After the launch of our booking feature we’ve continued to make renting your space as seamless as possible. The last thing you want to deal with is paperwork and technicalities when you’re so excited about your new tenant! We want to reduce your stress and the number of things you need to worry about, so we now collect, hold and protect tenants’ deposits for you.
Psst. If you are primarily a tenant – check out our post on what deposits mean for you.
Secure, hassle-free deposits
As you probably know, unlike when you move into a new flat, office space deposits are not covered by the tenancy deposit scheme. As a host, you’re faced with the question: should I create a separate bank account for this deposit, or just put it into my normal operating account? Both of these options are a hassle. You either have the overhead of setting up a new bank account or you have to worry about what you can and can’t spend, trying to remember to keep the deposit separate from your working capital. When your tenant moves out the last thing anyone wants is a fight over the deposit. It’s one thing if a chair has been broken or a desk has accumulated some coffee stains, but if Andy spent a wodge of your tenant’s deposit on the team summer BBQ, it does tend to complicate matters. We wanted to add a layer of protection that saves you hassle and ensures that a tenant’s money isn’t spent accidentally… or on purpose.
A simple, seamless system
The deposits system is really simple. If you’ve let us know that you require a deposit, your new tenant will be notified during the agreement process, and they will be required to pay immediately following a successful booking. The deposit will always be for the amount of one month of rent, something which we’ve standardised after consultation with our hosts. We then hold this in our secure dedicated deposit account (completely separate and protected from our operating account). When your tenant moves out, you decide whether to release all, none or a partial amount of the deposit. You’ll need to resolve any disputes directly with your tenant, but of course we’re on hand to offer help and advise if you need it. You can read more about this process in the Deposit Fee section of our License Rules.
Trust via partners
To protect your deposits we use specialist third parties for each part of the process:
GoCardless for collecting. Transferring the deposit has to be simple and secure. We do this via DirectDebit; the exact same way tenants will make a rental payment each month. GoCardless collect millions of pounds each day and use military-grade security.
Metro Bank for holding. They provide our secure dedicated deposit account. As Britain’s first new High Street Bank in over 100 years, they have unparalleled levels of service, convenience and security.
Taylor Wessing for protecting. We want to keep the deposits protected in any scenario and so our license rules have been reviewed by top industry lawyers.
Your feedback matters
Holding, collecting and protecting the deposit is just a small part of moving into an office. We want to continue to make renting your space simpler and easier. If you have any ideas about what would help you, please get in touch with your feedback, suggestions or questions to tom@hubblehq.com.
