Letting Agent
Tenants & Landlords
Your rights when dealing with Letting Agents
Landlords frequently employ letting agent to let and in some cases manage their properties. PropertyGroup Tynan & Martin Auctioneers are required under law to be licenced and tenants should avoid dealing with unlicensed agents as you may have little recourse if things go wrong, such as a deposit being retained illegally.
PropertyGroup Tynan Martin Letting & sales agents who are members of a professional body the Institute of Professional Auctioneers and Valuers(IPAV) and are obliged under the terms of their membership to hold a current licence and must abide by a code of practice.
It is important to bear in mind that if you need to make a complaint to the Private Residential Tenancies Board in relation to your tenancy you will need the landlords name and address, even if you have rented the property through a letting agent. Therefore it is always advisable to get the landlord’s details at the beginning of your tenancy.
The National Property Services Regulatory Authority (NPSRA) maintains a list of licensed agents who have agreed to have their details on the register. Many of the listed agents have also signed up to the NPSRA’s Code of Practice.
What to Do
- Only deal with reputable letting agents
- Check the register maintained by the NPSRA to see if the agent is licensed
- Check to see if the letting agents are members of professional bodies such as the SCSI or IPAV. Membership of these bodies is usually publically displayed by the agent.
- If you feel that a letting agent has acted unprofessionally or you they have discriminated against you can lodge an objection in the District Court to the renewal of the certificate of qualification or initiate a complaint under the Equal Status Acts