Before diving into the core of this blog post, my Upad Review, let’s get to the good stuff first! Straight off the bat… if you already know and love the online letting agent Upad.co.uk (which I know a bunch of you do), and you’re only here for the discount voucher… then you may just want to bypass my drivel and quickly claim the goods…
56% Upad Discount Code / Voucher for UChoose package
FREE Exclusive 56% Discount (includes Free Rightmove Premium Listing Voucher), which can be used on Upads tenant-find ‘UChoose’ package. This bundle is normally £239, but you can get it for £104 with this discount voucher! You won’t find this voucher anywhere else!
£60 Upad Discount Code for ‘Fully Managed Letting Service’
£60 Discount Code can be used for Upad’s ‘Fully Managed Letting Service’, which normally costs £599 + £72 per month. On average the service saves landlords £458 compared to high-street agents.
This blog post is admittedly long overdue, and I apologise for that to the kind folks over at Upad.co.uk. If I need to make it up to anyone from the Upad headquarters, let me know. I’m willing to do whatever it takes. Even if she’s short, overweight and covered in hairy pulsating boils. Lovely.
A few months ago I blogged about how My Lazy, Greasy, Worthless Tenant Gave Me Notice (Hallelujah!), consequently I needed to find new tenants (that preferably weren’t so dirty/greasy/vile/filthy/gross/hideous).
In true fairy-tale fashion, a knight in shining armour, in the form of Upad.co.uk, caught a whiff of my dilemma and kindly offered me a free trial of their service. Amazing!
Of course, Upad wanted me to review their service in return. And… there’s the catch! I knew there was one! There’s definitely no such thing as a free lunch!
But then I said, “hang on, my review is worth more than one lousy free trial… what else can ya’ give me?” That’s when they agreed to give you lot (the readers of this blog) an exclusive discount codes. So I said…DEAL!
Page contents:
- Quick intro to Upad
- Where Upad will market your property
- Choosing the right Online letting agent
- My thoughts and and experience with Upad
- Upad Discount Code / Voucher
- The best way to find tenants…
- Share your experience with Upad (or any other online letting agent)
Quick intro to Upad
For those that haven’t used Upad and/or are considering using an online letting agent, let me give you more details…
Upad are an online letting agent (if you’re unsure of what an online agent is, you should definitely check that link out, you could potentially save a bundle), which means they make it easier and cheaper for landlords to market their property across the most popular UK property portals in order to generate tenant enquiries. However, the biggest selling point is that Upad, like most other online agents I’m aware of, stick to a “fixed-fee” policy, so unlike the traditional high-street agent, you won’t be inundated ridiculous fees, and there’s no strings attached, no hidden fees! In fact, once you pay for their service, that’s pretty much it.
Upad are one of the biggest Online Letting Agents in the UK (they say they’re the biggest.. but hey, until I’ve seen what’s hanging under the kilt…). They’ve been established since 2007 and are well-known for their high level of customer service they provide their customers, which is backed up by their impressive TrustPilot rating/reviews.
I officially had GIGANTIC expectations.
Where Upad will market your property
Upad are affiliated with over 500 sites (i.e. they will market your property across those 500+ websites for maximum exposure), which is more than I’ve seen any other agent affiliated with. Granted, most of them are junk, but the key-players are firmly on the list, like Rightmove and Zoopla, and they’re the places you want your property listed if you’re looking to find tenants quickly!
So far I’m hearing and seeing all the right things!
Choosing the right Online letting agent
Upad are actually one of several online agents I have now used to generate tenant enquiries. Over the recent years, dozens and dozens of online agents have emerged from the woodwork, so landlords are now spoilt for choice, but of course, that creates a nasty case of consumer confusion. Who the bloody ‘ell should I use? Perhaps that’s why you’re here, because you’re bloody confused.
If you’re unaware of your option, take a look, here’s a list of websites that allow Landlords to Advertise on Rightmove – all similar to Upad (but not necessarily better or worse).
Since there are so many online agents competing against one another, it’s become difficult for landlords to decide which online agent to use. So hopefully this review will help you understand what to expect from Upad, especially if you’re contemplating whether or not to put your trust in them.
I just want to clarify, because sadly, many ‘online reviews’ are as reliable as a chocolate teapot these days, because they’re generally loaded with ulterior motives. I’m not afraid to swing punches; if I think a service is total bullshit I will categorically say so. I have been pursued by several snotty Solicitors in the past because someone didn’t like my feedback about their cumbersome product. But just as equally, if I genuinely believe a product/service is all rainbows, fairies and sunshine, I won’t hesitate from reducing myself into a starstruck melodramatic wuss.
My thoughts and and experience with Upad.co.uk
Available Upad packages
Upad have a couple of “tenant-find” packages available, the most popular one being the UChoose. Although, I’m told their newly introduced “on success” package is growing in demand (for the obvious reasons).
I opted for the “UChoose” package without adding on an of the extra add-ons available. However, if you want more support, like a tenancy sign up service (i.e. Upad will arrange the tenancy agreements and get them signed for you) or deposit protection (i.e. Upad will protect the deposit on your behalf), you can upgrade during checkout.
Essentially, the UChoose package is the bear-bones package, and landlords can then add-on whatever extras they require.
Did I find tenants with Upad’s service?
I guess this is what boils down to, and what most people will give a crap- the end result.
Did I find a tenant?
Yes.
And QUICKLY!
How many enquiries did I receive?
Genuinely, I received 3 missed calls from prospective tenants before 9am on the day my advert went live across the network of sites Upad advertise on. I was actually surprised it worked so well, so quickly.
I only had my property live for about 2 days before I had several viewings lined up, so that’s when I decided to pull the plug on my advert (although, I wouldn’t recommend for anyone to do that until a tenant is confirmed e.g. passed the referencing, signed tenancy and paid the deposit). If I had left my advert on longer I’m pretty sure my phone would have blown up with enquiries and I would have got frustrated by the sheer volume. I managed to get receive 10 calls with in those 2 days. Not bad. Not bad at all.
Final result
Short & sweet answer: I bagged a pair of professional tenants that passed the tenant referencing process with flying colours.
The viewing process did become a bit tedious, because I had applicants rescheduling and often arriving late. It proper got on my tits. But I mean, that is part of the viewing process, and it had no reflection on Upad’s service, it was just the failure in humanity I fell victim to. But that’s the trade-off with using an online agent Vs a high-street agent. Either way, when you compare the price between the two, I’d rather use an online agent and take viewings ALL day long. To put it into perspective:
I haven’t spent more than £80 on finding tenants since I started using online letting agents like Upad. Before then, I was using high-street agents and spending £800 (+ tenancy renewal fees) on average!
One final and important tip on viewings: try to schedule all the viewings over the duration of a couple of days. I made viewings available on a Tuesday and Sunday (which is what I also specified in my advert description). For example, I allocated 4 viewings on Tuesday evening. That meant I got it out of the way relatively painlessly, and because I had tenant’s in situ, it made their life easier as well, because understandably, they didn’t want to be constantly disturbed every night of the week with different viewings, and I wouldn’t want to put them through that either.
What I liked about Upad
-
It’s crazy easy to upload an advert. An idiot can do it blindfolded. The interface is extremely user-friendly. This was a massive plus for me because I’ve had battles with a few of their competitors’ cumbersome software, and it was a horrendous experience. As a landlord, I just want to upload my property details quickly and start receiving enquiries. Upad allow for this. No fuss.
- My property was live across all major platforms like Rightmove and Zoopla extremely quickly. I think mine went live with in 24 hours.
- The enquiries came pouring in quickly. There was no waiting around
- They target a large number of websites. Like I said, they will list your property on over 500 websites (which include 5-10 of the best portals online). Many of their competitors only advertise on a couple of the portals.
- Awesome customer service. Unlike a lot of the alternative online agents, Upad provide a great customer service experience. They’re helpful, friendly and easily accessible by phone- yes, can actually talk to a real person in the same country (which is increasingly becoming a rare novelty these days, as every idiot seems to be migrating their support to a ’email-only’ service to save costs). They have a phoneline that’s open 7 days a week.
Admittedly, I didn’t manage to ‘stress-test’ their customer service capabilities – probably because I’m a relatively experienced landlord that had a pretty straight-forward experience. I was an easy case. However, the interaction I did have with my dedicated ‘account manager’ (every landlord gets one, so you’re not passed around like a hot potato) was as positive as it could have been, and I’m sure he had more to offer.
What I disliked about Upad
- Sadly, I really can’t fault them for much; I know good news doesn’t grab the headlines, but that’s nearly all I got. After my experience, I could only walk away with one gripe.
Coincidentally, the aspect I disliked most about Letmatch (another online agent I trialled, which no longer exists) is also Upad’s Achilles heel. That is, there is no communication when the advert goes live. As a advertiser, I want to know when my property goes live on a websites like Rightmove. Unfortunately, I didn’t receive an email informing me. Instead, I had to continually search for my property on Rightmove, hoping it would appear, and rechecking again and again in case my decaying eyes missed it.
- UPDATE: Upad have just emailed me the following: “I noticed in your blog about Upad that you were concerned about not being notified when properties go live. It may interest you to know that we now scrape all major portals to see when our new properties appear, and then send landlords a confirmation email containing links to the property on the portals. We’re the only agent that does that.”
Ok, right. I really have nothing to complain about now. That’s terribly idealistic. How annoying.
Would I pay to use Upad?
100% yes.
I genuinely would.
This time I got the service for free, but next time I wouldn’t hesitate to unfasten my dusty wallet and pay for the service. I’ll probably need the service in a few weeks time, so unless I give another online agent a whirl (purely out of curiosity), I’ll definitely use Upad again.
UPDATE: since writing this review I’ve used their service a couple of times. Needless to say, their service is still awesome.
Are Upad the best online agent I’ve used to date?
I’m not going to mince my words. The answer is… Yes.
Final verdict
I would not hesitate to use or recommend Upad if you’re a landlord looking to generate tenant-enquiries.
Upad Discount Code / Voucher
So, you may have seen the mentioning of the 56% Upad discount voucher at the top of the page, but let me tell you more about it – because it’s proven to be insanely popular.
- Claim your Discount Voucher RIGHT NOW! I can’t stress this enough, this voucher could get pulled off my website at any moment, but it can be used at any point with in 12 months of claiming. So even if you don’t need to find tenants now, or even if you’re not sure if you will use Upad or an online agent in the future… just claim the voucher by registering, and use it at your own convenience (if you ever need to, that is).
The discount will remain in your Upad account until you decide to use it. You with me? Perfect!
- Exclusive– you won’t find this discount voucher for Upad anywhere else!
- The UChoose package + Rightmove Premium Listing is normally £239, but you can get it for £104 with this voucher!
- Rightmove Premium Listing– Upad usually charge an additional £90 for Rightmove premium listings!
A Premium listing is a listing which is highlighted, and more prominent than regular Rightmove listings. In practice, when a prospective customer sees a list of properties in their search results page, the premium listing will be highlighted in a different colour (green) from the regular listings, so it grabs more attention and leads to more enquiries! Nifty!
Claim your Upad Tenant-Find 56% Voucher →
The best way to find tenants…
My opinion? Use Upad (or an online letting agent like Upad) to get your property on Rightmove. Whatever you do, just make sure it’s on Rightmove. Oh, and read through my ultimate finding tenants guide :)
Share your experience with Upad (or any other online letting agent)
If anyone has used any other service like Upad, or even Upad itself, please tell me how it worked for you.
By the way, does anyone plan on using a website like Upad in the future?
I've used Upad before and I have to say generally very pleased.
Positives:
* Advert uploaded quickly,
* Received in excess of 30 enquiries....stopped counting then,
* You can include lots of photo's,
* One off fee....until you remove advert.
Negatives:
* £59 way too expensive
* Unable to amend advert to say "Let Subject to References" so enquiries kept coming. Very annoying for me & applicants,
* Customer services responded quickly but did not resolve this problem.
I would probably use again but would definitely like some kind of 'holding' option while you're checking potential tenants references. Once you remove the advert that's it...Unless you want to pay £59 again :(
Has anyone been able to amend their advert?