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Why Rent through Oakfield?
Oakfield are one of the largest and more recognised letting agents in East Sussex and often the first agent tenants turn to when the time comes to find a rental property. We offer an extensive choice of rental property in Hastings, Bexhill and Eastbourne to suit all budgets.
Our Marketing Consultants are always well informed about the properties we are marketing as well as the amenities and schools throughout East Sussex.
We are a letting agent with over 20 years experience in the property rental industry, as members of ARLA and the Property Ombudsman, tenants know they are in the best hands when renting a property from us.
INFORMATION FOR TENANTS
Before we can let any of our properties Oakfield must ensure that you meet both ours and the Landlords requirements to do this we carry out referencing and other checks on all our applicants.
Once you have viewed a property and decided it is the one for you the next step is to place a holding deposit to secure it from the market. All properties are accepted on an ‘as seen’ basis and any issues will need to be brought to the attention of our Negotiator prior to proceeding. The payment of the holding deposit does not constitute a tenancy, or an offer of a tenancy, it is required to show a serious intention to proceed with the renting of the property.
Affordability
Before looking for a property to rent it is important to know your budget for a new property. To rent a property your annual gross income needs to be at least 2.5 times the annual rent, where there is more than one applicant then this would be based on your combined income. For ease we have a rent calculator tool here.
Financial stability
A credit check is carried out on all applicants and where there is a Guarantor they are also credit checked. The purpose of this check is to check for any bankruptcy orders, voluntary arrangements or county court judgements. In the event that you do have any of these or you think you might have adverse credit then advise us of this when you are putting your application forward so we can discuss your options.
Identification and Proof of Address
One of the first checks we have to make is to ensure that all Tenants over the age of 18 have the right to rent in the UK. This is a legal requirement and to make these checks we need to ensure we have a copy of your identification on file and that we have seen the original copy. A full list of the acceptable documents as well as information on right to rent can be found here.
As well as right to rent identification we may also require a document as proof of address, acceptable documents will need to be dated within 30 days and include the following;
- Council tax bill
- Utility bill
- Bank statement
- Credit card statement
- Letter from a Government department
References
At Oakfield we want the experience of renting a property to be as simple as possible that is why all of our referencing is dealt with by our in-branch Lettings Negotiators so you only have one person to deal with.
What references do we need?
- Employment reference – if you are employed we will require a reference from your employer confirming your employment along with your salary. In some circumstances we may also require a copy of your payslips, we will let you know if we need them but it might be worth ensuring you have your last 3 to hand in case they are needed so it doesn’t hold things up for you.
- Self-Employment income – For all self-employed applicants we will require a reference from your accountant to confirm your annual income, in the event you do not have an accountant then we would accept 3 months bank statements as proof of income.
- Landlord reference – If you are moving from another rental property or you have rented in the past then we will need a reference from your Landlord, this would need to be your most recent Landlord and confirm the rent has always been paid and the property was looked after.
We appreciate not everyone will match our requirements exactly, we do consider students, homemakers and unemployed applicants on certain properties however you will require a Guarantor.
Our requirements
As well as ensuring you meet our affordability requirements we also ask that our Tenants meet the following criteria;
- Be aged 18 or over
- Pay a deposit that is typically equal to one months rent or 5 weeks rent. Or take out a Zero Deposit Guarantee
- Pay one month’s rent in advance
Guarantors
In the event a Guarantor is required, they will be credit checked and referenced the same as our Tenants to ensure that they meet our requirements. In most circumstances we do not require for a Guarantor to be a homeowner but they do need to be employed have an annual gross income of 3 times the annual rent.
Contact us
If you are looking for property to rent in Eastbourne, Hastings, Bexhill or throughout East Sussex, get in touch with us today and we will help you find your ideal rental property suited to your requirements.
