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Legal case '� can there be a reasonable excuse for not licensing an HMO?

Legal case '� can there be a reasonable excuse for not licensing an HMO?

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Weve all heard the expression, ignorance of the law is no excuse� and this applies without question in all areas of the law. But in some rare instances it seems the courts and tribunals are open to accepting a defence of what is termed reasonable excuse even when the regulatio

Landlord says protecting tenants during portfolio sale will cost him �500,000

Landlord says protecting tenants during portfolio sale will cost him �500,000

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Nottingham benefits landlord Mick Roberts (main picture) has made another bid to sell 40 of his properties by offering to cut the sale price by a tenth if a landlord buyer keeps his existing tenants on. The regular LandlordZONE contributor has previously suggested https

LATEST: Guidance issued for landlords with tenants hoping to take in Ukrainian refugees

LATEST: Guidance issued for landlords with tenants hoping to take in Ukrainian refugees

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Landlords have been warned to check a propertys potential status if their tenant wants to offer Ukrainian refugees a spare room. Updated guidance on the rules around the Homes for Ukraine scheme outlines that where a private tenant is paying rent for their accommodation, the

BREAKING: Wales delays introduction of controversial Renting Homes Act

BREAKING: Wales delays introduction of controversial Renting Homes Act

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The Welsh government has announced a five-and-a-half-month delay to the introduction of its controversial Renting Homes Act which had been due to go live on 15th July this year. Now postponed until 1st December, housing minister Julie James says

Latest changes to Part L of the Building Regulations

Latest changes to Part L of the Building Regulations

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Landlords are required to conform to the safety and environmental rules set-out in these regulations so its important you understand the law regarding the building regulations. The rules are in place to ensure that buildings meet a certain standard of safety to protect residents and memb

Welsh government clamps down on holiday let landlords with tougher council tax rules

Welsh government clamps down on holiday let landlords with tougher council tax rules

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Landlords in Wales who rent out self-catering accommodation will no longer be able to dodge council tax under new and tighter rules announced by the Welsh government. In its bid to crack down on the impact many holiday lets and second homes are having on communities and the Wels

REVEALED: Shocking but true data behind landlord rent arrears and evictions

REVEALED: Shocking but true data behind landlord rent arrears and evictions

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A staggering 71% of all landlords reported having at least one tenant in arrears due to the pandemic, according to the latest English Private Landlord Survey . Nearly a third (29%) were lucky not to have any, but landlords with one property most commonly ha

Amended rules for landlords on fitting carbon monoxide alarms

Amended rules for landlords on fitting carbon monoxide alarms

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Landlords in England have since October 2015 been required to install carbon monoxide alarms in their residential rented accommodation where a solid fuel solid fuel heating appliance was fitted. This would include all open fireplaces that were available to be used, that is where

Office market weathering the storm better than expected

Office market weathering the storm better than expected

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With rental growth in prime London offices set to outpace the rest of the country, the doom mongers predicting permanent working from home (WFH) and office flight have so far, it seems, been on the wrong tack. Quarter 1, 2022 has seen rent returns rise as UK commercial property

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Former housing watchdog chief says build-to-rent 'the future'

Former housing watchdog chief says build-to-rent 'the future'

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Long-standing MP Clive Betts is banging the drum for build-to-rent (BTR) through a taskforce that aims to boost the number of properties in the sector

Council leader says HMOs 'change the character of neighbourhoods'

Council leader says HMOs 'change the character of neighbourhoods'

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Warrington leader makes comments as council launches plan to rein-in HMO numbers within town.

Solicitor highlights 'holes' in Labour's renting reforms

Solicitor highlights 'holes' in Labour's renting reforms

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Bethen Abraham highlights two areas of the Renters' Rights Bill that have yet to be clarified by Ministers.

Student landlords STILL being forgotten by Labour - expert

Student landlords STILL being forgotten by Labour - expert

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Paddy Jackman says sector's needs 'falling between' cracks as Government pushes ahead with renting reforms.

Judge highlights  unregulated eviction 'solicitors' problem

Judge highlights  unregulated eviction 'solicitors' problem

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Court case highlights ongoing problem of legal firms that claim to be 'authorised' to help landlords evict tenants when they are not.

Generous property 'leasing scheme' for landlords goes national

Generous property 'leasing scheme' for landlords goes national

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Landlords across Wales can now take advantage of a scheme that lets them lease their property to the local council for up to 20 years.

'Cut stamp duty if you want to help end housing crisis'

'Cut stamp duty if you want to help end housing crisis'

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Scotland’s landlords have urged its government to pause additional stamp duty payments in a bid to alleviate its housing emergency.

Big NE of England town latest to reign-in HMO numbers

Big NE of England town latest to reign-in HMO numbers

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Darlington looks set to be the latest council bringing in tougher rules to control the growth of small HMOs.

Minister explains why pet damage insurance 'not needed'

Minister explains why pet damage insurance 'not needed'

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Minister explains why pet damage insurance will not be mandated, and says current deposit of five weeks 'enough'.

BREAKING: Council tax crisis for HMO tenants averted after Commons statement

BREAKING: Council tax crisis for HMO tenants averted after Commons statement

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The Government has averted a looming crisis in the HMO sector that would have seen many tenants charged individually for council tax, rather than paying a share of the propertys annual bill. As LandlordZONEhttps://www.landlordzone.co.uk/news/exclusive-official-counci

Tenants union reveals 'day of protests' across London to push for rent freeze

Tenants union reveals 'day of protests' across London to push for rent freeze

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London Renters Union will picket successful estate agents across the capital next week who it blames for pushing up rents to unaffordable levels. Protests are planned in Tower Hamlets, Hackney and Crystal Palace on 3rd December by activists who have taken partic

Welsh short-lets landlords 'very likely' to face mandatory licensing says advisor

Welsh short-lets landlords 'very likely' to face mandatory licensing says advisor

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The Welsh government has given a strong indication that landlords and property owners operating Airbnb holiday homes within its borders are to face a compulsory licensing scheme similar to the Rent Smart Wales scheme for the traditional private rental sector. This follows a parl

Tenants can be cause of property problems as well as landlords, Government admits

Tenants can be cause of property problems as well as landlords, Government admits

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Landlords long-standing criticisms of health and safety regulation that tenants are often the cause of problems such as mould or water leaks look set to be addressed in new government guidance. Councils inspecting rented properties will be formally instructed to exami

Gove orders councils to improve mould and damp monitoring of PRS properties

Gove orders councils to improve mould and damp monitoring of PRS properties

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Housing Secretary Michael Gove has ordered council bosses to prove they are assessing and improving damp and mould problems in the PRS. Following the death of toddler Awaab Ishak as a direct result of mould in his family home, Gove says theres an urgent need to ensure a decen

Comment: the condensation and mould crisis hits the headlines again

Comment: the condensation and mould crisis hits the headlines again

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The tragedy of the death of two-year-old Awaab Ishak in a Rochdale social housing flat rests heavily on the minds of landlords across the country: could this happen in one of my own properties they might well ask? The answer is probably, yes it easily could. In a winter with ris

Knotty neighbour problem costs home owner �250,000

Knotty neighbour problem costs home owner �250,000

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A Japanese knotweed infestation caused homeowner Charron Ishmael to take her neighbour, retired NHS consultant Dr Sheila Clark, to court over a dispute about the plant. Charron Ishmael was selling her property but because of the presence of the invasive plant in her neighbour

Grant Shapps warns landlords to pass on energy support payments to tenants

Grant Shapps warns landlords to pass on energy support payments to tenants

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HMO landlords have again been warned that they must pass on the Energy Bills Support Scheme (EBSS) rebate to tenants as the first payments are made, this time by business secretary Grant Shapps (pictured). https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/news/latest-official-plans-to-for

London council plans triple whammy of landlord licensing and regulation

London council plans triple whammy of landlord licensing and regulation

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Merton Council, which includes the famous Wimbledon lawn tennis centre, is embarking on a big push to license all rented properties and HMOs in the borough as well as limiting the growth of small HMOs. It wants landlords to take part in its new consultation on plans for <strong

PROBE: Landlords complain about rent-to-rent firm as deals go sour

PROBE: Landlords complain about rent-to-rent firm as deals go sour

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Complaints from landlords and letting agents have been passed to LandlordZONE about a rent-to-rent provider whose founder is lauded online for raking in up to �12,000 a month. <figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type- " data-rt-type="" data-rt-align=""><div><img src="https://uploads-

Autumn Statement latest: Chancellor reveals tax rises for landlords

Autumn Statement latest: Chancellor reveals tax rises for landlords

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Landlords face higher bills from next year after Chancellor Jeremy Hunt slashed the annual threshold for Capital Gains Tax from �12,300 to �6,000 next year and �3,000 from April 2024. Although a rise in CGT didnt materialise, he followed the Office of Tax Simplification

LATEST: Government has 'broken the PRS' during its war on landlords

LATEST: Government has 'broken the PRS' during its war on landlords

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Landlords have accused the Government of "breaking the private rented sector" with its relentless regulatory and tax policies. The comments have been made by the NRLA, which says that while demand for rented homes is rising as home ownership becomes less affordable, the number o

NEW: Brighton squeezes HMO sector even harder with new policies and guidance

NEW: Brighton squeezes HMO sector even harder with new policies and guidance

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Brighton &amp; Hove Council is squeezing its HMO sector even harder by introducing a tough new set of policies designed to reduce their impact on local communities. Its City Plan Part 2 includes new guidance for those applying for planning permission as well as rules covering bu

Welsh landlords &amp; agents have serious misgivings about longer notice periods

Welsh landlords &amp; agents have serious misgivings about longer notice periods

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The way that private rented sector (PRS) landlords operate their properties in Wales is going through one of the biggest changes in decades as the Welsh Government, under its devolved powers, pass and implement the https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2016/1/contents" target="_blank

Leicester to widen HMO planning restrictions covering 'thousands' of houses

Leicester to widen HMO planning restrictions covering 'thousands' of houses

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Leicester city council councillors are to vote next week on plans to significantly widen local planning laws to clamp down on the spread of HMOs. The measures are to be brought in following a public consultation that finished in January this year. Leicester has had a

Japanese knotweed is a well known menace but bamboo can be worse...

Japanese knotweed is a well known menace but bamboo can be worse...

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The mention of Japanses knoweed has the effect of putting the fear of God in property owners, but the bamboo plant, which is lesser known, can be even more devastating. Homeowners have been planting bamboo for years in Britain to create an exotic oriental ornamental feature or a

Are you ready for the switch to digital tax submissions?

Are you ready for the switch to digital tax submissions?

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The Making Tax Digital initiative (MTD) is a HMRC scheme that aims to modernise income tax accounting and reporting, making the process fully digital. The idea is to improve HMRCs efficiency and reduce costs to the taxpayer by processing business, property and individual tax affairs on-l

REFORMS: 'Rethink your plans on Section 21 evictions' landlord tells MPs

REFORMS: 'Rethink your plans on Section 21 evictions' landlord tells MPs

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Successful landlord and property developer Kathy Miller has urged the government to rethink its plans to abolish Section 21 or face a big rise in court cases and spiralling bills for unpaid rent and property damage. <figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type- " data-rt-type="" data-rt-a

Chancellor 'planning tax raid on landlords' to plug �50bn hole in public finances

Chancellor 'planning tax raid on landlords' to plug �50bn hole in public finances

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Landlords could be hit with a rise in capital gains tax (CGT) along with cuts in reliefs and allowances as part of the Chancellors autumn statement due on November 17th. According to a report inhttps://www.telegraph.co.uk/" https://www.telegraph.c

LATEST: Bankrupt landlord jailed over failure to declare HMO property income

LATEST: Bankrupt landlord jailed over failure to declare HMO property income

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A bankrupt landlord in the Midlands has been jailed for eight months after failing to tell the Official Receiver about an HMO property he owned in Coventry. The house at 35 Walsgrave Road, Coventry, which yielded a rent of �1,900 a month for Sukhi Sanghera, was not flagged up b

Interest rates have gone up, but here's why Landlords don't need to panic

Interest rates have gone up, but here's why Landlords don't need to panic

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Landlords have been under a lot of pressure recently, with interest rates going up, house prices dropping, and changes in government, anxiety levels have been at an all-time high. But despite the current state of affairs, we still have options to help us get through this patch without panic

Gove returns to Government and re-commits to the Renters' Reform Bill

Gove returns to Government and re-commits to the Renters' Reform Bill

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Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, and Minister for Intergovernmental Relations, Michael Gove, has reaffirmed his department's commitment to reforming the private rented sector (PRS). It will follow closely the recommendations in the Governments pol

INTERVIEW: Why one of UK's biggest PRS landlords sold off their properties

INTERVIEW: Why one of UK's biggest PRS landlords sold off their properties

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Scots entrepreneurs Graeme and Leanne Carling were one of the most successful landlords of the late noughties, taking advantage of the weakness in the property market following the global financial crash to build a bricks-and-mortar empire worth �200 million. This made their co

Serco offers attractive deal to landlords for asylum housing

Serco offers attractive deal to landlords for asylum housing

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Serco offers landlords guaranteed rent, free maintenance, and no void periods in five-year leases to house asylum seekers.

LATEST: New Housing Minister is a landlord as Gove clears out Truss appointees

LATEST: New Housing Minister is a landlord as Gove clears out Truss appointees

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Landlords might have found themselves an ally in the newest minister at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. Lucy Frazer - the latest MP to join returning boss https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/tag/michael-gove/" target="_blank" Mic