New research from the consumer campaign group paints a grim picture of renters facing tough financial conditions as they struggle to pay the rent.
Welsh Housing Minister Julie James has warned that Rishi Sunak’s green U-turn means many tenants will continue to rent draughty, inefficient homes and face high energy bills for years to come.
A lack of public money to back landlords keen to upgrade their properties islikely to have been a major factor behind Rishi Sunak’s decision to scrap changesto minimum energy standards, an expert has claimed.
Increasing regulation of the private rented sector, the pain of finding tradespeople to do property repairs and increasing fraud are pushing more landlords into the arms of letting agents, it has been revealed.
London renters can flag up breaches of the Tenant Fees Act to Trading Standards by using a new reporting tool.
The Conservatives have put housing high on the agenda at their upcoming party conference, with at least 30 fringe meetings scheduled to discuss the topic.
Homeowners are buying the vast majority of rental properties being offloaded by landlords, reducing local rented supply.
Many landlords have spent thousands of pounds on energy efficient upgrades in readiness to meet regulations that have now been ditched by Rishi Sunak.
A ground-breaking ‘rent to buy’ service that helps tenants get on the property ladder has been expanded to include private landlords.
More evidence of trouble within the courts system and in particular for landlords seeking to evict tenants via possessin hearings has emerged, LandlordZONE can report.
The government has confirmed that the latest How to Rent guide will go live on Monday, 2nd October, including details on the new Housing Loss Prevention Service.
Letting for the first time can be a daunting prospect. Here is a summary of the key points you should look out for...
Ever since the launch of the Tenancy Deposit Scheme in April 2007, the lettings industry has recognised the importance of a professional standard inventory if deposit damage claims by landlords or their agents are to succeed.
Rishi Sunak’s decision to scrap tougher EPC rules for rented properties may spark anger among some landlords following new research that four in five of them had already made preparations to meet the former minimum ‘Band C’ requirement.
Westminster City Council has repeated its calls for a compulsory registration scheme for short-term lets, a tax on overnight stays and powers to issue penalties to unregistered hosts, saying Airbnb is now causing an ‘enforcement nightmare’.
The government is being urged to bring in a dedicated ‘sex for rent’ law to protect tenants after it promised to clamp down on predatory adverts.
The Bank of England has blamed higher rents on more landlords than usual quitting the private rental market within its detailed quarterly report on the economy.
Landlords have more of an incentive to make green improvements following PM Rishi Sunak’s announcement that they can now claim £7,500 for a heat pump installation.
Tax Relief: Starting from 6th April 2017, those landlords with mortgages will have tax relief on their buy-to-let mortgage costs gradually reduce over a 4-year period.Many landlords dont have a mortgage (up to 50% it is said), so this change does not affect them, but many
Rent Arrears: At this time of year, soon after the Christmas spending spree, inevitably rent payments begin to suffer. If you are having problems with rent arrears, this article should help.As in most areas of life,prevention is better than cure . To re
Tax Return 2016-2017: As a general rule, and as outlined in the previous articles in this series on tax returns, landlords can claim the expenses of running and maintaining their rental properties.If the rent you charge includes additional services like water, or council tax
Tax Return 2016-17: With some costs its very easy to decide: a repair to a drain, downspout or roof tile are all allowable expenses, but what about replacing a broken single glazed window with a new plastic frame and double glazing, what about decorating and installing a
Penetrating damp, just as its name implies, is where water leaks into a building from outside the structure, through the walls or roof. Less common is where an internal leak from a water or drain pipe leaks into the structure of the building.Common causes of penetrating damp are: <ul <l
Fire Regulations in Rentals: There are several regulations relating to fire safety within rental dwellings; some affect all dwellings whereas others apply mainly to Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO).This looks complicated, but fire safety management in reality boils down t
Damp & Mould: You may have seen or heard of the 1970s TV series Rising Damp, which featured a landlord and his tenants (lodgers in this case) which rather implies that all rental properties are troubled with this kind of damp.Far from the case, but some are. In fact the
Renting Standards: Specialist residential property solicitor Amanda Sutcliffe of Bray & Bray looks at the importance of keeping a rental property in good condition.Research conducted by Endsleigh Insurance and TrustMark claimed that over 75% of landlords s
Sub-Letting Licenses: (SOLITAIRE) LIMITED Appellant and CHERRY LILIAN NORTON and other cases [2012]Landlords of leasehold buy-to-let flats are often asked to pay a fee (sub-letting licence or registration fee) to the freeholder when seeking permission to sub-let their flat,
Luton Council is making yet another attempt to bring in two new licensing schemes after a string of false starts amid landlord opposition. Its overview and scrutiny board has agreed to recommend a town-wide additional scheme as well as a selective scheme in South ward, which now
Durham citys parish council has taken the unusual step of asking student landlords to make a voluntary donation towards the cost of cleaning up street waste and discarded furniture. It will ask for a contribution of �52 towards its precept from student landlords to match the
Two-thirds of private landlords might sell up if they are forced to make EPC upgrades, new research finds. The Mortgage Advice Bureau says 59% would consider selling their property due to not being able to afford the changes needed to meet the minimum level. With an
NRLA boss Ben Beadle has urged the government to learn from the awful implementation� of Renting Homes Wales which he labelled a car crash of epic proportions�. Speaking on The Guild of Property Professionalshttps://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/guildprop
The Mayor of London has accused private landlords across the UK of taking rent worth �9 billion for homes that are non decent, �1.6 billion of which is paid for via housing benefit. The figure is highlighted as, this morning, Sadiq Khan reveals his PRS research generated
Legal expert warns that exempting asylum seeker HMOs from licensing could lower accommodation standards and encourage subpar housing provisions.
Housing Secretary Michael Gove meets with private rented sector leaders to discuss upcoming reforms, including the Renters Reform Bill.
Landlords and letting agents have told a new poll that the Government must reverse its Section 24 mortgage interest relief tax changes as a priority to get the private rental sector back on track. Rent tech platform Goodlord conducted the research among some 1,500 agents,
Talk of AI is all the rage right now, but have you thought about how you could use this revolutionary new development? ChatGPT is what is known as a natural language processing tool� driven by artificial intelligence (AI) technology that allows human-like conversations. Thi
Landlords criticise Minister Mims Davies for lacking data on LHA freeze impact; NRLA urges urgent action to address housing affordability gap.
Former housing minister Lord Greenhalgh has expressed doubts that leasehold reforms will be included in the Kings Speech this autumn. In an interview with Leasehold Knowledge, he said that despite being very complex legislation, the background work had been don
Edinburgh council boss Cammy Day (main pic, right) has admitted that introducing licensing and new planning application rules will result in fewer holiday properties. Speaking to Australian news channel SBS, Day explai
A landlord in Buckinghamshire is the latest to receive a large fine for operating an unlicenced HMO. Ahmad Kamal Younus, who owns a rental property on Ellsworth Road in High Wycombe, was recently found guilty of five offices Wycombe Magistrate Court by District Judge Sharma, inc
A good Samaritan landlord is bucking the national trend by not raising his rents for more than 25 years. Mick Musson, who owns eight flats at the former Blue Horse Pub (inset), in Great Ponton, Lincolnshire, hasnt increased the rent since he took over the property, and now co
A new 'mechanical ventilation with heat recovery' (MVHR) system aims to provide the solution to landlords damp and mould problems. Ebacs self-managing, hands-off eco-system is designed to be installed in a loft opening and works to continually extract polluted, humi
Government acknowledges private rental sector shortage, pledges action to boost housing supply amid growing demand and affordability concerns.
In the case of B&M Retail Ltd v HSBC Bank Pension Trust (UK) Ltd [2023], The Central London County Court was asked to rule on a claim for possession by the landlord under the rules of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954. The landlord was seeking possession against the tenant
Thousands of landlords who entered the private rented sector following the introduction of dedicated buy-to-let mortgages in 1996 are now retiring in increasing numbers, it has been revealed. Research by estate agency Hamptons reveals that some 140,000 landlords retired in 2022,
Barrows and Forrester reports UK landlords' mortgage costs rose 20–45% since 2021, outpacing rent increases, squeezing rental yields.
Plans to bring in a vast new selective licencing scheme within Brent have been given a resounding thumbs down from both landlords and, surprisingly, the London boroughs residents too. <figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type- " data-rt-type="" data-rt-align=""><div><img src="https:
Michael Goves plans announced yesterday to require owners of holiday lets in tourist hotspots to get planning permission for their properties has not gone down well in some quarters of the Conservative party. The https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/news/breaking-governmen
Landlords locked in a battle with Porsmouth council over its approach to shared houses have branded its recent planning decisions an anti-HMO campaign. Trouble has been brewing the city since councillors on its planning committee began overriding the councils own planni
Experts highlight widespread non-compliance with the Tenant Fees Act 2019, with many landlords and agents unlawfully charging prohibited fees.
Government to curb Airbnb boom by introducing planning permission for short‑lets in England’s holiday hotspots.
I have lost track of the number of firms offering property investment courses and investment vehicles that have gone bust in my own experience, some offering dodgy training courses or imaginative investment schemes of one sort or another, and right down to those plying outright scams. <p
