A contrite landlord has apologised to the tenant he tried to illegally evict after being rapped on the knuckles by Coventry Council. The landlord sent text messages telling his tenant to leave when they told him the rent would be late. He then visited the property and took the t
Section 21 is the biggest headline grabbing element of the Renters Reform Bill but will be the least effective pieces of the legislation. Thats according to letting agent Kristjan Byfield (main picture), co-founder ofhttps://www.baseps.co.uk/"
Shelter has this morning launched a campaign in partnership with the Co-operative Bank to persuade the Government to press ahead with its proposal to abolish Section 21 evictions. The two organisations have launched a PR stunt on Parliament Square today covering it with 172 card
New data reveals the extent of the landlord exodus prompted by the current mortgage rate surge with 36% of landlords polled revealing they plan to sell a property over the next 12 months. The proportion intending to sell some properties was at 30%, up from 28% the last tim
Landlords are increasingly likely to be renting to older tenants in the coming decade with the proportion of renters in private rented accommodation over 65 years old doubling to 11.5%, it has been reported. Letting agency Hamptons says its research reveal
A council crackdown has uncovered four unlicensed HMOs and one being used as a cannabis factory in Kettering and Corby. North Northamptonshire Council joined forces with Northamptonshire Police in a week-long inspection of 76 HMOs, four of which are still being investigated.
HMO owners and associations are being urged to support calls for a rethink of plans to remove licensing requirements for HMOs used as asylum accommodation. Property lawyer at JMW, David Smith , wants the High Court to agree to a judicial review of changes o
The number of available private rental homes has dropped by more than a third since 2019 to a 14-year low. Only 241,000 PRS homes were available last month compared with 370,000 in June 2019, a fall of 35%, according to consultancy TwentyCi which analysed
A landlord couple have paid a heavy price for ignoring their tenant's request to fix a boiler after being fined �3,500. David and Emily Griffiths, of Tickhill Road, Harworth (pictured), Nottinghamshire left the tenant with no hot water or heating for three weeks. D
Landlord Action's Paul Sowerbutts discusses the impact of abolishing Section 21 and upcoming eviction reforms on landlords and tenants.
Energy efficiency improvement costs for most private rental homes work out at between �5,000 and �9,999 (46%), while almost a third (30%) could be improved for under �5,000, according to the latest government analysis. At the other end of the scale, 19% of homes would cost be
Landlords hit by mortgage rate hikes are demanding guarantors from increasing numbers of high earning tenants. Many tenants are seeing a greater proportion of their take-home pay go towards rent so are having to provide the additional security of a guarantor when signing new agr
Landlords should be prevented from serving an eviction notice for at least the first year of a tenancy, in the case of repossession for selling or occupying the property, according to a new report from the Fabian Society. The independent left-leaning
The Governments housing policies are coming home to roost as tenant demand continues to soar but the number of landlords advertising new properties to rent plummets, it has been revealed. RICS says that during June it found significantly more members (a net balance increase o
Landlords in one of London's biggest boroughs now need planning permission to convert family homes into HMOs for three to six tenants. After a year-long pilot and consultation with residents, the London Borough of Hounslow (main picture) has made its borough-wide A
Mortgage troubles spark surge in portfolio landlords selling up—explore what’s driving the exodus and what it means for the rental sector.
Government officials have reassured private landlords that judges will be able to consider a wider range of behaviours before using their judicial discretion in ASB eviction cases. Giving evidence to the Levelling Up Housing and Communities Committee into
The average cost of rent fell slightly during December, dropping 1.47% to �1,071, according to the latest Rental Index from https://www.goodlord.co/" Goodlord .<br><br>The South West saw the largest reduction of 2.68% to �1,066 while the only region to see an increase wa
Landlords should think carefully before attempting to remove good tenants who resist rent increases, advises https://www.landlordaction.co.uk/ Landlord Action founder Paul Shamplina - or risk replacing them with tenants who stop paying rent. If you have a
A letting agency boss has been hit with an 11-year ban after repeatedly abusing the https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/news/landlords-who-took-out-bounce-back-loans-given-six-month-breathing-space/" Bounce Back Loan scheme. Laszlo Szabo, the sole director of Letti
Almost two-thirds of landlords (62%) will be forced to raise rents by at least 10% in the next 12 months if market conditions dont improve. Research by Aldermore Bank found that despite this, landlords feel conflicted about passing on costs in an alread
Legal & General Capital helped fund more than 17,000 new homes across affordable housing, suburban build-to-rent (BTR), modular housing, traditional build-to-sell, and key worker homes last year. The insurance group invested �5 billion towards levelling up the UKs towns
If you havent heard of it before, the Renters' Reform Bill is set to be voted on before May 2023, bringing with it a plethora of proposed changes for landlords and tenants alike. Shelter , who along with other organisations are cam
Long-term HMO landlords in Portsmouth risk losing their C3/C4 status with no chance of getting it back due to confusion over planning rules, it is claimed. Many took advantage of the option to switch between family use (C3) and HMO (C4) without needing planning permission in 201
The rental sector is likely to see some of the biggest changes since the 1980s, so do your homework and keep yourself up-to-date. All the signs are that operating as a residential landlord in 2023 will be just as challenging as it was last year, if not more so here are my to
Leading property sector figure Kate Faulkner has been given an OBE in the New Years Honours List. Faulkners honour is for her involvement with landlords, estate agents and consumers including her work leading the property industry Home Buying and Selling Grou
Trading Standards has released new guidance to help landlords and leaseholders get to grips with the Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act. The law https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/news/advice-are-you-ready-for-the-leasehold-reform-act-going-live-on-30th-june/" target="_
A landlord in Wales has set a cat among the legal pigeons after winning a landlord Japanese knotweed compensation case in the Court of Appeal. Its three judges have agreed that Marc Davies, 38, must be paid just shy of �5,000 by his local authority Bridgend council which, it wa
A property estate worth �15m has been sold off as part of a complex court case involving a pair of divorcing professional landlords. The portfolio of 25 buildings was spread across four London boroughs and included both residential and commercial properties. The portfolio inclu
Estate agents have criticised the Governments plans to usher in a single ombudsman for the property industry, claiming it will have unintended consequences. Under the plans, the existing redress schemes for estate agents and their customers will be replaced by an overarching
Most landlords are still in the dark about EPC changes, a new survey has found, raising fears that they could be blindsided when proposed new rules become law in 2025. Only 57% of landlords with a single property and 77% of those with four or more properties in their portfolio a
Property lawyers have flagged up potential problems with eviction reform measures within the Renters Reform Bill white paper. An amendment to Section 8 notice evictions will expand the range of circumstances where landlords can seek possession when needing to sell or allow thems
Landlords in Yorkshire might have an ally in new Lib Dem councillor Felicity Cunliffe-Lister who stormed to victory in the recent Masham and Fountains by-election, a previously super-safe Conservative seat. The incoming North Yorkshire county councillor owns Swinton Estate, one
Official research has found that self-managing landlords are the least prepared when dealing with the legal requirements of the official Right to Rent scheme. It requires landlords of privately rented accommodation to conduct checks on all new tenants to establish if they have a
A leading landlord blogger has slammed Shelter for claiming in its latest press release that landlords are cashing in on higher rents by using Section 21 no fault evictions to repossess their properties. The comments are from http://www.thesecretlandlord.com
Nottingham landlord Mick Roberts battles Barclays over mortgage errors causing bad credit, higher rates, and tenant fallout.
The trade association that represents short-let landlords says the Airbnb economy contributed �27.7 billion to the UK economy during 2021 and has helped create some 500,000 jobs, latest data shows. The UK Short Term Accommodation (https://ukstaa.org/" target="_bl
Large areas of the country will be without vital legal advice to prevent eviction if the government cant get law firms to take part in its Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service, the Law Society has warned. The scheme, which gives free legal aid advice for people facing repos
MPs have slammed the Governments proposed reforms to the private rented sector (PRS) within its looming Renters Reform Bill, calling for Ministers to wake up to its unintended consequences. Their report, published this morning, also makes the point that most tenants are not w
Tenants group Generation Rent has backed the DLUHC select committees call to close a loophole in proposed Section 8 reforms. It says the governments plan to ban Section 21 evictions but still allow landlords to evict tenants when needing to sell or move back into a prop
A government minister has admitted that landlords could quit the market unless upcoming changes to EPC rules are implemented carefully. In a Lords debate to discuss the challenges of achieving net zero, https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/tag/lord-callanan/" target="_blank"
Peterborough plans Article 4 Direction trial to curb smaller HMOs, following Leicester’s expansion of similar controls across more city neighbourhoods
A Rugby councillor is trying to drum up opposition to HMOs with an online petition calling for an Article 4 direction in the town. John Slinger (main picture) believes too many family homes are being turned into HMOs by landlords who often dont have the communitys best int
Redditch MP Rachel Maclean is the latest housing minister to arrive through the revolving door at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. The newcomer replaces previous housing minister Lucy Frazer, https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/news/breaking-housing-
Spreadsheets. Theyve been around since 1979 and have served the property industry well since their inception. However, with legislation like Making Tax Digital coming into play in 2026, were seeing Landlords slowly transition from using outdated equipment to more modern an
Economic headwinds facing the construction industry put the brakes on the build-to-rent sector last year. Build cost inflation and labour shortages meant that it only grew by 14% in 2022 adding up to 242,548 homes in planning, under construction or completed - compared to a
Arun Council introduces Article 4 direction in Marine, Hotham, River wards, requiring planning permission for small HMOs to maintain housing quality.
A leading ethical repair firm has shamed a rogue plumber who charged an 85-year-old woman £1,500 to repair a water pipe.
Falling house prices and rising mortgage rates, coupled with a cost of living crisis, which inevitably results in higher incidences of rental arrears, are scaring off potential new investors in buy-to-let. But new investments in the right locations could be an astute move for ne
A former Generation Rent campaigner is now working as an advisor shaping private rented sector policy at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. Caitlin Wilkinson - policy advisor for the private rented sector - was policy and public affairs manager at the camp
Landlords and the wider rented sector face more uncertainty after it was announced this morning that housing minister Lucy Frazer, who has only been in post since October last year, is to become secretary of state at the new department of Culture, Media and Sport. In private at
