The Letting Partnership

Outsourced client accounting for letting agents

The Letting Partnership (TLP) is a British firm that has specialised in client money for the lettings industry since 2006. It works with more than 300 letting agents, processes over £40m in client money each month across 40,000 tenancies and operates on nine leading software systems. Its activity centres on taking over the day-to-day handling of client accounts so that an agency's own team can concentrate on landlords, tenants and growth.

The company frames its role as an extension of the agency rather than an external supplier, and notes that many of its staff have previously worked in lettings agencies in property management, client accounting and administration.

What the outsourced service covers

Under its core Outsourced Client Accounting service, TLP collects rent, pays landlords and contractors, allocates deposits, processes invoices and reconciles client accounts every working day. Agencies can keep their existing bank and software, or use a dedicated TLP client account and supported client accounting software if they prefer. According to the company, a TLP client account can speed up onboarding and simplify day-to-day accounting.

Each account is assigned a dedicated Client Accounting Specialist, supported by an onboarding team and a Customer Success Manager as a single point of contact. TLP states that several fully trained team members cover each supported software platform, providing continuity during holidays or sickness.

Compliance and audit products

• CMP HealthCheck: presented as a cost-effective alternative to an accountant's report for Client Money Protection renewal, accepted by Propertymark, Money Shield and Client Money Protect, subject to each scheme's requirements.
• Deposit HealthCheck: compares an agency's client accounting software with its deposit scheme records and reports anything requiring attention.
• Client Money Assurance: listed among the firm's solutions alongside the audit products.

TLP reports completing more than 1,000 audits every year. It also handles reconciliation problems, working to identify the source of a difference and bring the client account back into balance, with remedial support where needed.

Support for new agencies and acquisitions

The Lettings Launch Kit is aimed at new agencies that need their client account set up correctly before starting to trade. Acquisition Services cover due diligence, client account reviews, opening balances and migration support for agents buying a lettings portfolio or acquiring another letting agent.

On timing, the company indicates that access to the bank and client accounting software is usually the main factor; a dedicated TLP client account can typically be set up within a couple of days, and most onboarding is completed within a month, often sooner, where no significant remedial work is required.

Client base and safeguards

TLP states that the majority of its clients are owner-managed independent letting agents, and that it also works with larger businesses needing additional capacity, resilience or specialist support. It holds ISO 27001 certification with documented controls over access, systems and information handling. Client money controls include segregation of duties, approval checks, balance monitoring and internal oversight; where an agency uses a TLP client account, funds are held in a dedicated account with NatWest or Lloyds Bank and are never pooled with money belonging to other agencies.

The company also maintains insurance, internal policies and compliance controls around its work. Its registered office is in Worthing, West Sussex.