Hi all,

I am currently looking at buying a second property as a buy-to-let investment. My target market will be short-term holiday rentals, and I am planning on hiring the services of a property rental management company. However a few friends have warned me about untrustworthy agencies that rent out properties without declaring the income to the property owner. I don?t want to fall victim to this scam.

Has anybody had this type of experience?
Is this a justified concern?
Can you recommend any trustworthy agencies?


Thanks

I have not been victimized by any property rental management company but I make sure I see and will always have access to all of their records (they give me copies of it) regarding my property. To add to that, I never fail to communicate with my tenant. If I am in town, I usually try to visit them or if not tele- or virtual communication is enough just to give me an idea whether the company is giving me the real records or not.

we are a property rental management company here in cyprus. we manage over 100 villas and apartments here in cyprus for rent. we will not! and do not let anyone in the properties without prior permission of the owners.

we would always be looking over our shoulder , whilst any illegal! tenant was in a property when they should not be. when are the owners arriving to cyprus from the uk? they tell us wednesday, and arrive monday! suprise suprise a family of six are staying without permisssion. we would be shot! company gone! never

its not worth the money and worry. legitimate is the only way!!

I think your concerns do happen by some unscrupulous property management companies but you would obviously check out their references first....I would say a more pressing concern might be their charges...In Turkey, where we live, the management companies make enormously varying charges. People often pay through the nose because they think "the manager is a nice fella" or because they do not have time to shop around. There are foreign property owners prices here and there are proper local prices - the two are quite different. Don't fall victim to the nice personalities and lack of time.
You haven't said where you are looking to rent out but most tourist resorts have this double system in place with the unscrupulous operators waiting for the next green foreigner to come along. Be well researched and keep in touch, as suggested by an earlier reply....that way the company that you employ will respect your involvement and not mess with you if they are unscrupulous. Having said all that, I hope you find yourself a decent company in the first place, to provide you with peace of mind.

I too have heard of agencies hiring out property without the owners knowledge. This was in Spain.
However, your best bet is to use a company that is recommended to you. Additionally, you should be able to arrive at the drop of a hat and stay at your place. Make the agency aware that you have friends living nearby if they have a problem. Just so they know someone else is keeing a careful eye out.


I do hope you find someone you can trust.

Ivana

Holiday Bubbles Home

Hello,

I am a licenced real estate agent with offices in the silver coast of portugal.

I also do management and rentals. The idea of letting someone's house without their knowledge would never happen. Our reputation would be on the line and this takes along time to build. I think most management companies do not do this

fatima.figueiredo@sapo.pt

If this does occurs than that is terrible. Personally I know of zero cases. The people we work with whom do Property Management would think it is inconcievable to do this activity.

Where are you thinking of buying? Sounds pretty dodgy area if this is the practice taken out in that place. If the professional people are like this what does it tell you of the neighbourhood.

__________________

One simply answer NO, you cannot trust. Irrespective of where you buying it is common problem. They all seam to be professionals belonging to one professional body or another. The people who set up these bodies are the ex agents who has been there before.

Duplicate records are kept. As a guest you will be provided with a receipt which will be separate from the ones handed to the landlords.

Hello Keegan,
As in all professions, there are trusty and untrusty companies, İ have to know where you want to buy to be able to give you advises.
İ am located in Bodrum/Turkey, if you are thinking about buying in Turkey and need some help i will be here, so please don't hesitate to pm me.

Hi,
I could only advise you to contact with professional and global real estate agencies like REMAX, ESKIDJI etc. if you have no info about the place that you want to invest or no advice.
Because these agencies made contracts with both home owners and clients which provide mutual security and trust.
If you have more questions, contact me.
Regards.