"Letting and Management Services" is our specialist property rental division and our core business, managed by trained and experienced personnel who are committed both to caring for your property and maximizing your financial return. Whether you have a single property, or a large portfolio - Ecclesiate provides you with the results you need and the service you deserve.

BENEFITS OF LETTING

  • Produces a valuable, regular income flow - a return on your capital investment.
  • Allows you to relocate, if necessary, for work or personal reasons.
  • Keeps your property occupied, and secure, thereby reducing the worry of leaving an empty property.
  • Our management service removes the need to collect rents, arrange repairs and deal personally with your tenants
  • A tenanted property is inspected at the beginning and end of each tenancy (an inspection however, will be done at any other time during any tenancy ( on your request. ) and your property will be better maintained, thereby retaining the value of your investment.


ADVICE AND GUIDENCE We can advise and guide you on all aspects of letting your property. This will include preparing your property for letting and a full explanation of your legal obligations should you undertake to let your property. Letting your property is an excellent and proven investment but not without risk. We will fully explain these to you.If you have property to let you need specialist advice: The first step is to contact Ecclesiate and arrange for an appraisal of the property.Free initial advice will be given as to the suitability of your property for letting and the amount of rent likely to be achieved, together with information on the following points:

  • Your responsibility to keep property fully maintained whilst let.
  • Advertising and marketing through the local press; our own mailing lists which are circulated to individuals and companies; our .com web page; other related web pages, and indeed our prominent TO LET boards.
  • Our comprehensive referencing procedure which helps select suitable tenants for your property.
  • Preparation of a Lease Agreement and all associated documentation in accordance with the provisions of the relevant legislation, which governs rentals.

Our full management service is designed to remove the responsibility of looking after the property from you whilst it is tenanted, and offers the following features:

  • Receiving rent when due from your tenants in addition to any other charges applicable
  • Accounting to you on a monthly basis, providing a statement of all income and expenditure for the period.
  • An inspection to record the condition of the property is done at the beginning and end of each tenancy / A written report is submitted to you with appropriate comments and recommendations. Regular inspections can be arranged at a reasonable fee. This option is recommended to you as you will receive written reports on the condition the tenants are keeping your investment.
  • Attending to all repairs (up to an agreed price limit except in emergencies) using contractors whose quality of work and service we feel matches our own and who are known to us.


At ECCLESIATE we can offer you THREE types of letting options. WHICH LEVEL WHICH LEVEL OF OUR SERVICE IS RIGHT FOR YOU ???

  1. LET ONLY - WE FIND THE TENANT - YOU COLLECT THE RENT
  2. MANAGE ONLY YOU FIND THE TENANT - WE COLLECT THE RENT
  3. FULL MANAGEMENT SERVICE WE FIND THE TENANT AND WE COLLECT THE RENT


LET ONLY OPTION
: - option 1 On receipt of formal instructions to let your property we will take care of:

  • Marketing: Circulating details of your property to potential tenants through our various advertising mediums.
  • Viewing's: One of our experienced Portfolio Managers will take prospective Tenants to view the property on appointment, and you will be advised of suitable candidates.
  • Vetting Candidates: Interviewing and obtaining credit references.
  • Tenant Agreement: Preparing the documentation required by current legislation.
  • Collection: Collecting the first month's rent and deposits.
  • Initial Inspection of Property: A Initial Inspection Report will be carried out on the property and will be presented to you in writing after seven days of the Tenant having taken occupation.
  • Our fee for this service is
  • Finders Fee R 480.00 (ex vat ) Commission 8.5% on the full lease value of the contract calculated over a minimum period of 12 months. (ex vat) This will be deducted from the collected funds.


MANAGE ONLY OPTION
: - option 2 In this scenario we will we will take care of:

  • Collecting the rent and paying it over to you by Electronic Funds Transfer, less our fees and expenses.
  • Hold the tenant's security deposit and refund it to the Tenant at the expiry of the lease after: -
  • Obtaining proof of payment of the final lights and water account,
  • Proof of any carpets in the property being PROFFESIONALY CLEANED
  • A final inspection of the property.
  • Any other documentation that we may require.
  • Agree any dilapidation's (over and above fair wear and tear) with tenants before releasing the deposit
  • Arrange any necessary cleaning and minor repairs, deducting costs from the tenant's deposit where applicable.
  • Monitor rent payments and alert you if tenants fall behind or breach the Tenancy Agreement.
  • Payments are made to Landlords on or before the 7th of every month, providing the tenant has paid.
  • Our fee for this service is
Contract Fee R 480.00 (ex vat)
Commission 10.5% per month (ex vat) This will be deducted from the rent collected each month. (If your rent is not collected - you don't pay)


FULL MANAGEMENT OPTION
: - option 3
This is the hassle-free option if you wish us to take complete control of renting your home from beginning to end.
We will:

  • Collect the rent and pay it over to you by Electronic Funds Transfer, less our fees and expenses.
  • Hold the tenant's security deposit and refund it to the Tenant at the expiry of the lease after: -
  • Obtaining proof of payment of the final lights and water account,
  • Proof of any carpets in the property being PROFFESIONALY CLEANED
  • A final inspection of the property.
  • Any other documentation that we may require.
  • Agree any dilapidation's (over and above fair wear and tear) with tenants before releasing the deposit
  • Arrange any necessary cleaning and minor repairs, deducting costs from the tenant's deposit where applicable.
  • Monitor rent payments and alert you if tenants fall behind or breach the Tenancy Agreement.
  • Payments are made to Landlords on or before the 7th of every month, providing the tenant has paid.
  • Attend to rental increases each year.
  • Our fee for this service is:-


Sourcing Fee
4% (ex vat) on the rental value of the lease for sourcing & procuring a tenant and attending to all documentation and a
Monthly management fee of 10.5% (ex vat) pm of the monthly rental. (If your rent is not collected you don't pay) (Recommended option for newly built properties.)

OR


Sourcing Fee
6% (ex vat) on the rental value of the lease for procuring a tenant and attending to all documentation and a
Monthly management fee of 8.5 % (ex vat) pm of the monthly rental. (If your rent is not collected you don't pay) Except in cases where you intend to re-occupy the accommodation and where special arrangements are made, our appointment is for an agreed initial period (i.e. length of lease or any extension thereof) and thereafter can only be terminated by either party at the end of any tenancy governed by this agreement, provided three months notice have been given in writing (Our fee is negotiable for clients who rent out more than 5 properties through us.) OUR VALUE ADDED LETTING SERVICES TENANT SELECTION
Prior to proceeding with a tenancy our landlords will be provided with all information available on the prospective tenant, and will be asked to approve the commencement of tenancy subject to references. All tenants undergo a series of vetting checks, which include: -

CREDIT SEARCH / TENANT PROFILE NETWORK ENQUIRY

We use a special credit referencing agency who provide information on the financial suitability of a perspective tenant, and who advise if the prospective \tenant has an adverse credit history. This enables us to make an informed decision as to whether or not to recommend the tenant to our Landlord.

PREVIOUS LANDLORD

A reference is obtained from a previous landlord when applicable and possible. This will be carried out either verbally or in writing which enables us to be satisfied concerning the proposed tenants conduct and reliability

EMPLOYMENT REFERENCE
Where applicable, an employment reference will be obtained to determine the stability of the tenant and likelihood of rent being paid punctually, and confirmation of salary.


INITIAL INSPECTION REPORT

We must accept that not all tenants will look after a property with the same care as an owner. To avoid doubt and protect our landlords interest and in fairness to both parties, an "INITIAL INSPECTION REPORT" is compiled by the tenant within the first seven days of occupation of the property. This report will be kept by us on file. On vacating, a final inspection is done by our agents where the condition of the property is checked against this report. The document is used to confirm the condition of the property at the final inspection against the condition of the property on occupation by the tenant. (This is done in accordance with present legislation.) Anything not noted on the initial inspection report will be fixed and deducted from the deposit. There is no charge for this)

OPTIONAL VISUAL PROPERTY INSPECTIONS
For a nominal fee, (Please refer to our schedule of extra service fees) at anytime during the lease period, On request our agents can do an inspection of your property, or we can arrange an inspection on a regular basis in order to ensure that your tenant(s) are keeping your property in a satisfactory condition. Our inspections are aimed at ensuring the tenant is respecting your property, although we respectfully ask landlords to note that it is likely a tenant will have prepared for our visit, and we do not remove furnishings etc. We adopt a common sense approach to property inspections and will inform our landlords should we be unhappy with the tenant(s) conduct.
A written report will be provided in the event of us noticing that works may be needed to maintain your property (for example decoration), we will inform you and if required, obtain quotations for the work to be carried out on your behalf.

CERTIFIED BUILDING INSPECTOR INSPECTIONS

  • Ecclesiate can arrange for a full once-off inspection of your property to be done by qualified building inspectors who will thoroughly check the property for any defects. He will check that all improvements have been authorised by the local authority. He will check that the buildings and roof is soundly constructed and sound. You will be provided with a full 400 point written report.
  • Ecclesiate can also offer you a 4 Package deal where a full 400 point inspection will be done on the tenant taking occupation, 2 walkthrough inspections during the period of the lease, and a final full inspection on the tenant vacating. A photo gallery will be made of your property and full written reports provided.


INSURANCE

It is essential that you maintain suitable HOMEOWNERS insurance on your property to cover you against disasters such as geyser burst. Ecclesiate will attend to all claims on your behalf with your authority if required.

NON-PAYMENT OF RENT

Should your tenant fall into arrears we will inform you as soon as possible. We will take responsibility for chasing rent payments on your behalf and try to keep you fully informed regarding progress. If we are unsuccessful in collecting the arrears, we will advise you of the courses of action open to you and take your instructions. It is not in our interests to have a tenant in arrears, because we also do not receive our commission. It is Ecclesiate policy with recourse that you provide us with authority as disclosed in your lease It is normal policy that a rent reminder of rent payment is sent out 3 days before it is due, should the rent not have paid on the first we send a further reminder. On the 7th Defaulters are automatically handed over to our attorney unless an arrangement has been made for late payment.
Should the matter be handed over to our attorney, the owner will be responsible for the legal fee of R350.00 per month until collected by our attorneys for attorneys costs.
We are guaranteed that summons will be issued within 3 working days (if no rental guarantee policy is in place.) Summons will be issued within 3 days. Amounts outstanding not paid on the due date, we will see the matter to a conclusion on your behalf.
Please be aware that we cannot guarantee that you will always receive your rent either on time or indeed at all - unless you opt for the rental guarantee option), we guarantee to continue to work with the attorney and to recover any loses. However, be assured, our arrears cases are very low due to our stringent checking procedures recourse procedures and arrears follow up.

INSTRUCTIONS TO ATTORNEYS

Where The Guaranteed Option is not in place, if it is necessary after the recourse procedure above is unsuccessful it will be necessary for an attorney to take action, you will be responsible for instructing the attorney to proceed further and for all fees involved. Again this can be avoided by taking the Rental Guarantee Insurance.

LEGAL ASPECTS OF COLLECTING ARREARS

We must also advise that all actions taken to collect rent are governed by the RENTAL HOUSING ACT and are subject to certain tenant rights for.

DAMAGES

One never reads or hears about the perfect tenant who looks after their rental property admirably. One only hears the horror stories of tenants abusing their rented property and leaving it in poor condition. Our experience of this happening is thankfully VERY RARE, due to our stringent checking procedures and 0n-hands approach and control on the property. If however, damage has occurred to your property, we will advise you as soon as we are aware of the situation, and will advise you of the courses of action available and assist you through to conclusion. A deposit for this eventuality is always taken.

MORTGAGES

It is most important that you maintain your mortgage payments. You may want us to make payment directly into your bond account highly recommended but you must keep in mind that the tenant may not pay on the due date or even hold back payment. Obviously this will be contrary to the lease agreement and we will do everything possible to ensure prompt payment but cannot be held responsible for arrear charges of any kind whether on the bond or your rates/levy accounts should you have requested us to pay the same. It is always our advice to owners to pay a month in advance.

RENT

Unless otherwise agreed, the rent quoted to a tenant by us, on your behalf, must be inclusive of all outgoings' for which you are responsible. i.e. rates & taxes, service charges, levy etc. With the exception of, electricity, telephone, gas. However, please be advised that in terms of legislation, you as the owner are responsible for payment of any account due for lights and water usage by your tenant if he does not pay. ECCLESIATE in an effort to ensure that this bill is paid by the tenant, are willing on your written request / authority to collect the lights / water amounts from the tenant and pay this to the local authority for a nominal collection fee..

GUARANTEED RENTAL INCOME

We can offer you an optional GUARANTEED RENT facility that guarantees your rental payment whether your tenant pays the rent or not and which also covers any LEGAL EXPENSES which may become necessary
The guaranteed rental income option ensures that the property owner receives their income on time every month even in the event of the tenant defaulting on their payment for any reason. (Conditions apply for acceptance by the guarantor for this cover). The rental is guaranteed (up to a period of 3 months) until the property is re-let, whichever is the lesser. The guarantor takes care of collecting all amounts in arrear and the legal costs thereof, and if required, the tenant is evicted fairly and efficiently AT NO COST TO THE LANDLORD.

The fee for this option is 6.5% of the monthly rental (excl vat) i.e. R130.00 on a R2 000.00 per month rental.) and is only available for properties let at R 3 000.00 per month or upwards.


We shall deal with day-to-day management matters including minor repairs. We reserve the right to act without seeking your specific approval in these cases but our policy is that where ever possible, we will inform you before any repairs are carried out and endeavor to obtain your authority before hand. Please note however, that this may not always be possible depending on the nature of the repairs. CONSIDER THIS OPTION IT IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

PROPERTY MAINTENANCE PROGRAME

An Optional "PROPERTY MAINTENANCE PROGRAME" that you can pay monthly which will cover all maintenance expenses.
This programme is offered exclusively to Ecclesiate Clients only.

Payment is Tax Deductible!
A full disclosure will be made of what the policy covers and has proved great savings to our owners in maintenance costs. The plan covers maintenance items at a premium of 6.5% of the monthly rental (minimum of R180.00 p.m.), and an excess payable on each claim event of R80.00 is payable
There is a generous cash payback is offered for no-claim bonus. THIS OPTION IS A MUST HAS SAVED OUR OWNERS THOUSANDS OF RANDS IN MAINTENANCE COSTS.

DISBURSEMENTS

So long as we have funds to do so, we are can on your written request, be able to pay, on your behalf, where applicable, current outgoings such as bond, rates, insurance premiums, water / lights and any other service charges Although we shall do our best to query any obvious discrepancies should we become aware of these, These or similar disbursements directly related to your property that you request us to pay it must be understood that we are legally entitled to accept and pay without question demands for accounts, which appear not to be in order. Where we are authorised to pay outgoings prior to a tenant being installed, a float of not less than R 1,000.00 must be established by the Landlord prior to the Tenant taking occupation..


ECCLESIATE use our standard form of lease agreement in respect of all letting's. There is a nominal re-newel fee on a lease re-newel payable by the landlord; the tenant is also liable for a re-newel fee payment, which we retain to cover the costs involved.

DEPOSITS

Deposits are held in our Trust Account and remain the tenant's money throughout the tenancy. At the end of the lease, after determining the extent of damages (if any) and applying the deposit to any unpaid accounts the balance will be refunded to the tenant.
Should the owner decide on the expiration of the lease not to continue with our services we must be advised IN WRTITING within 7 days of the expiration date of our management. Failing this we are unable to continue to hold the deposit and this will be paid back the Tenant.

VACANT PERIODS

Our management function does not include the supervision of the property when it is not let, although, in the normal course of letting, visits may be made to the property by our staff. It also does not include any period before the property is let. If you wish your property managed during a vacant period there will be an additional charge until a tenant is found of 25% of the last months rental.

VALUE ADDED TAX

Except where otherwise stated, our fees and charges will be subject to VAT at the appropriate rate.

MUNICIPAL RATES LIGHTS & WATER ACCOUNTS

Where the lights & Water accounts are administered by the local council, the tenant is required to apply for the service and to have the account opened in his name. The municipal authority will take a deposit from the tenant and will there-after forward the account to the tenant for payment. Ecclesiate have no control over the payment thereof by the tenant and are not advised when the account goes into arrears. In terms of municipal by-laws should the local authority fail to collect any outstanding monies from the tenant, the owner is held responsible for payment thereof. AS an effort to alleviate the potential loss to an owner in this respect, Ecclesiate insist on proof of payment of the final lights/water account when a tenant vacates before the security deposit is paid out, but this does not always protect the owner should a tenant abscond. (Added to this, is that most municipal authorities only take actual metered readings periodically and mostly give estimates on accounts. Ecclesiate on the owner's written instruction allow the tenant to occupy the premises and the lights and water account to remain in the Owners name,

THE OWNER
than should advise the municipal authority in writing through Ecclesiate to forward all rates & services account to Ecclesiate monthly where we will then be in a position to control the account. Money collected monthly for lights & Water will then be paid over to the owner on receipt. This service will be charged extra at a rate of 12.5% collection fee of amounts collected (With this option Ecclesiate can keep control of the lights / water account and follow up when not paid by the tenant but carry any responsibility for non payment by the tenant. )
(Here again the RENTAL GUARANTEE OPTION CAN INCLUDE LOSS SUSTAINED IN THIS EVENT)

BODY CORPORATE

In the case of a body corporate administering the collection of the Lights and Water, the body corporate may agree to split the Levy / Lights and water account and bill the lights & water separately to the levy to the owner and tenant respectively. The tenant will pay the body corporate direct for the lights & water account forwarded to them by the body corporate. Should Ecclesiate collect the Lights/Water on behalf of the owner and you require Ecclesiate to pay over lights & water to the body corporate, This service will be charged extra at a rate of 12.5% collection fee of amounts collected. Payment of the Levy account can be made by Ecclesiate to the Body Corporate after deducting the amount from rentals received. For this there is no charge, however you must advise Ecclesiate that you require us to pay your levy and provide us with the necessary details of the account.

HOME OWNERS INSURANCE

Ecclesiate are able to offer to our clients' specialized and extremely reasonable HomeOwners insurance cover. Your property will be professionally surveyed and you will be advised of the correct REPLACEMENT VALUE your property should be insured for. This cover will periodically be revised so that at all times you can have total peace of mind that your insured value will be correct.

SHORT TERM INSURANCE INSURANCE

Ecclesiate are able to offer to our client's specialized and extremely reasonable short term insurance on your household contents and motor vehicles. Your property will be professionally surveyed and you will be advised of the correct REPLACEMENT VALUE your contents should be insured for. This cover will periodically be revised so that at all times you can have total peace of mind that your insured value will be correct.

VIEWING SERVICES
Should you reside outside of the area, and on a visit to the area, want to see your property, Ecclesiate will arrange access for you to view the property. We will collect you from any address you may be at on your visit to the area and take you back after your inspection of your property. If you are making a short visit to the area we will collect you from the airport and take you back to the airport should you require. NO CHARGE, just with our compliments. Our aim is to serve YOU" our client " in any way we can. You let us know how we can assist, and we will make every effort to assist you in what ever way we can.

VALUATIONS
Ecclesiate are pleased to be able to offer our clients a professional valuation service by registered professional Valuer. As an Ecclesiate client we will offer you a 25% discount on our normal valuation fee which will be provided with a fully motivated report signed by a professional Valuer registered with the relevant Council For The Property Valuation Profession, Ecclesiate are also members of The South African Institute of Valuers, Our Valuers are also qualified to do appraisals for Estate purposes
SELLING YOUR PROPERTY.
Ecclesiate have a professional Sales Division associated to us through our Joint Venture Partners that will be able to assist you in purchasing a property or selling your property. Our property negotiators are all properly trained before being allowed into into the field are all registered with the Estate Agents Affairs Board.

INVESTORS.
Should you be an investor in property and develop properties for sale or rentals, or buy to rent out, we have an experienced and fully motivated Brokerage Division and a Asset management Division that can help you and advise you on purchasing a property for investment purposes, selling your units if required or renting out your properties. In certain conditions, a fully motivated feasibility study will be done and even a five year Rental Projection Plan will be done. Our Management Division will administer your Rental Housing Pool or Fractional Ownership Properties and our Sectional Title Division can set-up register and administer your Body Corporate.

NEW

PRE-PAID ELECTRICITY METERS.

Ecclesiate are able to provide Pre-Paid Electricity Meters to our clients during our management of their property on request. The cost of providing the meter and installing is R 1 799.00 once-off fee.

PLEASE CONTACT OUR MAINTENANCE DEPARTMENT FOR FULL DETAILS.



THIS INFORMATION HAS BEEN PREPARED FOR POTENTIAL LANDLORDS WITH A VIEW TO ANSWERING THE MOST COMMON QUESTIONS ASKED OF US. THE INFORMATION HAS BEEN WRITTEN WITH THIS IN MIND, AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A BINDING CONTRACT OR GIVE ANY WARRANTY IN RESPECT OF ANY TENANCY. WE WILL BE PLEASED TO PROVIDE YOU WITH ADVICE ON ALL ASPECTS OF LETTING


A copy of
THE RENTAL HOUSING ACT is available on request.

WHERE APPLICABLE, PRICES LISTED ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE
PLEASE CONFIRM WITH US.