FAQs: Student

The check-out clerk will thoroughly check the property and list any items that appear in different rooms compared to the inventory. A staff member from Coapt will also visit the property the day after you vacate, as well as the day before the next set of tenants are due to move in, and will ensure that you are not charged for items that are recovered.

Charges for any missing or broken items of furniture are assessed fairly on a case-by-case basis and there are many factors to take into consideration. We will be looking at the following items initially:

• Whether the item can be repaired or whether it must be replaced
• How old the item is, and the original quality of the item
• The reasonable expected usage of the item
• What the cost of a replacement item would be
• The length of the tenancy

We would then calculate the apportionment for each item. For example, a item of furniture costing £90 with an expected lifespan of 4 years, which was new at the beginning of a 1 year tenancy has been broken and needs replacing. The item still has a further 3 years life expectancy and the landlord has only had 1 years use of the item. We would therefore calculate £90 divided by 4 years equals £22.50 per year, so the tenants would be charged £67.50 (3 years) and the landlord would pay the remaining £22.50 (1 year).

If the same item of furniture was 2 years old at the start of a 2 year tenancy, the item has reached its life expectancy of 4 years and would be replaced at the landlords cost.

If the item has been broken and the landlord decides they would like to replace it with a more expensive option, the tenant would still only be charged as though the item had been replaced with a ‘like for like’ replacement costing £90, with the landlord covering the additional cost of increased quality.

Sometimes it is not necessary to replace whole items when damage has been caused, particularly if the damage is aesthetic and does not impact on its functionality. For example, if a carpet has an iron burn mark, this has affected how the carpet looks but has not had too much impact on its function as a carpet for the immediate future. Apportionment charges are usually taken when items are not needed to be replaced, the money taken is to compensate the landlord for the loss of value and to go towards eventual replacement when needed. Therefore, apportionment charges should be a portion of the cost of replacement which is dependent on the severity of damage, original condition, life expectancy and type of tenant. To charge the whole amount of replacing the item would be betterment for the landlord as they would be receiving something brand new that was not necessarily new in the first place. In the above example, it would be deemed unfair if a landlord changed the whole carpet because of this burn mark, therefore, to avoid betterment, the landlord would take an apportionment charge for the aesthetic damage that has been caused.

Dependent on the damage, there may be some instances where you could also be charged for the most economical cost of any necessary remedial works. For example, if the marks to the carpet were particularly bad in one area and they could not be covered easily with furniture, the landlord would be entitled to charge not only for the aesthetic damage caused to the carpet but they could also include the cost of a rug to cover the marks. This would be deemed a fair charge as the landlord is not enjoying any betterment from this situation – they would be in a similar situation as before.

You are required to return the garden back to your landlord in the same condition that it was given to you. There is no wear and tear allowance on gardening, therefore, if there are any differences from your inventory at check-out, they will unfortunately be noted as dilapidations by the inventory company and you could be charged. The amount that you are charged depends on the size of the garden, the extent of the difference from your inventory and how much work is involved to return it to its original state. For example, small patios with a couple of flower beds will take the gardener a lot less time to do than a large garden with a lawn and hedge borders. Similarly, if a garden has been cut back to some extent, but some parts missed, this will not take as long to sort out than if the garden has been left to completely overgrow for several months. The gardener factors all of this in when invoicing for the job as well as costs involved in any green waste removal needed. Gardening charges can therefore vary considerably from around £50 up to £300+.

You are expected to return the property and its contents in a clean and good state of repair – as it was at the start of the tenancy. Fair wear and tear only relates to damage, not gardening or cleanliness.

The check-out report is a condition report compiled by a third party inventory company, who will use the original inventory document to independently assess if the property has been handed back to its original condition, taking into consideration fair wear and tear. The inventory company are a professional, independent company employed to provide an unbiased report of condition. These reports are very detailed and will not list anything that is considered to be fair wear and tear. Any items listed as tenant charges are areas the inventory clerk has identified as in need of cleaning, gardening or as damage that is in excess of fair wear and tear. Any items that were in a room on the original inventory that are not in the room at checkout, will be listed as missing items even if they have been moved to another room.

Set your alarm folks and dig out the rubber gloves! Our independent inventory company will come to your property any time from 7am on the last day of your tenancy to conduct a check-out. Please make sure the property is returned to the same condition as the inventory and completely clean and clear of all personal belongings or rubbish, including outside areas, by 7am. No matter how useful you might think an item will be for the next tenant, it’s important to not leave it, otherwise you may be charged for its removal. We recommend moving out the day before to avoid any last minute stress!

Generally only large appliances like fridges, freezers, ovens and washing machines will be included. You’ll need to bring small items such as kettles, toasters and microwaves with you.

Before you move we’ll send you an email and text message confirming your check-in time. Come to our office on this day and time to collect your keys!

We need to you come to the office in person to provide your ID before we can give you your keys. Each tenant must bring one of the following;
> UK passport
OR
> Driving licence AND birth certificate
OR
> International Passport AND sharecode.

You’ll need your phone to scan a QR code and complete an online form that contains lots of important information about moving in to your new home.

After this you’ll be given the keys to your new home! You can now move in at your leisure! Make sure if you’re travelling from afar, or have organised moving vans, that you won’t get access to your property until after the key collection appointment, it’ll take roughly half an hour.

Ok, here comes the maths. You’re not the first person to ask this question, most tenants assume their monthly rent will be the weekly rent amount multiplied by 4. There aren’t always 4 weeks in every month so the calculation to work out monthly rent is as follows: Weekly rent x 52 (weeks in the year) x number of tenants ÷ 12.

Absolutely! Make a shortlist of your top three and we’ll book you in. If the properties you viewed weren’t quite what you were looking for, please just let us know and we can book more viewings in for you. However we do try to limit viewings to three at a time so we can accommodate all our enquiries.

Hold your horses! Please don’t knock on the door. We organise a specific time with the tenants to view the property – and we all know there’s nothing worse than someone arriving earlier than expected! One of our agents must be present for safety reasons, plus we are then on hand to answer any questions you may have.

We always arrange to meet you at the property you want to view – we won’t make you walk extra miles by asking you to come to our office first! Just wait outside the property and we’ll find you.

It’s simple! Once you have found a property you like, and you want to take a closer peek inside, just call the office on 01273 645797 and we will book you in. We’ll then ping you a  text with all the details confirming your appointment.