Questions and answers

Each service has one fee, agreed in writing, including VAT, before we start. Every charge you could ever see is listed in that agreement, so there are no set up, renewal or inspection fees you were not told about. Each monthly statement shows the rent received, our fee and any cost, line by line, with the invoice attached.

Ask for a quote with your free valuation.

• Let only: we find and check the tenant, prepare the paperwork, protect the deposit and move them in. You run the tenancy from there.
• Rent collection: as let only, plus rent collected, chased if late and paid to you with a monthly statement.
• Full management: everything, including certificates kept in date, repairs by our own trades, inspections, rent reviews and the end of the tenancy.

Full management suits landlords who live away from Cornwall, are new to letting, or simply want it off their mind.

Every adult who will live in the home is checked: identity, Right to Rent, credit history, income and affordability, employer and previous landlord references. Where income falls short we ask for a guarantor, who is checked the same way. We also meet the applicants, and confirm the people on the agreement are the people moving in.

You see the results and make the final decision. By law you cannot refuse someone just because they have children or receive benefits, but you can turn down anyone who cannot afford the rent.

We see on the day rent is due whether it has arrived, and contact the tenant straight away. You are told about any arrears without having to ask. Most late payments are sorted with a phone call and a plan. If arrears build up, we take you through the legal options: the arrears possession ground now needs three months of unpaid rent and four weeks' notice. Rent guarantee insurance can cover the gap if you want that protection.

Since 1 May 2026 every tenancy in England runs from month to month, and landlords must use a reason set out in law to end one. The main ones are:

• You want to sell, or you or a close family member want to move in: at least four months' notice, and not in the first year of the tenancy.
• Serious rent arrears, antisocial behaviour, or other breaches of the tenancy.

If you take a home back to sell or move in, it cannot be let or advertised for rent again for 12 months. Tenants can leave with two months' notice.

Once a year, not in the first year, using the government form with at least two months' notice. Rent review clauses in tenancy agreements no longer count. Tenants can ask a tribunal to decide whether the new rent is fair, so we recommend a figure based on what similar homes nearby are letting for.

Not without a good reason. A tenant can ask in writing and you must answer within 28 days. Reasonable grounds for saying no include a lease that bans pets, a home too small for the animal, or a serious allergy in a shared building. A general dislike of pets or worry about damage is not enough. You can still protect yourself through the deposit or by asking for pet insurance.

On full management we inspect after the first few months of a tenancy, then twice a year, with 24 hours' written notice to the tenant. You get the report and photos in your owner login, including anything that needs attention, not just the good news.

No. You set a spending limit. Anything above it waits for your approval in your owner login, with the quote attached. Emergencies that cannot wait, such as a leak or no heating in winter, are made safe first and explained straight after.

Most work is done by our own trades or a vetted local contractor who is insured for the job.

• A gas safety check every year, with a copy to the tenant.
• An electrical inspection (EICR) at least every five years.
• An EPC rated E or above. The government has confirmed a rating of C will be needed for all tenancies by October 2030.
• A smoke alarm on every floor, and a carbon monoxide alarm in any room with a boiler, wood burner or other fixed appliance that burns fuel.
• A legionella risk assessment. In rural Cornwall, oil tanks, private water supplies and chimneys need checking too.

We track every date with reminders long before anything runs out, so nothing lapses.

Every deposit is registered with a government approved protection scheme within 30 days, and the tenant is given the required information. Missing this deadline can cost a landlord up to three times the deposit, so we do it at move in. At the end of the tenancy, any deduction is based on the check in inventory and check out report, with photos.

The Private Rented Sector Database opens region by region from December 2026. Landlords in the South West are due to register between August and November 2027, at a fee of £65 per property per year. Without a registration a landlord will not be able to get a possession order. We will tell you when your window opens and help you register.

Rent and deposits are held separately from our own money, and we publish our client money protection and redress scheme details on our fees page. Your statement shows exactly what we hold for you at any time.

Good homes around Hayle and St Ives Bay usually let quickly, especially two and three bedroom houses. We give you a rent figure based on recent lets nearby, and it is advertised at that single price. Agents can no longer invite or accept offers above the advertised rent.

Usually, yes. A residential mortgage normally needs consent to let, and a leasehold flat may need the freeholder's agreement. Check your insurance covers letting too. We will ask for proof before we market the home.

Yes. The notice period is set out plainly in your terms before you sign. We will hand over everything, including the deposit registration, certificates and tenancy records.

Report it in your tenant login with photos, or call us. You can see every update there. Emergencies, such as no heating or hot water in cold weather, a leak you cannot stop, or no power, are attended the same day. Other repairs are booked in as quickly as the work allows, and we tell you when.

If you smell gas, leave the home and call the National Gas emergency line on 0800 111 999 first.

Leave the home in the condition shown on your move in inventory, allowing for fair wear and tear. Photos you upload to your tenant login when you move in are kept as your own record. We do a check out with photos, tell you about any proposed deduction with the reason and the cost, and you can agree or dispute it free through the deposit scheme. We never make automatic cleaning or check out deductions.

• A holding deposit of up to one week's rent to reserve the home while checks are done. It is taken off your first payment.
• A deposit of up to five weeks' rent, protected in a government approved scheme within 30 days.
• The first month's rent, paid after you sign the agreement. We never ask for more than one month in advance.

There are no admin, referencing or check in fees. See fees and permitted payments.

Only if you give false or misleading information, fail the Right to Rent check, or pull out yourself. Otherwise it goes towards your first payment, or is returned within seven days if the landlord decides not to go ahead.

Identity, Right to Rent, credit history, income, employer and previous landlord references for every adult moving in. As a guide, the household's yearly income should be around 30 times the monthly rent. If it is not, a guarantor or savings may help, so ask us.

The law requires us to check every adult has the right to rent in England. British and Irish citizens show a passport or other accepted document. If you have an eVisa, give us a share code from the government website, which starts with R. Everyone is checked the same way.

Ask us in writing and we will give you the landlord's answer within 28 days. A landlord needs a good reason to say no. You may be asked to take out pet insurance or agree how any pet damage is covered from the deposit.

Tenancies now run month to month. You can leave with two months' notice. A landlord must have a legal reason to end your tenancy, and if they want to sell or move in, they must give at least four months' notice and cannot do so in your first year.

Once a year at most, with at least two months' notice on the official form. If you think the new rent is above the going rate, you can ask a tribunal to decide.

No. Every home is advertised at one rent, and we cannot ask for or accept higher offers.

The landlord looks after the structure, heating, hot water, gas, electrics, plumbing and drains. You look after the home day to day: light bulbs and smoke alarm batteries, keeping it clean and aired, the garden if the tenancy says so, and any damage you or your visitors cause. Report problems early, as small leaks become big ones.

Report it straight away with photos. We will find the cause, whether it is a leak, a fault or ventilation, and fix it. Rules setting fixed timescales for damp and mould in private rented homes, known as Awaab's Law, are being consulted on now; until they arrive, we treat serious damp as urgent anyway.

At least 24 hours in writing, at a reasonable time of day, except in a genuine emergency.

Your written tenancy terms, the gas safety record, the electrical report, the EPC, the information the government says every tenant must be given, and your deposit protection details. They are all in your tenant login.

Tell us first and we will try to put it right. Our complaints procedure sets out the timescales. If you are still not satisfied, you can take it to our independent redress scheme free of charge.

Commission is a percentage of each booking, agreed with you in writing before we start. It is set per owner because no two arrangements are the same: bookings only costs less than full management.

Your agreement says exactly what the percentage is taken from (the booking price after the platform's own fee, and whether the guest cleaning fee is included), and whether VAT is added. Most Cornish agencies charge between 18% and 25% and many do not publish it. Ask us for a figure with your appraisal.

Only what is written in your agreement. There is no joining fee and no annual marketing fee. Costs that come up, such as linen, guest supplies or a repair, are shown on your statement line by line at the price we paid, with the invoice available in your owner login. We do not add a hidden margin to contractors' bills.

It depends on the property, how close it is to the beach and the station, how many it sleeps, whether it takes dogs and how much you want to use it yourself. We give you a figure for each season, not one optimistic annual number, based on what similar homes around St Ives Bay actually let for.

Cornwall is busy from Easter to October and much quieter in winter, so we will tell you honestly how many weeks we expect to fill out of season, and what we will do to fill them.

• Bookings only: your calendar kept in step across Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo, direct bookings taken, and prices looked after.
• Bookings and guests: all of that, plus guest messages, check in details, the house guide and the guest register.
• Full management: all of that, plus every changeover (cleaning, linen, restocking and a damage check) and repairs by our own trades.

You can move between them with a month's notice.

Your choice. Most owners charge guests a cleaning fee on each booking; some prefer to pay it themselves and keep the nightly price simple. Either way it is set per property and shown separately on your statement.

On full management the changeover is done by our own team to a written checklist for your home, and each one is signed off before the next guest arrives. If a guest reports a cleaning problem we go back the same day.

Yes, as often as you like. Block the dates in your owner login or tell us. We will point out if a block falls in the school holidays, because those weeks earn the most, but it is your home and your decision.

Stays by you, family and friends on discount do not count towards the 70 nights let that business rates need, so we keep an eye on that for you.

There is no minimum term and no exit fee. Either side can end the agreement with notice set out in writing (normally a month). Bookings already taken stay with you and are looked after to the end, so no guest is let down.

If you already have an Airbnb or Booking.com listing, we co-host on your account, so the listing and every review stay yours if you ever leave. If you do not, we can list under Lanora House; we will tell you before you sign what happens to that listing if the arrangement ends, so there are no surprises.

You get a statement for every payout showing each booking, the platform fee, our commission, cleaning and any costs, and what is paid to you. Your owner login shows upcoming bookings, the last few months of stays, occupancy for the year, safety certificates and any repair waiting for your approval.

We agree a pricing plan with you: a nightly rate for each season, minimum stays, and a floor price we never go below without asking you. Late gaps may be offered at a modest discount if you agree to it. We would rather tell you a week is quiet than give it away.

Airbnb, Booking.com and Vrbo, plus direct bookings. All of them feed one calendar that we run, and every booking blocks the dates everywhere else, with the turnaround gap you choose between stays. The sites share dates with each other on a delay of up to a few hours, so for the busiest weeks we also check new bookings by hand.

Every changeover includes a damage check with photos. If something is broken we claim it through the booking site's damage process or the guest's deposit, and tell you what happened and what we have recovered. Accidental damage beyond that falls to your holiday let insurance, which we help you claim on.

Repairs are done by our own trades or a vetted local contractor. You set a spending limit; anything above it waits for your yes or no in your owner login, with the quote attached. Emergencies that would stop a guest staying (no hot water, a leak) are fixed first and explained straight after.

• A written fire risk assessment, reviewed every year, following the government guide for small paying guest accommodation.
• Interlinked smoke alarms, a heat alarm in the kitchen, and carbon monoxide alarms where there is gas, oil or a wood burner.
• A gas safety check every year by a Gas Safe engineer.
• An electrical inspection every five years, and testing of portable appliances.
• Furniture that meets the fire safety labelling rules, and holiday let insurance with public liability cover.

We track every one of these with reminders well before they run out, and can arrange any that are missing.

In England a holiday let is rated for business rates if it is available to let for at least 140 nights a year and actually let for at least 70. Below that it pays council tax, and in Cornwall second homes have paid double council tax since April 2025.

Small business rate relief can mean no business rates at all on one property with a low rateable value. We count your nights available and nights let every month so you know where you stand, and keep the records the Valuation Office asks for.

Since April 2025 holiday lets are taxed like other rental property. Mortgage interest gets basic rate relief only, new furniture is claimed as replacement items rather than capital allowances, and some capital gains reliefs no longer apply when you sell. VAT and business rates are unchanged. We are not tax advisers, so please speak to your accountant; we will give them clear figures for every booking and cost.

The government has said a national register of short term lets in England will be running by March 2027. The details, including the fee, have not been published yet. We will tell every owner what they need to do as soon as they are, and display your number on every listing once you have one.

Not usually for a whole house that is let some of the year, but check before you start. Some homes, particularly newer ones around St Ives, carry a principal residence condition that rules out holiday letting, and annexes often have conditions too. The new holiday let planning class proposed in 2023 has not come into force.

Guests book through sites that verify their identity, and we read every enquiry before confirming a direct booking. You decide whether to take dogs, how many, and whether to accept large groups; we do not take stag or hen parties unless you tell us to.

Yes. Choose bookings only or bookings and guests, and we will send your cleaner the changeover schedule and let them know of any change straight away.

Us. Guests have a number that is answered, and our trades are local, so a lost key or a tripped boiler is sorted the same evening. You hear about anything that matters, and you are not the one taking the call.

Check in and check out times are on your booking and in the house guide, which we send before you travel. It includes how to get in (usually a key safe or smart lock), where to park and the Wi-Fi password, so you do not need phone signal on the doorstep.

The law requires anyone providing paid accommodation in the UK to keep a register of every guest aged 16 or over, with passport details for some overseas visitors. It is kept securely, only for as long as the law requires, and then deleted.

Tell us straight away, with a photo if you can. Do not wait until you leave. We will come back to clean or fix it the same day wherever possible. Problems we are told about early can be put right; ones we only hear about at the end cannot.

Call the number in your house guide. For a gas smell, leave the house and call the National Gas emergency line on 0800 111 999 first.

Where a property takes a deposit, it is returned within a few days of check out once the changeover check is done. If anything is deducted we tell you what, why and how much, with photos.

The cancellation policy is shown before you book and depends on where you booked. If we ever have to cancel, you get a full refund.

Only where the listing says dogs are welcome. If you need to know whether the garden is fully enclosed, ask us before you book and we will tell you exactly.

Yes, beds are made up and towels provided, with a starter supply of essentials such as toilet roll, washing up liquid and dishwasher tablets. Beach towels are not included unless the listing says so.

Our fee is quoted with your valuation and confirmed in writing, including VAT, before you agree to anything. It is paid when your sale completes. If you do not sell, you do not pay our fee. Anything else, such as an EPC if you need one, is quoted separately and only arranged if you ask.

We visit, look at the condition, the plot and the street, and compare it with what similar homes nearby have actually sold for, not what they were advertised at. You get the evidence with the figure.

Some agents quote high to win the instruction, then ask you to reduce the price weeks later. A realistic price usually sells sooner and for more, because a home that sits unsold starts to look like there is something wrong with it.

Your terms set out the length of the agreement and the notice to end it, in plain words, before you sign. We ask for sole agency, not sole selling rights.

The difference matters. With sole agency, if you find a buyer yourself with no help from us, you owe us nothing. Sole selling rights would mean paying the agent even then.

Yes, once your current agreement allows it. Check its notice period first. Your old agent may still be owed a fee if you sell to a buyer they introduced, so tell us who has already viewed and we will make sure you are not charged twice.

Across England it currently takes around two months to find a buyer and around five more from agreeing a sale to completion. Cornwall tends to take a little longer to go under offer. A sensible price, good photos and having your paperwork ready from day one shorten both stages.

Yes. The law requires every offer to be passed to you promptly and in writing, and we confirm each one with you, together with what we know of the buyer: whether they have a home to sell, a mortgage agreed in principle, or cash with proof of funds. You decide; we advise.

Before we recommend an offer we check proof of funds or a mortgage agreement in principle, and where they are in their own sale. The law also requires us to check the identity of both seller and buyer once an offer is accepted.

We send a memorandum of sale to both solicitors, then follow the sale through: searches, the buyer's survey and mortgage valuation, enquiries and the chain above and below you. You hear from us every week, whether or not there is news, until exchange and completion.

Most sales that fall through do so in the first month, usually over the survey or the mortgage. Following them up early is how we stop that.

No, and neither does your buyer. Offers are passed on whoever the buyer uses. If we ever recommend a firm and receive a fee for it, we tell you who and how much, in writing, before you decide.

The law requires listings to show material information up front: tenure, council tax band, the EPC rating, how the house is built, utilities, broadband and mobile signal, parking, and where relevant things such as flood or coastal erosion risk, rights of way, planning and mining. Much of west Cornwall has a mining history, so a mining search is common.

We gather most of it for you and send you a short form for the rest. Having it ready avoids weeks of questions later.

Yes. A home must have a valid Energy Performance Certificate before it is marketed. They last ten years, so you may already have one; we can check the national register for you and arrange a new one if not.

This is where we are different. Lanora House clears houses every week: we can sort what the family wants to keep, sell what has value, donate or recycle the rest, and leave the house clean and empty, either before photos or timed for completion day. You deal with one team rather than four.

You can put it on the market and accept an offer, but contracts cannot be exchanged until the grant of probate arrives, which usually takes a few months. Starting early is often sensible. Check the property's insurance too: many policies change once a home has been empty for 30 days.

We work with families and solicitors on probate sales and can look after the house, the clearance and the sale together.

Yes, either to an investor with the tenants staying, or with the home empty. Since May 2026 a landlord who wants the home back to sell must use the new possession ground for selling, cannot use it in the first year of a tenancy, and must give at least four months' notice. We manage lettings as well as sales, so we can advise on which route gets you the better result.

Yes. Buyers will want to see the booking history, the business rates or council tax position and any planning conditions, so we put that together up front. If the property suits a lifestyle buyer and an investor equally, we market it to both.

We do, unless you would rather. Every viewer's feedback is passed to you, including the less flattering comments, because that is what helps you decide on price.

Tell us first and we will put it right. You can read our complaints procedure. If you are not satisfied with our answer, you can take it to our independent redress scheme free of charge.

Call or email us with your offer and your position: a home to sell, a mortgage in principle or cash. Every offer is passed to the seller in writing, and we will tell you the answer as soon as we have it.

No. Your offer is put forward the same way whoever you use.

Estate agents must check the identity of buyers under the money laundering rules, and the seller needs to know you can proceed. We ask once an offer is accepted, and keep it securely.

We will always tell you honestly if other offers have been made, though not their details. Once a seller accepts an offer we will tell you whether marketing continues.

In England, from April 2025: nothing on the first £125,000, 2% up to £250,000, 5% up to £925,000, then higher rates. First time buyers pay nothing up to £300,000 and 5% from there to £500,000. Buying a second home or a holiday let adds 5% to every band. Use the government calculator for your own figure.

On every listing, along with the EPC, construction, utilities, broadband and parking. If something you need is not there, ask and we will find out before you offer.