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Properties - Adding a new property record

Updated over 3 weeks ago

To add a new property record, please follow the steps listed below:

  1. Go to Lettings Properties > Add new property

  2. Users will be presented with a blank property record

  3. At the top of the new record, there will be a row of tabs. Each of these tabs contains different fields relating to the property

  4. We recommend that users make their way through each tab and populate the relevant information for the new property

  5. Once the required information has been entered, click on Submit to create the new property

Note: Once the property has been created, users can re-visit the record at any point to make changes.

The fields within the property record are mostly self-explanatory, however, we have outlined some brief guidelines on some of the key fields below for reference.

Property address tab

  • Management type: Select the appropriate management type for the property.

  • Management fee: Select the applicable monthly management fee rate. If a monthly fixed fee is to be charged instead of a percentage, users should set this option to 0% and note the fixed fee in the ‘Other details’ field.

  • Property status: This field is a useful way of keeping track of what stage the property is at in the lettings process.

  • Availability date: For available properties only. The date on which the property is available to be moved into.

  • Internal reference: When moving data from another software onto SME Professional, this field can be used to keep the old property reference number.

Address

  • Flat Number: If applicable, enter the property flat number. We recommend entering it in the form of 'Flat 1' or 'Flat 3F2'.

  • Street number/house name: Enter the unique number or name associated with the property.

  • Street: Set the road on which this property is situated.

  • Location/Area: Select the appropriate location and area for the property (Note, a location is defined as the town, city or village the property is in, and the area is a specific area or suburb within the chosen Location).

  • Postcode: Enter the postcode for the property.

Keys

  • Key fob reference: If individual fob references are used, enter this reference code here.

  • Key hook number: If relevant, please set the key hook number for the property. The key hooks have been colour-coded as follows:

    • Green = available hooks (Assigned to no property)

    • Red = hooks that are currently assigned to a live property

    • Amber = hooks assigned to past properties but are free to be assigned to a live property

Inspections

  • Inspection route: This function allows users to group properties into routes for ease of carrying out inspections in the same area at the same time. For further information on the Routes functionality, please click here.

  • Next inspection interval overwrite (days): If this property is to be inspected more or less often than normal, please enter the number of days between each inspection here. Note: this information pulls through when adding an inspection report.

Branch details

  • If enabled on your system, please assign the property to the relevant branch and/or team.

  • For further information on the branch functionality, please click here.

  • For further information on the teams functionality, please click here.

HMO

  • For guidance on how to set up an HMO property, please click here.

Other details

  • The text box can be used to hold any additional information relating to the property where there isn't a specific field available.

Details tab

Rent and deposit

  • Advertised rent: For available properties only. The monthly amount to be shown on advertising portals.

  • Show advertised rent on marketing website: If left unticked, the property will be marketed as Price on Application. For further information on this functionality, please click here.

  • Total deposit: Enter the full deposit amount (including holding deposit).

  • Advanced deposit: Enter the holding deposit amount.

Building details

Within this section, users can add further details about the property. Please find below further information on some of the key fields that can be populated here.

  • Accommodation type: Select the relevant property type.

  • Floor level: If the property is a flat/apartment, users can set the floor the property is on.

  • New home: If ticked, the property will be marketed as a new home to your chosen advertising portals.

Other details

Within this section, please work through the various fields and populate those relevant to the property. Some of the key fields are noted below for reference:

  • Furnished: Please select the appropriate furnished option.

  • Gas supply: Set whether or not the property has a gas supply (Note: If set to No, this will update how the property shows on the Safety certificate audit page. For further guidance on this, please click here).

  • Heating: Select the relevant heating type.

Council tax/Northern Ireland rates

  • Council tax band: Select the required council tax band option.

  • Council tax/rates and As at: If applicable, please populate these fields.

Garden and parking

Details of the garden and parking amenities for the property can be entered here for reference, including what type of parking and garden is available (if any).

Dates

  • Management start date: The date on which the agent began managing the property.

  • Keys received date: The date on which the agent received the keys for the property.

  • Current contract start date: The start date of the landlord's current contract.

  • Contract expiry date: The end date of the landlord's current contract.

  • Contract periodic: Tick this checkbox if the landlord is on a periodic contract rather than a fixed-term contract.

Lease details

Click on the Lease details bar to open the menu and view the fields held within. Please populate these fields if required.

Note: The information can pull through to the generated lease if the corresponding merge fields are held within your tenancy agreement templates. For further information on locating available merge fields, please click here. For further information on adding additional clauses to a lease agreement, please click here.

Features tab

Rooms

Note: These fields will be used for marketing purposes

  • Bedrooms: Total number of bedrooms in the property.

  • Bathrooms: Total number of bathrooms in the property.

  • Public rooms: Total number of public rooms in the property.

Type of bedrooms

  • For internal reference, users can specify what type of bedrooms are available.

Type of bathrooms

  • For internal reference, users can specify what type of bathrooms are available.

Total and other rooms

  • Total rooms: For internal reference, users can set the total number of rooms in the property.

  • Room 1-6 fields and checkboxes: Within these fields, users can enter other relevant information relating to the rooms in the property. Note, the information entered here is for internal reference but will feed through to generated window card/brochure pages.

Features

  • Feature 1-10 fields: For property marketing, we recommend populating these with the key features to be shown on the property listing.

  • Feature checkboxes: These are more for internal reference but will feed through to the create window card/brochure pages.

Note: A maximum of 10 features can be sent per property but not all marketing portals may display all 10. If not all 10 feature fields are populated, the system will then look to some of the checkbox feature fields to make up any remaining features.

Electrical goods

  • Item 1-6 fields and checkboxes: Within these fields, users can enter other relevant information relating to the electrical goods within the property. Note: the information entered here is for internal reference but will feed through to created window card/brochure pages.

Additional information tab

This tab includes fields for Accessibility, Rights and restrictions, Flood and erosion risk, Coalfield/mining area, Planning permissions, Building safety issues and Mobile signal information. This information will then be pulled through to marketing portals.

Preferences tab

Tenant suitability

  • Look at each suitability checkbox option and update those that are relevant to the property. Note: If the Students option is set to Yes, the property will be tagged as a student let by the advertising portals.

Certificates and compliance The fields within this section can be used to indicate what the landlord’s preferences are for the management of compliance certification.

  • If the agent is to track/process the renewal of the certificate, set the field to Yes

  • If the agent is not to track/process the certificate renewal, set the field to No

  • If a particular certificate is not relevant to the property, select Not applicable

These fields feed through to the certificate audit page. Please click here for more information on how the Safety certificate audit page works.

Descriptions tab

Property Descriptions

  • Short description: Please enter a suitable short description for the property. We recommend keeping this text to no more than 250 characters. This description will appear on the search results page of the portal. Note: Not all portals may be set up to list this description.

  • Long description: Please enter a suitable long description for the property. This description will appear when a user clicks in to view a property listing.

  • Window advert: Please enter a suitable window advert description for the property. We recommend keeping this text to no more than 400 characters. This description will appear on any window adverts generated for this property.

  • Energy Performance Indicator: Please select the appropriate EPC rating for the property. Note: All property adverts in Scotland must display the Energy Performance Rating.

  • Landlord Registration Number: override All property adverts in Scotland must display at least one Landlord Registration Number. The system will automatically select the registration number of the first landlord linked to a property. However, this field can be used to override this.

Please do not enter your company telephone number, email address or website address in the descriptions as many advertising portals do not allow contact details within these fields.

Users can add description templates to reduce time spent entering similar descriptive text for multiple properties manually. For more information on this functionality, please click here.

Website related

  • Website contact: If your company website is set up to show details of an employee (for example, their name and contact details) on a property listing, please select the relevant user's name.

  • Link to property on website: For most of our website customers, we have the option of adding a new "Property preview" to their website. This allows you to send a preview link to vendors and landlords of what the property advertisement will look like on the website and can remove the need to send a brochure to owners for approval. Contact our General Support team at [email protected] if you wish to enable this.

Virtual tours

  • In this section, users can add up to two virtual tour links for marketing purposes. For further information on virtual tours, please click here.

Showcased property

  • If your company website or website display/slider has been set up to list showcased properties, please tick the relevant checkbox option.

Note: For franchisee clients, in order for new properties to show as premium featured, your central office marketing team must authorise an approval request

Property room descriptions

  • To add a property room, click on Add new room and populate the blank row that appears

  • This information can be used for marketing, but please note that not all advertising portals may be set up to show this information

Photos tab

Photos can only be added against a property once the record has been created. For guidance on how to upload images, please click here.

Utilities tab

Within this tab, users can store information relating to the property's utilities such as meter location, serial numbers and last known suppliers. This information can be used as a reference point when it comes to processing utility changeovers.

Note: The Last known suppliers (if set) will feed through to the Change utilities page. For further information on how to process a utility changeover, please click here.

Utilities exports: Within this section, users can set the utility export preference for the property. This determines whether the property will be included in our utility exports or utility API.

Finance tab

Within this tab, users can enter financial information relating to the property. Some of the key fields are noted below for reference.

  • Account details: Enter the bank details that will be used for payment for the property. This is required for bulk payments as one portfolio landlord may have different bank accounts for each property.

  • Guaranteed rent: For our Guaranteed rent customers, these fields should be populated with details of the landlord's payment plan. For further information on setting up a guaranteed rent property, please click here.

  • Agreed fees: If relevant, users can enter a Marketing fee and Renewal fee for the property. This information can feed through to generated landlord contracts if the corresponding merge fields are included in the template. Please click here for further information.

  • Statement requirements: For bulk payments only. Select the landlord's statement preference - email statements, postal statements or both.

Mortgage, insurance & contacts tab

Within this tab, users can enter details of the landlord’s mortgage and insurance for reference.

Note: Only one mortgage provider and one insurance company can be added at this point, but once the property record has been created, users will have the option to add further mortgage/insurance details.

Video tutorial

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