The short version
- A handful of safety certificates are legally required before anyone moves in.
- Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms must be fitted and working.
- You must protect the deposit, run Right to Rent checks and give the tenant the right documents.
- Getting the order right avoids last-minute delays and penalties.
- Most of this is repeatable, set it up well once and renewals are easy.
Becoming a landlord for the first time can feel like a wall of obligations with no obvious starting point. In reality it is a sequence, and the sequence is the same almost every time. Do the steps in order and the process is calm; do them out of order and you end up with a tenant ready to move in and a missing certificate.
Here is the order we follow on every new let, from the moment the property is yours to the day the first rent lands.
01 · MindsetTreat it as a regulated business
The single most useful shift is to stop thinking of letting as "having someone live in my flat" and start treating it as a small regulated business. The rules exist mainly around safety and money, and they are not optional. Approach them as a checklist to complete, not hurdles to dodge, and everything else gets easier.
02 · Step 1Safety certificates
These come first because they take time to arrange and a tenancy cannot legally start without them. The core requirements for a typical let in England:
- Gas Safety Certificate. If there is any gas in the property, an annual gas safety check by a Gas Safe registered engineer is required, with a record given to the tenant.
- Electrical safety (EICR). The electrical installation must be inspected and tested by a qualified person, with a satisfactory report provided, and re-checked periodically.
- Energy Performance Certificate (EPC). You need a valid EPC, and the property must meet the current minimum energy efficiency standard to be let.
- Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. Smoke alarms on each storey and carbon monoxide alarms where required, tested and working at the start of the tenancy.
Engineers and inspectors get booked up, and a failed inspection means remedial work and a re-test. Start arranging certificates as soon as the property is yours, not the week before a tenant wants to move in.
Because the exact testing intervals and standards are updated from time to time, confirm the current requirements on gov.uk before each tenancy.
03 · Step 2Prepare the property
With safety in hand, get the property itself ready to let. That means clean, in good repair, and decorated to a lettable standard. Decide whether to let furnished or unfurnished based on your target tenant and local demand. Small things, working appliances, a fresh coat of paint, a tidy bathroom, do a lot for both the rent achievable and how quickly it lets.
04 · Step 3Price and market
Price from recent comparable lets nearby, not just the portal average, and present the property well with good photographs and an honest description. We cover this in depth in how to set your rent. The aim is a figure that lets quickly without leaving money on the table, because void weeks cost more than most landlords expect.
05 · Step 4Vet the tenant
Once you have interest, screen applicants properly and consistently: Right to Rent checks for every adult occupier, income and affordability, and references. Our vetting checklist sets out the full process. This is the step that prevents most future problems, so do not rush it under pressure to fill the property.
"The hour you spend checking a tenant properly is the cheapest insurance you will ever buy."
City Flats lettings team06 · Step 5Paperwork and deposit
With a tenant approved, get the legal foundations right before move-in:
- A current, compliant tenancy agreement, reflecting the rules introduced by the Renters' Rights Act.
- The deposit protected in an approved scheme, with the prescribed information served, see our deposit guide.
- The required documents given to the tenant, including the government's "How to Rent" guide, the EPC, and the gas safety record.
Missing one of these documents at the start can have real consequences later, so treat them as a fixed pre-move-in list.
07 · Step 6Move-in day
On the day, complete a detailed, dated inventory and condition report, ideally with photographs, and have the tenant acknowledge it. Take meter readings, hand over keys, and make sure the tenant knows how the property works and how to reach you. The inventory is what makes any end-of-tenancy deduction defensible, so do not skip it.
08 · OngoingAfter the first rent
The first rent arriving is the start, not the finish. From here it is about keeping records, responding to repairs promptly, diarising certificate renewals and any rent review, and staying on top of changes in the law. Set up a simple system now, a folder per property, a calendar of renewals, and each subsequent year is far easier than the first.
First let feeling like a lot?
We will run the whole thing for you.
Certificates, compliance, marketing, vetting and the paperwork, set up correctly from day one, so your first let is as smooth as your tenth.
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