Renting in London, how do you bid?

I am looking for an apartment in London and understand that you can negotiate with the landlords the listed price for an apartment when putting in a bid.  Question 1: Does anybody know how much lower a bid usually is?  Question 2: How much lower (typical) can you bid if you pay 3 months in advance?  6 months in advance?  1 year in advance?  Question 3: What if you pay 3 months in advance and stretch the term from 1 to 2 years?  I want to make a clever bid when putting in offers.

Thanks again!

This kind of bidding is unusual, especially in London where good rental properties don't stay on the market for very long. It is a renter's market right now, and people with buy-to-let mortgages are feeling the pinch, so you may find yourself just losing your chosen property if you try to be too clever.

Vicky

I am looking for an apartment in London and understand that you can negotiate with the landlords the listed price for an apartment when putting in a bid.  Question 1: Does anybody know how much lower a bid usually is?  Question 2: How much lower (typical) can you bid if you pay 3 months in advance?  6 months in advance?  1 year in advance?  Question 3: What if you pay 3 months in advance and stretch the term from 1 to 2 years?  I want to make a clever bid when putting in offers.

Thanks again!

Yeah, sorry ... it's been a few years since I lived in London, but I have never heard of anyone bidding for rented properties.

The only way I am aware of putting in a bid is verbally from the brokers form the largest firms i.e. Foxtons, Hamptons, Chard, etc.  Another one went as far to mention that it compared to putting in an offer for a house.  They told me if I pay up to a year in advance I could get a substantial amount off.  What they didn't mention is what type of bid I should be putting in and I don't trust them enough for this advice so that is why I am here.  So yes, it is a renter's market, but there are also landlords who are dependant on paying for their mortgages with tenants who are in contract as long as possible.

I have only heard of this in relation to commercial leases, not residential. I'd find a more reputable agency to deal with.

NB I would not recommend paying a year in advance on a residential tenancy unless there is a refund clause in the contract so that if something happens and you need to move you can get the unused portion of the rent back.

We live outside of London and we've negotiated rent before, but it was quite informal. I went to look at a place, told the lady showing it to us that it was a bit more than we wanted to pay, asked if she thought the owner would accept whatever we felt was fair, she spoke to the owner and that's what we ended up paying....

I've also noticed that some places get listed at different prices with different agencies....

We live outside of London and we've negotiated rent before, but it was quite informal. I went to look at a place, told the lady showing it to us that it was a bit more than we wanted to pay, asked if she thought the owner would accept whatever we felt was fair, she spoke to the owner and that's what we ended up paying....

I've also noticed that some places get listed at different prices with different agencies....

That's been my experience too.  Nothing formal, just through the agent.  When we did it, we were able to get the rent down about 10%, so not massive savings, but an extra £10-20 per week.  I also had something to negotiate each time - Flexible move in date or not needing more furniture for unfurnished place.  You probably can use your up front payment as a point to negotiate on.  But as Vicky said...more people are renting than buying right now, so landlords have more potential renters to choose from and you may get locked out. 

I always think it's worth a try, but don't get too set on getting a deal.  If you lose out on the first couple...take that as a hint that the listed price is the price you have to pay.

Good luck

My husband and I are currently looking for a place in Kingston and its quite common to negotiate the rental price there. Typically you can ask for, at most, 100 pounds off the asking price in Kingston. We had to tell them the length we wanted for the lease (1-5 years), when our move in date would be, and what price we wanted to pay. I don't know if its the same for Central London, but I hope this helps.

When my flatmate & I were looking at a 3-bed house to rent (2 years prior), we asked the EA to tell the owner that we were prepared to pay £100 less than he was asking (per month) and it was accepted...but our other place we lived in we had to pay at cost.  I wouldn't go too low in terms of your offer...perhaps £50-100 less for a monthly rate.  But do it casually.  And DO NOT use Foxtons!!!  If you want to know why, just type Foxtons into google and you'll find forums on them.