Adrian Kelly from LetCheck Inventories

In this episode of the Cornwall Innovation Centre podcast, Rebecca Loto speaks with Adrian Kelly, founder of LetCheck Inventories, a service that protects properties, renters' deposits and landlords' reputations through detailed inspections at the beginning and end of tenancies. Adrian explains how LetCheck removes ambiguity from the renting process by conducting detailed inspections at the start of a tenancy. These reports help property managers fairly allocate expenses between reasonable wear and tear and renter liability, making the end of tenancy administration much smoother and fairer for everyone involved. The service covers studio flats through to four or five-bedroom houses, predominantly residential properties across the UK. LetCheck started in London many years ago and now operates across 17 different locations around the UK, primarily in high-density city areas. Adrian explains that the company relocated its headquarters to Penryn Innovation Centre in Cornwall 16 years ago. Initially managing both the business in London and establishing operations in Cornwall was challenging, but over time the company built a growing team at the innovation centre. Adrian discusses being one of the longest-standing tenants at Penryn Innovation Centre for 12 years, describing how the flexibility of the space enabled the business to adapt through Covid and scale up. He values creating an environment where team members feel part of something bigger than just the mission, and the innovation centre's facilities including the cafe, parking and security make it an ideal place to work. The discussion covers the impact of regulations and compliance on the lettings market. While not directly affecting LetCheck, these changes have significantly impacted their clients. The corporate landlord market is growing faster than the private landlord market due to increased compliance requirements and costs. Adrian explains the "built to rent" model where institutional investors and operators purchase buildings, converting them into apartment blocks, with the intention to hold and rent them long-term as an annuity stream rather than selling. Adrian shares his background, having worked in banking in London for an American employer between New York and London before leaving after five or six years to start his own business. He tried several ventures including running a letting agency, but LetCheck was the business that "just kept on slowly growing" despite paying it minimal attention initially. When Adrian and his wife decided to commit fully, they bought out his business partner and scaled from there.