VAT on Commercial Property is a complex topic and anyone wishing to understand these complexities in relation to their own situation should seek specialist advice. This article should give a broad brush general overview but you really should seek advice because errors can be irredeemable an
A rogue portfolio landlord has been banned from letting properties for five years after she admitted multiple offences relating to fire safety issues. Naomi Knapp, a landlord with 34 properties in Bristol, was convicted of eight banning order offences and will now be added to th
Urgent regulation of the spray foam industry is needed to prevent making thousands of homes un-mortgagable, warn leading property groups. Sprayed polyurethane expanding foams are often used in lofts, either to stabilise a failing roof covering or to provide extra insulation. But
Portsmouths HMOs are in the firing line again as growing numbers are being referred to the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) to have their council tax bands reassessed. Rather than paying tax on the whole property, each room can be classified as a band A at a cost of �1,200, wit
A severely disabled tenant and his family have barricaded themselves into their home in a bid to prevent a controversial eviction. Quadriplegic Harvey Cowe, 62, and his wife Sheree, 55, have lived at the house in Brittany Road, Hove, for 25 years after Brighton & Hove C
A leading letting agent has criticised the reasoning behind the UKs ever-growing list of selective licensing schemes. Selective licensing covers all rented property in a given area or council borough and landlords are required to pay a five-yearly fee of between �500 and �9
Landlords in Bristol will soon be required to gain planning permission to convert properties into HMOs in three key areas, it has been revealed. South Gloucestershire Council is to bring in Article 4 directions in the Bristol neighbourhoods of Stoke Park and Cheswick and parts o
Londons mayor Sadiq Khan has urged private landlords who are planning to exit the private rented market to sell their properties to local councils instead of other landlords. Khan made the comments within a self-congratulatory statement on his website l
A landlord in London must now pay �40,000 after losing his appeal against his fine for breaching Mandatory HMO licensing conditions at a bedsit property above a pub. Earlier this year Islington council brought a prosecution against Mohammed Shahid for fai
Landlords have been advised not to let their tenants deck the halls with flammable holly during the festive season.
The government has set out new targets to fix unsafe buildings in England as part of its Remediation Acceleration Plan.
Gloucester Council is to apply for an Article 4 Direction in a bid to curb the number of shared houses in the city.
The Renters’ Rights Bill will add extra costs for tenants as well as landlords, and it will cause landlords to leave the private rented sector
Property groups have called on the Scottish government to focus on building homes rather than rent controls in a bid to address the country’s housing crisis.
Civil legal aid fees for eviction cases and immigration are to receive a £20 million boost, marking the first increase since 1996.
The Government should further consider its plans to mandate open-ended tenancies as a legal requirement, as set out in the Renters’ Rights Bill going through parliament.
A new tech launch allows landlords to generate and sell electricity from rooftop solar panels either to their tenants or back to the grid without going through the main meter.
Thousands of landlords are feeling the pinch as rising costs, talk of rent caps, and upcoming EPC regulations add pressure to an already challenging rental market.
Latest changes to the Renters (Reform) Bill published a few days ago highlight the legal hill that many landlords faced with anti-social tenants will have to climb, it has been claimed.
More tenants living in flats could find themselves unable to have a pet than those in a house under the Renters Reform Bill, warns the founder of a campaigning group.
The second national awards for HMO landlords has been announced by property management platform COHO chief Helen Turner, who is one of the driving forces behind its creation.
Just over half of tenants surveyed about the cost of living want their rent to include all their utility bills, it has been revealed.
Rental homes should be confiscated from private landlords who repeatedly break the rules and exploit tenants, according to the head of the Commons housing committee.
Despite interest rate hikes battering investor confidence, the UK’s portfolio landlords remain focused on expanding their property portfolios, research from Shawbrook finds.
British Gas has urged the government to consider a raft of measures aimed at helping landlords increase energy efficiency, including Green Upgrade Relief which lets them deduct green improvements from their annual income.
At least 44% of landlords won’t let their property to tenants with pets and 15% won’t consider those with children, according to a new Confused.com mortgages poll.
Winter is coming and high energy bills are really focussing attention on to what it takes to properly insulate a home. A well insulated home can make the difference between living in freezing conditions or feeling warm and comfortable this winter.
The Government has revealed that it intends to overturn this year’s landmark Jepsen vs Rakusen rent repayment order decision in the Supreme Court within its Renters (Reform) Bill.
The Government has published some 100 amendments to its Renters (Reform) Bill including ‘missing parts’ left out of the first draft lodged with parliament earlier this year.
Tom Entwistle explains how landlords can proceed when faced with outstanding debts at the end of or even during a tenancy.
Private rental prices paid by tenants in the UK rose by 6.1% during the 12 months to October 2023, up from 5.7% during the 12 months to September 2023, ONS data shows.
The Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH) has told MPs that the Government's looming national property portal for landlords won’t diminish the need for selective licencing.
Landlords using a guaranteed rent scheme can earn £3,600 a year more than by conventional letting, according to one guaranteed rent provider.
Granting landlords and tenants the ability to give the same notice periods would prevent the private rented sector “becoming Airbnb by the back door”, NRLA’s chief executive Ben Beadle has told MPs.
Landlords in Luton claim to have once again persuaded the town’s council to delay its highly controversial additional and selective licencing schemes, the fourth time this has happened in as many years.
More than 20% of short-term lets advertised in London were previously long-term rentals, according to research by property data platform Propalt.
Councils are calling for a widening of the conditions under which tenants can claim rent repayment orders (RROs) as part of the Renters (Reform) Bill.
Letting agents and landlords are benefitting from higher interest rates by reaping more than £80 million this year from billions of pounds’ worth of tenants’ deposits.
A leading student accommodation expert has urged the Government to create a level playing field for the sector within the looming Renters (Reform) Bill or face a perfect storm of rising rents and contracting suipply.
A housing minister appointed just nine months ago by Rishi Sunak has now been asked to stand down during today’s reshuffle triggered by the sacking home Home Secretary Suella Braverman.
A big NE of England council is considering supplementing its landlord-led scheme with selective licensing in large parts of the town.
Landlords are selling more homes than they’re buying, according to Hamptons’ monthly letting index, although the sell-off is slowing down.
Fears that banning section 21 will harm the PRS in England are entirely misplaced, based on contradictory evidence in Scotland, according to The Social Market Foundation (SMF).
