When Rent Smart Wales first announced their licence fee structure for agents, it was a flat fee of £3,728.00 for an online application or £4,368.00 for a paper application. The only exception was a sole trader agent with no staff (connected person) which cost the same as a landlord licence – £144.00 online or £186.00 paper.
This large fee applicable to all agents across the board (except sole trader no staff) was met with resistance from smaller agents in particular.
Rent Smart Wales announced soon afterwards the agent fee structure was under review after receiving much feedback (including from the Guild).
Now, Rent Smart Wales have concluded their review and have announced a new fee structure for agents which takes effect from 25 April 2016.
According to Rent Smart Wales:
The changes have been implemented following consultation with agent bodies. We have been able to accommodate some of the principles put forward by the industry. Specifically, we have introduced a fee structure which is:
- Graduated based on the size of the organisation,
- A reduced fee is applied to those who are a member of specified professional body
- Payment options are available to smaller companies.
There are now discounts available for agents who are members of a relevant professional body namely:
- Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA)
- Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)
- National Approved Letting Scheme (NALS)
- The UK Association of Letting Agents UKALA
- Other as determined by Licensing Authority
The landlord fee of £144.00 (£186.00 paper) will apply to the following:
- Agents managing less than 20 properties and do not undertake “let only” activities, or
- Agents who manage only their own and / or properties owned by a relative and do not employ staff for letting and management purposes, (Relative is defined in Section 258 Housing Act 2004)
unless otherwise determined by the Licensing Authority.
“Let only” agencies will fall into the ‘up to 100’ category. Payment by instalments is available for smaller agents.
The fees as of 25 April 2016 are as shown below or the official Rent Smart Wales version is available here.
