Property Management Service for Owners

Letting year 2012 - 2013

The Unipol Management service is now open for enquiries about letting year 2012 - 2013. We will give preference to properties in a good location, requiring little or no renovation and already meeting the Unipol Code of Standards. If you are interested in the full management service with Unipol, you should check that your house complies with our Code of Standards and if not, take steps to comply with all the elements required in order to make the process of moving in to management as smooth as possible. To check whether your property already complies by clicking on the 'thumbs up' Code logo on our home page.  

Housing Provision

In 1984 Unipol established its Property Management Service which has developed into a professional service with 20 years experience. Unipol only manages housing for students and has an established expertise in this field.

Unipol has close links with almost all educational institutions in Leeds, but particularly with the University of Leeds and Leeds Metropolitan University whose members make up Unipol's Board of Directors. As well as being a property management service, Unipol runs an Accommodation Bureau which centralises all the student letting in Leeds and provides over 19,000 rooms each year for students. Unipol has a housing stock of its own, either on leasehold or as an owner, so as well as being property managers for owners we are owners ourselves.

What the Service Provides

Unipol will:

• advertise the house
• show students round the house and select suitable student tenants
• deal with the legal side of completing the property agreements
• hand out keys to the tenants
• instruct the tenants in the use of any appliances in the property.
• All tenants receive a Tenant's Handbook informing them of the rules and obligations they have towards the house.
• Administer the Tenancy Deposit Scheme 

Once the house is occupied:

• Unipol is the first point of contact for all matters concerning the tenants.
• Unipol collects the rent and deposits and deals with any slow payers.
• Owners are paid their rent monthly on 17th of each month.
• Unipol is the first point of contact for reporting repairs, running a 24 hour emergency service for events such as burglary or plumbing leaks.
• Unipol inspects the properties regularly, usually three times a year but more frequently if a problem is identified, and checks that the house is being properly treated and cleaned.
• At the end of the tenancy Unipol will undertake a final inspection, withholding any deposits for damage in excess of fair wear and tear. If necessary, Unipol will arrange a final clean of the property. Unipol also collects keys from the outgoing occupants and returns these to the owner or the next set of tenants.

The Cost of the Service

Academic year 2011 - 2012

Unipol charges an initial fee for bringing the property into management (£270.00 plus VAT)* and a lower fee (£160.00 plus VAT)* for renewing any Management Agreement (late renewal may be charged at a higher fee) The cost of Managing the house is 10% plus VAT. there is an additional commission for Unipol undertaking repairs (5% with a £11 minimum)* which includes specifiying and ordering work, paying contractors invoices and checking rpeairs have been undertaken correctly.

Unipol includes Personal Possessions Insurance free of charge for all tenants using a bulk policy. Personal Possessions Insurance is seen as a positive inclusion in rental agreements by students, and it is a big part of our marketing strategy to be able to offer this to potential tenants. Payment for this policy is deducted from owners rental income as an annual fee. and the fee is £16.00 plus VAT* per bed space. In addition, Unipol will charge a fee of £6 plus VAT* per tenant to cover the increased staff time used to administer the tenants deposit under the terms of the Deposit Protection legislation.

Unipol also expect you to factor in the cost of an end of tenancy clean in your property. Although we expect the students to clean the property to a certain level, there will always be a higher level of cleaning required to get it to an acceptable standard for the next occupants. This can be carried out by Unipol or arranged by yourself with your own contractors.

* all details are subject to Board review in November 2011

How the Property Management Service Operates

If you are interested in the service, please email r.campey@unipol.leeds.ac.uk  with the address or addresses of your property/portfolio.

If we think your property/ies will be a positive inclusion to our portfolio, we will visit the property without cost or obligation to look at it from a lettings perspective.

If we would like to proceed to management, we will a 2nd visit to carry out a full report which will give you information and advise on;

• the condition of the property and any work needed to make it suitable for students
• the rent level and number of occupants the house is suitable for (taking into account the house's location and level of amenity)
• suggestions to maximize letting and occupancy
• complying with the Unipol Code
• Health and safety matters
• any other matters the owner wishes to raise.

The cost of the report is £130.00 plus VAT. Whether owners proceed to full management or not, the report will offer specific guidance and advice on how to continue to succeed in a student housing market that is becoming increasingley tougher.  

Timing

Unipol cannot accept a property for management with existing tenants, so we will commence Management Agreements usually from 1st July or when a property is ready for occupation by new tenants.

We can usually arrange to view potential properties any time between October and the December for the following academic year. When the Management Service is full for the year (usually around January) we will not be able to consider further properties until September of the following academic year.

Further Information

If you have further queries, please email r.campey@unipol.leeds.ac.uk