Property management, properly.

Licensing

London property licensing varies from borough to borough, making it tricky to keep up with changing legislation in different parts of the city. As a landlord with Jones Davies, we will keep you informed about all licensing requirements where you have rental properties and can also assist with your licence application from start to finish.

Gas safety certificates

An annual gas safety inspection with a registered engineer who will check each fuel-burning device before issuing a gas safety certificate within 28 days of receipt to both landlord and tenant.

Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR)

An EICR is a formal assessment of a property’s electrical installation, examining consumer units, protective bonding, lighting, switches and sockets, to determine whether the system is safe and fit for purpose.

All rental properties are legally required to hold a valid EICR rated ‘satisfactory’. Where an assessment returns an ‘unsatisfactory’ result, remedial works must be completed within 28 days, or sooner where the inspector specifies. A satisfactory report remains valid for five years.

Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)

An EPC is a compulsory review of how energy efficient a property is. It is a legal requirement for landlords to have a valid EPC in place with a minimum band E rating before the property is advertised for let.

There are exemptions to the minimum band rating for certain properties, which must be registered on the Government’s PRS exemption registry.

Legionnaires’ risk assessment

Landlords have a legal obligation to assess the risk of Legionella bacteria within their properties. In practice, most standard domestic water systems present a low risk: regular daily use prevents the stagnant water conditions in which the bacteria can develop. A straightforward initial assessment is sufficient in most cases to confirm compliance and provide the necessary documentation.

Anti-money laundering (AML)

Standard checks performed to confirm the identity and authenticity of any funds involved in a transaction. AML is a legal requirement for all estate agents, with HMRC targeting any criminal activity in the property sector. Every time you market a property with an estate agent you’ll need to provide a valid photo ID and a recent utility bill. We will perform these same checks on your prospective tenants too, as well as a sanctions test.

Right to Rent

It is a legal requirement to thoroughly check a tenant’s right to rent a property in the UK. All prospective tenants over 18 years of age must be checked. We have technology that enables us to quickly check a tenant’s eligibility, but it’s also important that either you or your agent meets the tenant in person before keys to the property are released.

Portable Appliance Testing (PAT)

PAT testing verifies that all portable electrical appliances within a property — including white goods such as fridge-freezers and washing machines, as well as smaller items like toasters — are safe for use by occupants. A PAT certificate is issued upon completion of testing, documenting the condition and safety status of each appliance. Any item found to be unsafe must be removed or replaced before the property is let.

Pre-tenancy cleaning

The Jones Davies tenancy agreement requires a property to be cleaned to a professional standard before the tenancy begins. A domestic clean is not sufficient: professional cleaning includes specialist interior cleaning of kitchen appliances, deep cleaning of bathrooms and thorough treatment of all flooring. Tenants are also required to return the property in the exact same state of cleanliness they received it in, so a pre-tenancy clean is essential.

Check-in & check-out inventory reports

The most effective way to protect your position as a landlord is to have a thorough inventory prepared at the start of each tenancy and a formal check-out report completed at the end. These documents record the precise condition and contents of the property in detail, supported by photographs, and provide the evidential basis for any deposit deduction should damage or loss occur. Without them, claims against a tenant’s deposit are extremely difficult to substantiate.

We recommend commissioning a check-in report once the pre-tenancy clean has been completed, and a check-out report promptly at the end of the tenancy.