A Hull lettings agency is thought to be one of the first in the county to enter into a deal with a legal services provider to offer landlord clients with what is effectively an in-house law service.
Lime Property has created its own legal department after agreeing a partnership deal with Brighouse company Legal 4 Landlords. The arrangement gives Legal 4 Landlords complete access to Lime's tenant records and notifies them immediately a tenant misses a agreed monthly payment.
The company then automatically steps in and acts on Lime's behalf, taking the necessary action to recover the money or, in exceptional cases, start proceedings to evict the tenant.
Software integrates Legal 4 Landlords into Lime's arrears management processes, allowing lawyers to act immediately rather than wait to be appointed to a case.
Lime lettings manager Sam Humphreys says: We knew what we wanted to achieve but the software didn't exist so we decided to design it ourselves. We already have rent guarantee insurance in place but this is an extra layer of security for landlords who quite naturally want to protect their investment.
Barry Cobley, director at Legal 4 Landlords, says that normally his business works on a case-by-case basis with letting agents, who appoint them as and when the need arises. The firm then provides the usual services such as tenant referencing, insurance services and evictions.
Under the new system Lime gets a fully trained and professional team who will deal with the tenant, the landlord and Lime Property, keep them in the loop of all developments and work to get the best result for everyone says Cobley.
Comments