government’s template with the additional functionality of a digital platform. Given we live in a time-poor, digital savvy world, solutions that work for both landlord and tenants are a godsend.
The creation of the LPMT has been a collaborative effort, drawing on the expertise of Lettingweb’s member firms and industry specialist legal advisers at Lindsays solicitors. It includes the mandatory clauses and goes further by providing clear and straightforward terms and conditions around the common issues experienced by landlords and tenants. Embracing the new legislative ability to use binding digital signatures, the Lettingweb platform built to deliver the LPMT is robust and relevant to today’s rental market. Scottish letting professionals and tenants can now complete private rental tenancy agreements entirely online faster than ever before. Everyone is entitled to a roof over their head and Lettingweb wants to help cut down on disputes from any grey areas and be commercially fair and reasonable, whilst providing the clarity and the appropriate safeguards for both landlords and tenants in this day and age.