# New yard



## Stary night (3 September 2017)

Hi gals and guys.
I am new here and signed up in hope someone could give me some advise. 
When renting a yard for sole purpose/use. It is correct to have to pay all utilities, ie water and electric. And fair to say that the poo should be picked up regularly from paddocks, the boundary hedges maintained / cut. And all damage caused by horses which may occur to the yard or buildings to be made good and the site kept clean and tidy and in same condition as when the contract was signed. 

It is a very clean well maintained yard with 3 stables, foaling box/hay barn. Tack room, use of static mobile home. Mains water, electric.  Soffit lights fitted to underhang and outside each stable. Security lights on yard and car parking area. Post and rope fencing, spring gates and wooden gates to main entrance, yard and paddocks. 
Hard standing parking for 11 cars or cars and box. Four separate paddocks, grass arena and two pony paddocks...6 acres in all. In fantastic condition.  I accept one months advance rent, but is it fair to ask for this in cash and what is a fair asking price for this kind of set up. Set in beautiful rural country side with good bridle paths and quiet lanes. No neighbours.

Many thanks


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## The Fuzzy Furry (3 September 2017)

So, you are advertising your yard?

You can put what you like in the contract, but I'd advise you take at least 2 month if not 3 months payment as a deposit, plus 1 months rent.
Deposit can be used to restore the property  (fair wear and tear aside) for any damages caused or bills not paid. 

No, just to take cash only is unacceptable, tenants ought to be able to pay by bacs on or before a given date, so payments can be clearly tracked.

Sort out a detailed tenancy agreement so both parties are happy,  include deposit return terms and all details of maintenance to be carried out during the term of lease,  plus details of supplying service companies  (water, electricity etc).

As to what it's worth, costs will vary wildly depending on where in the UK it is. Get a valuation from land agencies.


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## Stary night (3 September 2017)

Thank you for your reply. No not my yard. Found this one..it is beautiful, but just wondered about all the conditions. Picking up on is something I didn't want to do, but the owner insists , apparently to keep weeds down. I did not mention, but she also said although there is no ragwort on the land, from time to time a stalk maybe found and it is too be pulled up. I wasn't happy about the maintenance either and was wondering if all these stipulations were normal. She is asking £450 per month cash or £500 by bank transfer...


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## be positive (4 September 2017)

Stary night said:



			Thank you for your reply. No not my yard. Found this one..it is beautiful, but just wondered about all the conditions. Picking up on is something I didn't want to do, but the owner insists , apparently to keep weeds down. I did not mention, but she also said although there is no ragwort on the land, from time to time a stalk maybe found and it is too be pulled up. I wasn't happy about the maintenance either and was wondering if all these stipulations were normal. She is asking £450 per month cash or £500 by bank transfer...
		
Click to expand...

I think the terms are fair, you say the yard is beautiful and she probably wants it to remain that way and has found getting everything down in a contract is the safest way to do so.

Picking up poo is fairly standard when keeping horses on a small acreage, if it is currently free of ragwort then maintaining it as and when the odd bit grows is good practise, hedge cutting annually will keep the property safe and tidy, if she is expecting long term tenants then she will want someone who will respect the property and keep it to the standard it is when they move in, she can stipulate terms to reflect this and it is not that different to a lot of DIY yards who expect the horse owner to take care of their own paddock and at some places they are fighting a battle against weeds and ragwort from day 1. 

The rent seems fair apart from her trying to avoid it going through the books, 3 horses at £150 per month each for a stable and plenty of grazing so you could easily keep a couple out 24/7, the only issue is probably storage if one box doubles up as a hay barn it also means keeping 4 in is tricky, if the electric and water are on separate meters to the house then you paying them is fair and they will not be that much if you use them sensibly.


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## Stary night (4 September 2017)

Thank you for your reply. I have been and looked at others and this one is the best. The paddocks are dragged and rolled every spring and are as flat as a golf course. I do not know how she has kept them like this. The utilities are independent of the house. It will be total mine, apart from her coming in to cut the orchard and creosote the stables. There is four stables, but one is very large and has been used as a barn, but originally it was a foaling box. 

There is not one piece of damage anywhere. To be honest it's cleaner and in better condition than my home lol... So I think I will take the advice given here and go for it

Thank you to those who responded 

Regards

Stary


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