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Tenants have to find an average of £1,700 each time they move, with typical fees to letting agents totalling £298.

That is the claim of online rental site Spareroom, based on a survey of 4,327 flat and house sharers conducted over the summer, but only just released.

The survey also claims the vast majority of those questioned, 87 per cent, would rather deal directly with landlords who typically charge lower fees than agents, or none at all.

The most common fees are for what agents describe to tenants as administration costs' - 66 per cent of those surveyed who paid fees when moving into their current home were forced to cover admin costs.

Of those who paid fees, 50 per cent said they had to pay a reservation or holding fee - sometimes refundable - while 47 per cent said they were charged for drawing up tenancy agreements and/or inventories.

Some 39 per cent said they were charged for credit checks while 25 per cent paid for employer and/or bank references to be checked.

Nothing unites renters quite like a shared hatred of unexplained tenancy fees. In the wider world, consumers get to choose which supplier to use based on a variety of factors, including price and service but when it comes to renting, tenants have no choice but to use the agent marketing the property they want says a spokesman for Spareroom.

Comments

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    As someone who rents, and has used multiple letting agents, I can say that my experience with 3/4 in the past few years has been pretty dire.

    Letting agents in the city I live in are typically younger people who obviously don't see this as a long term career option...they are barely aware of my wants and needs and only surface if rent is a few hours late!

    I KNOW there are some earnest and well meaning letting agents, but as with anything the bad few make the good look bad...but a company that charges an extra 70 to move in on a Saturday should be ashamed of themselves!

    • 05 March 2015 09:57 AM
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    This story appears to have been lifted from"The Mail on Sunday" where the same information was given.

    • 19 January 2015 23:51 PM
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    QUOTE: "In the wider world, consumers get to choose which supplier to use based on a variety of factors, including price and service but when it comes to renting, tenants have no choice but to use the agent marketing the property they want

    Eh So they're saying that if a tenant wants a specific property they can only get it from the agent which is marketing it Isn't that how it works for everything

    If I want to buy a specific used car I can only get it from the dealer who has that car. If I specifically want a Sainsbury's Taste the Difference cream cake I can only get it from Sainsbury's. I can't say to the car dealer "I'd like to buy that car, but I want to buy it from the chap up the road" or tell Sainsbury's that I want to buy their cake from Morrisons.

    • 19 January 2015 09:13 AM
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    Yes but a typical Landlord renting privately has to pay no monthly commission for managing the property, no staff wages, no overheads, no extortionate portal fees to advertise properties etc. etc. etc. So it is no wonder they don't charge fees!!!

    Another example of "bash the letting agent" !

    • 19 January 2015 06:57 AM
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