November 16, 2011
Potential Renters Take Applications to the Extreme
The on-going shortfall of decent rental properties in cities such as London, Manchester and Birmingham has sparked a new craze in the form of CV applications. According to one of the largest letting agents in London, Ludlow Thompson, around 1 in every 20 applicants take it upon themselves to send their prospective landlords a copy of their CV in the hope that it will swing the deal in their favour.
When asked whether the strategy seemed to work, a spokesman for Ludlow Thompson commented that it did have the desire effect in a number of cases. It seems that voluntarily giving a prospectivelandlord details about occupation, marital status, past residences and even education can help them to see how stable a potential tenant’s life is.
So is this a craze that will take off?
The answer is almost definitely yes. If it is seen to have the desired effect then it could be that landlords start to see large numbers of unsolicited CVs in the future. The demand for private rental property far outweighs the stock available and a lot of tenants will do whatever necessary, including tracking down the property owner and personally delivering or posting a copy of their CV, in order to get their name at the top of the pile.
It may seem like a slightly underhand way of securing a rental property but with the market as it is, it’s surely a case of every man for themselves.
