Tenant charges
 
Any Tenant who is renting a home under an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST) will pay, or potentially pay, the following :

•  A holding deposit of one week’s rent to reserve a property which will then contribute towards the first month’s rent.
• The security deposit of five weeks’ rent, increasing to six weeks’ rent if the annual rent is in excess of £50,000.
• The rent and utility bills as outlined in the Tenancy Agreement
• Any unpaid rent will potentially incur interest at 4% above the Bank of England base rate, as outlined in the Tenancy Agreement
• Tenants are liable for the cost of replacing any lost keys or security devices, including a change of lock or replacement of device as required.
• Amendments to the Tenancy Agreement at the tenant’s request at £50.00 per change
• Should a tenant need to surrender the tenancy early and the Landlord agrees to re-let the property, the liability for payment of rent will end once a new tenant is found and takes up occupation.  The outgoing tenant will still need to cover the Landlord’s costs in surrendering the tenancy and re-letting the property.

 
 
For any tenant not renting a property under an Assured Shorthold Tenancy, the following charges are also payable:
 

• A one-off upfront payment of £150.00 per tenancy which is a contribution towards the processing of the application, drawing up the Tenancy Agreement and registering the deposit.
• A tenant reference charge (£35.00 per tenant) which covers collecting and verifying references from employer/accountant and a previous Landlord reference, together with carrying out a credit check and collecting a copy of passport, proof of residency, bank statements and a recent payslip.
• A Guarantor charge (£60.00 per Guarantor, if required) covers credit referencing and preparing a Letter of Guarantee as part of the Tenancy Agreement.
•  A professional check in fee (the cost of which will be between £105- £280 depending on the size of the property and if the property is furnished or unfurnished) which enables us to arrange a date and time with the tenant to be checked in at the start of the tenancy and checked out at the end of the tenancy, instruct inventory providers, agree the terms of the security deposit disbursement between the tenant and Landlord, return the deposit as agreed with the Landlord and tenant to relevant parties, remit any disputed amount to the Tenancy Deposit Scheme for their final adjudication, unprotect the security deposit, instruct contractors and obtain quotes, organise repairs/replacements/cost of any broken or missing items.
• A renewal charge (£75 for the tenant) which covers the cost of negotiating and administering the renewal and re-registering the deposit with the Tenancy Deposit Scheme.

 
If a tenant decides to rent a property through Griffin Stevens in the name of a business or company, the tenancy administration and reference charge will be £180.00 for a new tenancy and £90.00 for each renewal.
 
All prices are inclusive of VAT.
 
As a member of The Property Ombudsman (TPO) for sales and lettings, please rest assured that Griffin Stevens subscribe to the TPO’s Code of Practice.
 
This Government approved independent redress scheme gives consumers additional protection beyond that required by law.  Our clients and customers have peace of mind that there is free and fair redress available in the unlikely event of an unresolved dispute.