| Comment | One thing to bear in mind is that, now that there is no minimum lease duration - you just rent month to month - the worst case scenario is that you move in, find out it's actually a shithole, give them notice, and move out again 28 days later. So the 'risk' of letting in this way is greatly reduced to how it used to be.
Holding fees are technically illegal but plenty of agencies are still doing them, so I wouldn't see that as a red flag. You can refuse to pay it, problem is that in a sellers market they might give the place to someone who will. You'll get the money back one way or another, they can't keep it, and if they try to you can get several times the money back in a small claims judgement. If anything paying a holding fee (as upfront rent, not as a standalone fee) works in your favour, as it stops them letting it to someone else before you've signed the lease. |
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