Landlord Stories

Find out how we have helped first time landlords to property professionals find tenants.

“We will definitely use UPAD again. We had such a good response to the advert.”

Jo Morgan

What kind of landlord are you?

A good one! We are a couple who had a flat to rent. We only own one property available for renting.

Why did you first choose to find tenants with Upad?

We had looked into using the high street, spoke with a few agents, all very pushy, wanting to take photos and visit before we were ready. Not happy to provide us with cost prices/contracts upfront until seen the flat as they could then do a "deal". But mostly we discovered that they would take an annual fee/percentage of rent income EVERY YEAR - even if it was the same tenant. When asked why a continuing cost they could not answer. "Delboys" spring to mind. We then looked online to see what other people were doing and UPAD popped up - we tried to find the catch as to why so much more affordable and there wasn't one!

How is the experience of finding tenants with Upad?

Fantastic, really good help from George, who discussed our advert, advised ways to re-word the advert and explained which photos to use in which order. Once we had clicked on the "advertise now" button I had a text of interest within 10 minutes of going live! We also found that most potential tenants worked full time and were really pleased we could show them around in the evening, not something the highstreet could offer.

What was the best thing about using Upad?

Using Upad to find tenants works very well, but which requires good time management skills and being able to organise and manage the appointments you have made.

Will you be sticking with Upad in the future and, if so, why?

We will definetely use UPAD again. We had such a good response to the advert, efficient service, value for money and a tenant offered and moved in faster than we had expected. The aftercare on completion also continued to make sure rent protection was offered and all the forms/pay mandates had been completed. In a world where everyone is mobile - why would anyone want to have to visit an estate agent to sort out paperwork.

“Great value for money, simple to use and really helpful real people to speak to when I had queries.”

Paul Evans

What kind of landlord are you?

I am now a full time landlord, and also offer a property management and letting service to clients by referral. I am a NLA accredited landlord and with 30 years experience in various roles while employed in the PRS.

Why did you first choose to find tenants with Upad?

I have always recommended any landlord to meet prospective tenants, and in practicing what I preached I always insisted that I conduct all viewings when using agents in the past. Therefore Upad offered the opportunity to take control of the full marketing process from start to finnish, and at a more realistic price.

What was the best thing about using Upad?

The best thing about using Upad is that you are in control of the full marketing process from start to finish, and able to see at first hand the diversity in market demand and individual customer requirements. The feedback from viewings also provides a good insight as to the quality of other accommodation being offered, which if you care about the business can be very rewarding.

Will you be sticking with Upad in the future and, if so, why?

I will definitely be sticking with Upad, which fits well with my business model particularly where my aim is to provide a high level of service, but with more realistic fees when compared to those currently encountered by tenants and landlords, which I believe can be prohibitive to a buoyant and flexible PRS.

“Really pleased with the service Upad has offered. Very easy, very straightforward, helpful and attentive.”

David Olubuyide

What kind of landlord are you?

Guess you could say I'm an accidental landlord as I got married and needed a bigger property. I used Upad to find a tenant for my existing place.

Why did you first choose to find tenants with Upad?

I chose Upad as I was frustrated with the unjustifiable and extortionate fees estate agents were charging. It was a no brainer once I discovered Upad was using the same channels as the traditional high st agents and charging less than a third of the price!

How is the experience of finding tenants with Upad?

Really pleased with the service Upad has offered. Very easy, very straightforward, helpful and attentive. Within a day I had almost ten enquiries and ended up giving the property to the person who contacted me within two hours of the ad going up.

How does Upad compare to other letting agents?

I felt Upad were offering a genuine service as opposed to making a sale. I've had no problems whatsoever.

Will you be sticking with Upad in the future and, if so, why?

I will definitely be using Upad again in the future as I believe they offer an effective and cost beneficial service.

“Finding tenants has become very quick. Our record from placement of advertisement to reservation fee is 3 hours.”

John Socha

What kind of landlord are you?

I am an active investor landlord. The management of our portfolio is undertaken by my eldest daughter, Kerry Socha-Ayling and myself.

Why did you first choose to find tenants with Upad?

We were introduced to Upad by The National Landlords Association, when you became a recognised supplier. This gave me access to Rightmove and later Zoopla. Which I knew was vital, as previously, we either had to use an agent for a "Let Only/Tenant Find" service or use the local newspaper.

How is the experience of finding tenants with Upad?

Finding tenants has become very quick. Our record from placement of advertisement to reservation fee is 3 hours. This includes the potential tenant going to view two other properties. That was in the first week of December, the lowest month for new lettings. I do not expect this every time. The last one took three days.

How does Upad compare to other online letting agents?

We tested another supplier in February 2015. This was to re-assure us that we were using the correct web portal. The fear being that we would be charged a higher price, just because it was successful, was it still good value? The other portal produced some enquires. There was a distinct drop in quality of the callers/text/emails. Non-operational numbers and no replies were at a level that made the experience a nightmare. We went back to Upad and found a tenant in 24 hours.

Will you be sticking with Upad in the future and, if so, why?

Our plan is to stick with Upad on quality of enquires and speed of service grounds. We will test out other websites as they become available, just to re-assure ourselves that we are still buying the best product. The bar has been set very high by Upad.

“I had a dozen enquiries within 24 hours and the place was let within 48 hours.”

Amanda White

What kind of landlord are you?

Private landlord with two properties.

Why did you first choose to find tenants with Upad?

I heard of Upad through the Residential Landlords Association. I had a look at the video on your website explaining how Upad works and was impressed with the simplicity of it and also with the degree of control over the process that it would give me.

How is the experience of finding tenants with Upad?

Great! I had a dozen enquiries within 24 hours and the place was let within 48 hours.

How does Upad compare to other online letting agents?

I’ve never tried any others.

Will you be sticking with Upad in the future and, if so, why?

Definitely. Great value for money, simple to use and really helpful real people to speak to when I had queries.

“Just super simple, transparent and the website is also easy to navigate and use.”

Adam Boita

Why did you choose to find tenants with Upad?

I wanted to avoid the high fees associated with Estate Agents and avoid estate agents in general!

How was finding tenants with Upad?

It was Nov/Dec so quite close to Xmas but I had 10 leads within the first week and then around 15 in total. I secured a tenant in 3 weeks and they moved in, in Jan.

How is the experience of finding tenants with Upad?

Really pleased with the service Upad has offered. Very easy, very straightforward, helpful and attentive. Within a day I had almost ten enquiries and ended up giving the property to the person who contacted me within two hours of the ad going up.

What was the best thing about using Upad?

The service was so easy and there was always someone available and usually the same account person so there was good continuity. Just super simple, transparent and the website is also easy to navigate and use. The modular pricing options meant I could really tailor what I needed.

Will you be sticking with Upad in the future and, if so, why?

Yes. Just great service and pricing. Plain and simple,

“I had to remove the ad within 24 hrs as so many applicants!”

Jill Butler

What kind of landlord are you?

An 'Accidental Landlord'. Coming up for pension age and pension fund doing nothing, so...

Why did you first choose to find tenants with Upad?

Good so far...helpful people on phone, listing posted on main property websites very quickly, had to remove ad within 24 hrs as so many applicants!

How does Upad compare to other letting agents?

If one is prepared to handle one's own viewings and paperwork, the Upad way is considerably cheaper - I have probably saved about £500 over using a high street agent.

Will you be sticking with Upad in the future and, if so, why?

This has been a very successful experience, so I can't see why I'd want to change!

“The next time we have a tenant calling with the dreaded “very sorry but we are going to have to give our notice” is the next time I will log onto our UPAD account and press the advertise button.”

Gareth Mason

What kind of landlord are you?

We’re just amateurs like thousands of others. Passive landlords too at that - we’re not thinking about it every week or even every month. It’s definitely not the day job or our lives.


We’ve had a couple of flats for a few years now as part of our wider pension thinking. We wanted least hassle and low turnover in tenants so we’ve gone for fairly modern one bedroom good quality low maintenance flats for young professionals working in the City or Canary Wharf that should be easy to sell when the time comes. At the same time we don’t want to hand over tenant contact to a letting agent; we want to know who’s in our property and be able to sort anything out with them direct. We’ve also discovered that’s what many tenants want too! And the thought of paying 15%+vat to a letting agent for very little sticks in my craw! Trouble is that because it’s 18 months or more between having to change tenants I just forget exactly what we need to do for the process! Diving into the file to remind myself is one thing but having someone to call is a needed backstop.

Why did you first choose to find tenants with Upad?

I was scanning Rightmove for similar rental flats to check what we rental should be charging. I came across one advertised by UPAD. I followed the link to their site and “hey presto”. We had always been very frustrated that Rightmove and Zoopla etc. were the exclusive preserve of letting agents and us mere amateurs were prohibited. From the beginning we had used Gumtree – at the outset we’d asked lots of young professionals and they’d said that’s how they found their flats – and it had always been spot on, three or four days max to find a tenant . But it had recently become a nightmare – the letting agents had started plastering it and no way could our advert get above page 3 on the list for more than a few seconds. So the arrival of a solution to the question of access to the Rightmoves of this world was manna from heaven.

How was finding tenants with Upad?

Really pleased with the service Upad has offered. Very easy, very straightforward, helpful and attentive. Within a day I had almost ten enquiries and ended up giving the property to the person who contacted me within two hours of the ad going up.

How is the experience of finding tenants with Upad?

Immediate and hassle free access to Rightmove and Zoopla is imperative. Those are the sites that our type of tenants tell us they go to (Gumtree no more apparently). UPAD have given us that. The most recent time we used UPAD our advert was live on all the rental websites in two hours give or take a few minutes. Same evening we had two enquiries and a third within 48 hours. Three back to back viewings at the next weekend and it was job done. From memory the previous time we changed tenants UPAD delivered the new tenant’s enquiry within a couple of days of the advert going live. Add to that when I’ve spoken with UPAD’s staff they all seem human and on the ball. Their follow up a few days after advert placement is welcome and friendly but, in our case so far, wonderfully too late! We’ve tried using one of their well-known competitors but the contrast was stark – after one week, and several chasing phone calls by me, our advert was still not published. UPAD’s information emails are also pretty useful. As amateur landlords it’s still necessary to be on top of the evolving legal responsibilities and good practice. We can’t do that pro-actively in any practical sense so having it pushed our way in “plain-English-common-sense” language is a valuable resource.

Will you be sticking with Upad in the future and, if so, why?

Why change something that’s working very well?! The next time we have a tenant calling with the dreaded “very sorry but we are going to have to give our notice” is the next time I will log onto our UPAD account and press the advertise button.

“I hope to be a long term customer at Upad and would like to dedicate my thanks to the Upad team.”

Rousseau Khan

What kind of landlord are you?

An unintentional one! We lived in the property for 16 years and wanted to buy another to move to. I calculated that we could afford to let the property and buy another, by investing all our savings. So rather than sell, as we have children, we decided to let the property out.

Why did you first choose to find tenants with Upad?

I invited four major High Street Agents to view my property. They loved the house but when they sent the list of charges my mind was made up: to use online agents only. I knew I could manage the property myself and felt confident that I would provide a high level of service to my tenants. And for the rest I just needed someone to conduct advertising and paperwork. I did my research and decided to opt for Upad. I had a few conversations with an Account Manager at Upad, who explained clearly what was ahead and this convinced me to proceed.

How does Upad compare to other letting agents?

Firstly, I felt I could trust Chirag and knew costs were fixed so I was satisfied, despite there being cheaper competitors. Being a Financial Adviser, I know about referencing, writing and signing documents etc. I was really happy with the service, from the professional photos and floor plans being produced to the AST signing; every stage mentioned by Chirag was delivered. He kept in regular contact so I was informed at every stage. I realized the Upad team were pleasant and wanted success for us.

Will you be sticking with Upad in the future and, if so, why?

I have shown my loyalty by taking up Upad’s service once again due to a tenant moving out. I know that I could have gone elsewhere at a lower cost but I came back to the support of the team.