Renting from a company versus a direct landlord

There are pros and cons for each. There are several companies that act as “professional landlords” or “second landlords” and PropertyAngel is one such company, for example.

Now, the advantage the tenants who rent from a professional landlord have are the following:

  1. A smooth move in, agreement process etc, because everything is usually very streamlined in such companies. The entire check-in is documented with pictures and lists of everything, along with damages to avoid disputes later.
  2. Standard agreement terms - A company will have very standard and reasonable terms as they deal with a very large number of tenants. Usually there will not be any unreasonable expectations. Also these terms will be laid out upfront.
  3. Less risk to their security deposit - If there is any delay or dispute in getting their deposit back when they vacate, at a company they will have a point of escalation, or at least they can speak out publicly against anything unethical. No such recourse exists if renting directly from a landlord.
  4. Professional handling of any maintenance requests - If there are any damages, with a company the agreement will call out who is responsible for what. So there will be less chances of any dispute and maintenance queries that need to be fixed by the landlord will usually be taken care of. That might not be the case with a direct landlord.
  5. Automated rent receipts - Any documentation, such as agreement renewals, rent receipts will all be done without much follow up from your end. With a direct landlord, who himself may be busy, this may not be the case.
  6. Smooth exit - At such companies, the exit process will also be very smooth. There will be check-in and check-out forms filled, pictures and videos taken, so there will be clear records of any damages for which you are held responsible. The process may not be so transparent with a direct landlord
  7. Privacy - A company will respect your privacy, and unlike a direct landlord who may show up unannounced, such liberties will not be taken by a company.

Some advantages of renting from a direct landlord:

  1. With a direct landlord, it will all depend on your relationship with that person. If you end up striking a cordial relationship, you may get more flexibility than you would get at a company.
  2. Again, if you are able to strike a good relationship with your landlord, you may be able to get some additional favours, such as paying rent late or in installments, etc which you may not get so easily at a company.


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