Date

Library

Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

BLOG: Landlords face higher bills as EPC assessments get tougher

BLOG: Landlords face higher bills as EPC assessments get tougher

News

Changes to EPC assessments mean higher energy assessment costs for landlord, that's on top of what it will cost many landlords to upgrade properties

Big seaside city reveals radical plans to restrict holiday lets

Big seaside city reveals radical plans to restrict holiday lets

News

Council has hatched plans to start charging Airbnb users for parking and is also considering a ban on full-time Airbnbs in new builds and designating

Landlords brace for reform at sold-out NRLA gathering in London

Landlords brace for reform at sold-out NRLA gathering in London

News

Paul Shamplina headlined NRLA On Tour London, delivering key insights on legal changes for landlords at a sold-out, sector-shaping event.

Leading tax expert slams looming Making Tax Digital changes for landlords

Leading tax expert slams looming Making Tax Digital changes for landlords

News

A high-profile tax expert has labelled HMRC’s Making Tax Digital (MTD) regime – set to hit landlords next year - as ‘pointless and costly’.

£6 million licensing scheme reveals property inspections blitz

£6 million licensing scheme reveals property inspections blitz

News

Peterborough Council boasts that its aggressive approach to selective licensing has driven significant improvements in the town’s private rental secto

Major BTL lender relaxes rental 'stress test' rules to help landlords

Major BTL lender relaxes rental 'stress test' rules to help landlords

News

The Mortgage Works has reduced its 'stress test' rate which is used to assess whether a landlord can afford loan payments.

London rental market now 'full of opportunity for landlords'

London rental market now 'full of opportunity for landlords'

News

London’s rental sector is full of opportunity for both landlords and tenants, says Foxtons, which reports an explosion in tenancy applications.

Former letting agent turned 'fake landlord' jailed for £200k fraud

Former letting agent turned 'fake landlord' jailed for £200k fraud

News

A former estate agent who posed as a landlord to con would-be tenants out of more than £200,000 has been jailed.

Big London borough to launch double landlord licensing push

Big London borough to launch double landlord licensing push

News

Hackney plans to launch selective licensing in 17 of its 21 wards as well as a borough-wide additional licensing scheme.

Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

UPDATED: Anti-social behaviour is a nightmare for landlords to deal with

UPDATED: Anti-social behaviour is a nightmare for landlords to deal with

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Problem tenants are difficult to deal with for landlords at the best of times. The government's promise to introduce a fast-track process to deal with anti-social behaviour sounds promising, but can it work in practice?

Tenants warned over using 'no-win, no-fee' legal firms against landlords

Tenants warned over using 'no-win, no-fee' legal firms against landlords

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Tenants have been urged to be wary of ‘no-win, no-fee’ solicitors who deal with private rental sector cases after an almost farcical case in London.

New rental property portal 'must include accessibility info' say campaigners

New rental property portal 'must include accessibility info' say campaigners

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Disability rights groups have called on the government to include information about accessibility for disabled people on its new property portal due to go live next year.

NRLA and property fraud service reveal partnership

NRLA and property fraud service reveal partnership

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

A service that alerts landlords when fraudulent tenants try to ‘steal’ their properties via title fraud has struck a deal with the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA).

City claims aggressive licencing scheme has cost landlords £250,000

City claims aggressive licencing scheme has cost landlords £250,000

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Sheffield Council has boasted that up to 800 people have been protected from risky buildings thanks to its selective licensing scheme after landlords were told to spend £250,000 doing up properties.

Leading education thinktank slams Government's rental reforms

Leading education thinktank slams Government's rental reforms

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The Renters (Reform) Bill will reduce rather than enhance housing rights for students, according to the former CEO of student housing charity Unipol.

Big council to spend £19m finding benefit tenants private rental homes

Big council to spend £19m finding benefit tenants private rental homes

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Liverpool Council aims to source 400 private sector properties in a bid to house growing numbers of homeless people in the city.

Some renters' terrible behaviour revealed by new tenancy breach research

Some renters' terrible behaviour revealed by new tenancy breach research

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The key tenancy breaches by tenants reported by landlords have been revealed with non-payment of rent, dirty homes and failing to report repairs and maintenance issues as the most common.

Landlord reveals 20-year slog to a £6m rental portfolio

Landlord reveals 20-year slog to a £6m rental portfolio

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

An ambitious landlord who bought his first property aged 18 now has an impressive property portfolio worth £6 million 20 years later.

Don't fall foul of the authorised guarantee agreement...

Don't fall foul of the authorised guarantee agreement...

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Commercial Property : A recent High Court decision in Co-Operative Group Food Ltdv. A&amp;A Shah Properties Ltd (2019) relates to an authorised guaranteeagreement (AGA) dispute, in this case an agreement involving a guarantor of theoutgoing tenant. <p id

Section 21 to be banned in the UK

Section 21 to be banned in the UK

Opinion
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The Government has announced its intention to scrap Section 21 notices for eviction in an effort to offer tenants more long-term security.

New service charges rules in commercial property

New service charges rules in commercial property

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Commercial: A new set of mandatory rules introduced from 1stApril 2019 and though the document itself is titled a first edition, itsupersedes 3 previous editions published as codes of practice. The RICS (Royal Institution of Ch

Security & Locks - Buy to Let Renovation & HMO Projects

Security & Locks - Buy to Let Renovation & HMO Projects

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Security: Renovating a buy-to-let property can be a great way for landlords to increase the rental income

My tenant left without telling me...

My tenant left without telling me...

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Abandonment: When times get hard the instances of tenants leaving without notice are known to increase. Doing a runner�, skipping� moonlight flitting� walking away� or gone away� and in the words of the immortal song;

What happens if someone other than the tenant pays the deposit?

What happens if someone other than the tenant pays the deposit?

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Tenancy Deposits: According to TDS (Tenancy Deposit Scheme) less than 1% (0.85%) of tenancies they handle have resulted in a deposit dispute in the year to March 2018, nevertheless its important to get it right when dealing with tenants' deposits.Cleaning was the most com

The Condensation Conundrum

The Condensation Conundrum

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Viewpoint by Tom Entwistle As winter approaches outside temperatures drop and the perennial landlords problem of winter condensation and black mould rear their ugly heads again.The question is, how do you know if this is caused by the building or the tenant, or is it a co

Tax on income from lodgers and short stay tenants

Tax on income from lodgers and short stay tenants

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Landlords' Tax: Internet sites, such as AirBnB, have increased the number of landlords letting to lodgers and to guests on short stays. There are specific tax benefits to this type of letting business which are expanded upon below.Furnished holiday letting</st

Section 21 Notices - for older tenancies in England

Section 21 Notices - for older tenancies in England

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Section 21: Most tenancies will never require the service of a Section 21, Housing Act 1988, (eviction) notice. However, on those occasions when it does become necessary, and you just never know, landlords (and agents) will thank their lucky starts they complied with the rul

Asbestos and Your Responsibilities as a Landlord

Asbestos and Your Responsibilities as a Landlord

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Asbestos:Asbestos regulations were last updated in 2012 , bringing the UK in line with EU regulations, which means the current regulations have been in place long enough for most

The importance of a Tenancy Application Form

The importance of a Tenancy Application Form

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The Application Form You should always use a comprehensive Tenancy Application Form when taking on a new tenant. You need a completed application for each adult tenant in the property.The Tenancy application form is a very important starting point for any residential or comm

Assured Shorthold Tenancy Ends

Assured Shorthold Tenancy Ends

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

End of an AST: Questions: What happens when an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST) comes to an end? Will the tenant have to leave or does she need to sign a new agreement? What if a tenant wants to leave early? How long can a periodic tenancy last?When the fixed term (minimum of

Freehold, Shared Freehold or Leasehold?

Freehold, Shared Freehold or Leasehold?

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Landlords often buy flats which are either Leasehold or Shared Freehold. What are these tenures and what should landlords look out for in these different forms of ownership?Leasehold is one of three forms of tenure (property/land ownership) almost exclusively peculiar to the United Kingdom, thoug

My Tenant Won't Allow Access!

My Tenant Won't Allow Access!

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Landlord's Access to Property: Many landlords will have experienced a tenant denying them access to a property - whether for an inspection, viewings or legal duties. Its easy to understand the view of Its my property, I can enter when I want, but unfortunately th

New Section 21 Rules

New Section 21 Rules

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

New Rules for Section 21 :Landlords and Agents need to be aware of the changes affecting Section 21 rules and Notices and other changes for the letting of residential properties in England (and in many cases Wales) introduced during 2015 . This article explains the new rules

New algorithms to calculate EPC ratings

New algorithms to calculate EPC ratings

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Many landlords have long suspected that the DCLG approved national calculation methodologies and software programs were seriously flawed when they produced EPC ratings for buildings following energy assessments.So news that new software is being introduced which is claimed to be more accurate is

How you serve a Notice can be just as important as what you serve'�

How you serve a Notice can be just as important as what you serve'�

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Serving Notices: Landlords and agents often get confused as to how they should serve Notices on their tenants.Ordinarily it wouldnt matter what method is used, but if you end up in court with a possession or money claim, or some such court action, then what and how you se

Consumer Protection - implications for Landlords & Agents

Consumer Protection - implications for Landlords & Agents

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Tenant are Consumers: The UK Consumer Protection law applies to letting agents and landlords alike when they advertise a property to let or create a new tenancy. It also applies to most private landlords when they deal with letting agents, unless they operate as a company.

Section 21 Notices

Section 21 Notices

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Obtaining Possession Using Section 21 Notices Updated October 2016This article explains how to gain possession of your residential rental property in the most efficient way possible. You may just want your property back for your own use, or to sell, or you may be having prob

Condensation, the Landlord's Curse...

Condensation, the Landlord's Curse...

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Winter Condensation: Its that time of year again, a time when tenants are most likely to complain about the mould appearing in those corners of the property where the walls and ceilings are really cold, and hot air with moisture always rises to the top. If its black mo

Tax Returns 'mortgage interest' relief

Tax Returns 'mortgage interest' relief

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

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

Debt Collection for Landlords

Debt Collection for Landlords

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

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

What expenses can I actually claim?

What expenses can I actually claim?

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

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

What is an Allowable Expense?

What is an Allowable Expense?

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

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, how to deal with it

Penetrating Damp, how to deal with it

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

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