[rodge]

We have just put a deposit down on a house to rent and the letting agent has said that we have to pay a £50 admin charge to cover the checks they have had to carry out on us?
Is this correct?

[sarahbear]

YES

Well i hope its normal because I had to pay £100 in admin fees to one agent I was renting from!

[Brix26]

Yes, totally normal. It is to cover the credit checks and referencing. In fact most agencies will charge twice that PER PERSON!

You now need to ask if they charge any additional fees; for example a check in fee, inventory fee (some agencies offer a professional inventory and charge the tenant, don't fall for this), contract renewal fee or reference fee.

[Sheff2006]

Yes this is normal. I think I paid around £150ish for my estate agency rental charges last year.

[Pretzel]

In Sheffield it is normal, and fees can range between c. £85 to £200. I presume it is sheer profiteering on behalf of letting agents. I used to live in Manchester, viewed many a rental property there, and none of the agents wanted 'admin' fees for these.

However, in Sheffield, I have found that all letting agents require fees, which range wildly in number, which fuels my suspicions.