Tenant's Guide

Once you have established your budget, its time to start looking for your perfect property. Register your details with Abode either via our website or speak with one of our friendly team who will be happy to guide you through the process of renting a property. You can register for email alerts on all the major property portals including rightmove, Zoopla and On The Market. This will ensure you are kept up to date with all the new rental properties being listed in Woodford Green, Buckhurst Hill, Chingford and South Woodford.

Contact our office and we will arrange the viewings for you. We generally attend the appointment so we can answer any questions you might have about  length of the lease, contract term, furnishings etc..The rental market is very fast paced so if you see a property that meets your needs then you will need to act quickly to secure that property.

Once you have found a property that is right for you will need to put forward an offer stating any particular requests or conditions you might want included. A deposit will be taken to secure the property whilst refences and credit checks are undertaken. If the landlord was to withdraw their property from the market then the full deposit would be returned to you. Once your offer is underway you can keep up to date with the progress by speaking with our Property Manager or by logging into MyPropertyFile.

Abode use a professional referencing company to carry out full references for each adult tenant that will be living in the property. You should expect to receive an email from our referencing company, containing a link for you to follow and complete relevant information about yourself. Credit checks, previous rental history and employment status' will all be checked.

Abode will produce the tenancy agreement which is a legal binding contract between you as the Tenant(s) and the Landlord(s). It will detail the responsibilities and rights of both the Tenant(s) and Landlord(s). Please ensure you read the Tenancy Agreement thoroughly to ensure that you are happy with all of its content.

Before your move in can take place, we require cleared funds in our bank account for all associated costs for your rental. This will include the agreed amount of rent paid in advance (usually one, six or twelve months) and a damage deposit (usually the equivalent of four weeks rent)

Prior to you moving in to the property a detailed inventory will be taken. You will need to read through the content of the inventory which will note the overall condition of the property and contain the meter readings. Once you have checked the inventory you will need to sign it. You will need to inform the utility companies that you are now responsible for the bills and contact the local authority to take over the payment of the Council Tax.

Once all that is out of the way you can start enjoying your new home.

A standing order payment will need to be arranged to ensure your monthly rent is received on time. We will confirm when you take the property who will be responsible for the collection of rent and the day to day management of the property.

Your deposit is registered with a Deposit Protection Scheme.

There are no fees.

Once you have found the right property we would request a holding deposit. This will hold the property for you whilst we negotiate and agree terms with the Landlord. The property is then yours subject to successful referencing. The holding deposit will be deducted from the total monies required before you move in.

There are no fees.

The term of the tenancy agreement is generally negotiated at the offer stage. Most standard tenancies tend to be a 12 month Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST). A break clause, if used, is usually at month six of the 12 month contract.

A break clause is a clause in a tenancy agreement that provides both tenant and landlord the opportunity to terminate the tenancy agreement early during the fixed-term (e.g. the tenant can terminate a 12 month tenancy 6 months into the term by giving two months notice).

An inventory is carried out before you move in the property and will note any defects or damage to the property. If you maintain the property to the same standard then your damage deposit should be returned in full.

When Abode are collecting the rent or managing the property the deposit will be registered with the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS). If the landlord is managing the property we may still register the deposit, otherwise it is the responsibility of the landlord to register your deposit within 30 days of receiving the deposit.

With more and more people now being pet owners there are a number of Landlords who are happy to accept pets. Generally a higher damage deposit might be requested to cover any possible damage.

Unless otherwise agreed the tenant is responsible to pay all utility bills and the council tax. Meter readings will be taken by the Inventory Clerk to help with the changeover.

When you move into the property you will be advised if Abode are managing the property during your tenancy. If so then you can report any maintenance problems via MyPropertyFile or contact our Property Manager. Should the Landlord be managing the property then you will be given details of how to report any issues you might have.