broodje : thank you so much for your response - very informative and useful. A big help!

S x

Hi Sammysmum,

We rented 3 places for 7 years in total so based on that my advice would be:
- In terms of negotiations, anything goes with regards to both - price and conditions. You won't know until you ask. Our first place in London had a very inflexible landlady and she wanted to raise the rent just after one year. Also, she was very slow with response to maintenance;
-In second place, we negotiated having a dog, house fully repainted, a new dishwasher, etc. The landlady also had a Home Maintenance contract with British Gas so if anything went wrong with the boiler/plumbing etc we just called British Gas and they had 24 hr response, very convenient.
-The third guy didn't do anything, it was impossible to get hold of but reimbursed our expenses if we needed to fix anything.

So I would check how the maintenance is done and actually ask existing tenants (if any) on second viewing what their experience is with regards to maintenance and responsiveness.

Finally, when you take possession of the house, go through EVERYTHING with a fine toothed comb, report every scratch, every stain, every speck of dust, any loose grout - literally everything that is not reflected precisely on the inventory. Preferably pictures. And report any issue immediately - leaks, breaks, etc. However nice the landlord is when you are there, at least some will try to sting you with regards to deposit on check out. Which is fine if you stay there for 3 years and use the house as a family home and can view deposit as amortization but if you have to leave after 1-1.5yrs it's a lot of money to lose.

Thank you so much for your response Vhopeful.

Just thought I'd clarify that, although our decision is due to schools, it is not for catchment purposes! Our children already attend an independent school and nursery in the area and we are moving to be closer to these.

S x

Speaking as a landlord these are my views
- is 10% below asking acceptable - well it depends, if i knew there were other people interested i wouldn't accept but -10 sounds like a good starting point
- replacment of carpets etc...- again you can always ask and depending upon whether there is someone else willing to live in the house as is then they don't have to replace. A professional clean & carpet cleaning are essential though.

Assuming your moving btw for school reasons then i would imagine you will have to pay the "asking" price or more for the property. Best of luck with the move.

I am looking for a little advice on an area I have zero experience in!! We are currently selling our home in Balham and looking to rent a house 'between the commons' for around two years, ideally three with an 18 month break. What is normal in terms of negotiating rent (i.e. is offering 10% below asking acceptable)? We are looking to take the house long term so should we use this as a bargaining tool, is it more attractive to land lords? What sort of 'terms' should I outline when agreeing the tenancy (i.e. is a professional clean standard, should carpets be replaced if tatty, etc.)

Sorry for all the questions, we are pretty au fait with the sales process but renting is a whole new world. I would love to hear the advice and experiences (good or bad) of those who have rented family homes in the area.....

Thanks so much!