Frequently Asked Questions

The difference between a short and mid let isn’t set out in law yet but at City Relay, we consider a short let to be anything less than a month and a mid let from a month to just under 6 months. A long let is set out in law and this is a tenancy that is 6 months or longer. An AST will only be issued for tenancies of 6 months or more.

An assured shorthold tenancy (AST) is the most common type of tenancy if you rent from a private landlord or letting agent.

Your tenancy will be for a fixed period and your landlord has the right to take back the property at the end, as long as they give at least 2 months’ notice.

The resident(s) must be individuals (not a business) and the rent must be below £100,000 a year.

If a break clause is agreed for your tenancy, this allows you the flexibility to end the tenancy earlier than the fixed term by giving the appropriate advance notice.

For example, if you agree a 1 year tenancy with a 6 month break clause and 2 month notice period, this means that any time from the 4th month onwards, you can serve notice to leave on or after 2 month’s from that date.

*Break clauses must be negotiated as part of your offer and are not necessarily included in a tenancy agreement as standard. If you are unsure whether you have one or how to use it, always check with your agent/landlord.

A Zero Deposit Guarantee is an alternative to a traditional tenancy deposit. It provides the same, if not a higher level of financial protection and security to landlords, whilst reducing the upfront costs to tenants. With a Zero Deposit, residents will still complete their referencing checks as usual and will remain wholly responsible for any financial loss or damage covered by their Assured Shorthold Tenancy agreement.

If a landlord offers the choice of a Zero Deposit, residents can choose between Zero Deposit and the traditional cash deposit. A Zero Deposit can cover up to the value of ten weeks’ rent, whereas under the Tenant Fee Act 2019, most resident deposits will be restricted to the value of five weeks’ rent only.

At City Relay, we are a member of the Flatfair Zero Deposit Scheme.

You may certainly ask. Such requests should be made during the negotiation of your contract and any items which the landlord agrees to remove should be included in a special clause at the end of your contract.

If you request that items are removed during the tenancy, the landlord is not obliged to agree. They may request that you remove and store the items at your cost and return them at the end of your tenancy.

With an instant booking stay, all of your booking details, including property information and check in/check out details, can be found in your booking confirmation email.

City Relay is a design-led business and we take pride in the properties that we partner with. All properties should be fully equipped and designed to a high standard so that residents can experience a true 5 star stay.

We work with partners with any number of properties, as long as they are not primary residences, are available for rent all year round and do not store any personal belongings.

There is no minimum contract length with City Relay, and you can remove your property from our booking platform at any time. All we ask is you honour the residents who have already made future bookings in your property.

We predominantly cover zones 1-3 of London. We’re growing rapidly and expanding outwards across London, covering more of the capital.

We advertise your property across multiple booking platforms to reach a global and diverse audience of potential residents. These platforms include Zoopla and Rightmove for longer lets, and Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and HomeAway for shorter lets.

In addition, every property is marketed on our own booking platform and through social and email channels to a combined network of over 20,000 previous City Relay guests.

Our flexible letting solution allows you to rent your property across a short, medium or long term period using our one stop shop tech platform. Our residents can book with us for a minimum of a week or over 1 year and we manage this through our systems for you.

After joining our partner community, you will be assigned to a friendly Account Manager who will be your direct point of contact. Their role is to report back to you on how your property is performing and advise on any improvements required to increase your property’s earning potential.

Additionally, you will receive logins to our innovative tech platform, where you can view your calendar availability, receive notifications of upcoming bookings and monthly revenue predictions.

You will receive payment for any short let stays in the first 14 working days of the next calendar month. For longer stays, you will receive payment within 7 days of the rent being received from the resident.

Your designated Account Manager and our accounts team are always on hand to respond to any issues or queries you may have.

You will need to have your own landlord insurance in place to protect your property and the fixtures and fittings inside it. If you have a long let tenancy and the tenants pass referencing satisfactorily, you can take out rent protection and legal expenses insurance through one of our partners For short lets, we are also partnered with a specialist short letting insurance provider, Guardhog.

An assured shorthold tenancy (AST) is the most common type of tenancy for private landlords or letting agents.

The tenancy will be for a fixed period and the landlord has the right to take back the property at the end as long as they give at least 2 months’ notice.

The resident(s) must be individuals (not a business) and the rent must be below £100,000 a year.

At City Relay, we receive and manage all potential resident enquiries from multiple booking platforms, including Rightmove and Zoopla. We respond to each enquiry as soon as possible, and viewing appointments are set up.

Our expert long let team is available 7 days a week to complete these viewings. Our knowledgeable team showcase the property and answer any queries promptly, to ensure a resident is quickly secured at the best rental rate possible.

To ensure that your residents have an enjoyable and safe stay in your property, it’s important that you have completed all your safety checks. Most checks are required on a regular basis, and are either local or national safety regulations.

Here are some of the safety checks to carry out before you let your property. Our team of experts can advise you on what is required for your property:

• Electrical safety test
• Gas safety test
• Carbon monoxide alarm installation
• Energy Performance certificate

Our comprehensive vetting and referencing processes, including credit and personal checks, add the first level of security before we rent out your property. Additionally at this stage, we also collect deposit payments from residents.

The 90 day rule limits the number of days your property can be short let per calendar year. Without authorisation from the council, your short let calendar will close once 90 nights have been booked.

City Relay manages bookings all year round by combining short, mid and long let bookings (90+ nights), enabling you to remain in compliance with regulations.