Letting agents in Durham
Hello New Home covers Durham City, Chester-le-Street, Consett, Stanley, Bishop Auckland, Newton Aycliffe and the villages between, across the DH and County Durham DL postcodes. Our Local Partner lives here and does the viewings, inspections and check-ins. Contracts, Right to Rent checks, deposits, rent collection and the Renters' Rights Act paperwork run from our head office. Full management is 12% of the rent with no VAT, no extras and no lock-in, and at County Durham rents that is the whole fee.
- Full management 12%, capped at £150 a month
- No lock-in, 30 days' notice
- No VAT on any fee
- Redress scheme and client money protected
The head office team
Head office for Durham
Head office is looking after this area while the local team is appointed: contracts, compliance and rent collection all run from Swansea, on the same capped fee.
WhatsApp 0751 355 2133 · Head office 01792 807 051
Opening soon in Durham: head office is taking enquiries now. Your property is looked after from Swansea until the local team is in place, on the same capped fee.
Call 01792 807 051 or WhatsApp 0751 355 2133
Why County Durham landlords switch
Three things bring Durham landlords to us. A letter from Durham County Council about a selective licence, with a form that asks for certificates they cannot find. The Renters' Rights Act, which rewrote the tenancy they signed years ago on 1 May 2026. And an agent in Durham City or Chester-le-Street who takes a week to call back and holds them to a 12-month agreement.
Our answer is 12% of the rent, no VAT added, no renewal, inspection or notice fees, and 30 days' notice to leave. The licence application, the written statement of terms and the landlord database registration are part of management. And the person who inspects your house lives in the county.
Durham rents and what 12% costs here
The ONS average private rent for County Durham was £650 a month in August 2026, up 6.1% on the year from £612. The North East average was £788. At £650 our fee is £78 a month.
Our £150 cap only bites at rents of £1,250 or more, which in County Durham means a Durham City four-bed near the Viaduct or a large house in Belmont. So the honest description of our fee here is not the cap but the absence of everything else: 12%, no VAT, no extras.
A county average covers Consett terraces and Durham City townhouses alike. The free rent review prices your house against lets on your street this month.
Selective licensing, mandatory HMO licensing and the new Article 4
Durham County Council's selective licensing scheme runs from 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2027 and covers 103 of the county's 324 neighbourhoods, roughly 42% of its private rented homes. Inside a designated area every privately rented house needs a licence, whoever the tenant is. A successor scheme from 1 April 2027 was consulted on in summer 2026 and the outcome is awaited.
We check every address against the council's map before marketing, complete the application and put the expiry on your calendar. Mandatory HMO licensing applies to five or more people from two or more households.
Shared houses changed in August 2026 too. The council confirmed a countywide Article 4 direction from 17 August 2026, so a new small HMO of three to six people needs planning permission across the county, not only in Durham City, Belmont, Newton Hall and the areas already covered. If you let by the room, hellomyroom, our shared-house team, manages planning, licence and fire safety together.
The streets and who rents them
- Durham City and the Viaduct: Durham University had 20,887 students in 2024/25, plus staff at the university and University Hospital of North Durham. The strongest short-stay market in the county.
- Gilesgate and Belmont: student and professional shared houses, family long lets, and the parts of the city where Article 4 planning control on HMOs already applied.
- Chester-le-Street: commuters to Newcastle on long lets, at rents close to the county average.
- Consett and Stanley: family lets in the north-west of the county, where 12% of rent is a small monthly figure.
- Bishop Auckland: long lets to local workers and families, with the market town as the draw.
- Newton Aycliffe: Aycliffe Business Park is the county's largest employment site, with around 500 companies anchored by Hitachi Rail and Gestamp, and a warehouse completed in 2025 added more than 1,100 jobs. Demand is working families and contractors.
How the Local Partner model works in Durham
Our Local Partner is the face of Hello New Home in County Durham: photographs, viewings, move-ins, quarterly inspections and the handover when you switch from another agent. They never hold your money.
Everything regulated runs from head office: the agreement and written statement of terms, Right to Rent checks, deposit protection, rent collection, the repairs desk, the compliance calendar and the licence application. We belong to a redress scheme and a client money protection scheme, both named on our fee sheet, and your agreement is with Hello New Home.
If you know your patch and want to open the next town, the Local Partner programme explains how.
What to do next
Ask for a free rent review. Send the address and we call within one working day with a realistic rent for your street, the selective licensing position for the address, and a written comparison of our 12% against what you pay now. If you own a flat near the cathedral, ask for the free short-let appraisal and you get both figures side by side. Our Local Partner will bring either to you in person.
Durham rents and demand
Durham University students and staff, University Hospital of North Durham, Newton Aycliffe's industrial park and commuters to Newcastle and Teesside, plus cathedral-city tourism for short stays.
ONS average private rent for County Durham, August 2026, with the annual change. At these rents our 12% fee is well under the cap, so you simply pay 12% with no VAT and nothing else.
Areas covered
Durham City, Chester-le-Street, Consett, Stanley, Bishop Auckland, Newton Aycliffe and County Durham.
Nearby and also covered
- DH1
- DH2
- DH3
- DH4
- DH5
- DH6
- DH7
- DH8
- DH9
- DL4
- DL5
- DL12
- DL13
- DL14
- DL15
- DL16
- DL17
The rules here
County Durham runs a selective licensing scheme: every privately rented home inside the designated areas needs a licence from Durham County Council, and a successor scheme is being consulted on for 2027. We check your address and handle the application. HMO rules follow the England mandatory threshold of five or more people from two or more households.
No 90-night cap outside London. The England business-rates test for self-catering is 140 nights available and 70 nights let; Durham County Council charges a 100% council-tax premium on second homes that miss it. Cathedral-city and university demand supports short stays in and around Durham City.
Places we know in Durham
Durham City and the Viaduct
Townhouses and flats let to Durham University staff and students, hospital workers and, around the cathedral, short-stay guests. The only part of the county where rents commonly reach our £150 cap.
Gilesgate and Belmont
Shared houses and family lets east of the city centre, already under Article 4 planning control for HMOs before the countywide direction of August 2026. Steady student and professional demand through the year.
Chester-le-Street
A commuter town for Newcastle with long lets to working households at close to the county average rent. About 42% of the county's rented homes sit in a selective licensing area, so we check every address against the map before marketing.
Consett and Stanley
Terraced and semi-detached family lets in the north-west of the county at rents where 12% is a small fee. The selective licensing map is checked for every address before we market it.
Bishop Auckland
Market-town long lets to local families and workers, with a mix of terraces and newer estates. Demand is steady rather than seasonal, which suits full management.
Newton Aycliffe
Home to Aycliffe Business Park, the county's largest employment site, with around 500 companies including Hitachi Rail and Gestamp. Working families and contractors keep three-bed semis let year-round.
Durham landlords ask
Does my Durham property need a selective licence?
If it is inside one of Durham County Council's designated areas, yes, whatever the size of the property or the type of tenant. The current scheme runs to 31 March 2027 and a successor has been consulted on. We check your address against the council's map and complete the application.
What does full management cost in Durham?
12% of the monthly rent with no VAT added and no extras. On the County Durham average rent of £650 that is £78 a month. The fee is capped at £150, which only applies above £1,250 a month. Tenant Find on its own is £495, no let no fee.
Who looks after my property day to day?
Our Local Partner in County Durham does the viewings, quarterly inspections, move-ins and move-outs. Contracts, deposits, rent collection and compliance run from head office. The Local Partner never holds your money, and the agreement is with Hello New Home.
Do I need planning permission for a shared house in County Durham?
Durham County Council confirmed a countywide Article 4 direction taking effect from 17 August 2026, so a new small HMO of three to six people needs planning permission anywhere in the county. Larger HMOs always did. Our shared-house team, hellomyroom, checks the position before you let by the room.
What changed for Durham landlords on 1 May 2026?
The Renters' Rights Act came into force in England. Tenancies are periodic, section 21 has gone, rent can rise once a year by notice, and a written statement of terms is required before the tenancy starts. The landlord database opens from December 2026. We handle all of it.
Start with a free rent review in Durham
An honest figure, a compliance check for your address, and a recommendation, within one working day. The head office team will bring it to you in person if you'd like.
Also: Hello New Home Swansea · Hello New Home Andover · Hello New Home South East London