Call to penalise rogue tenants

The Housing and Planning Bill threatens to come down hard on rogue landlords, but provides little protection against tenants who behave badly Housing Minister Brandon Lewis claims that the Housing and Planning Bill will promote the “professionalisation” of the private rental sector by introducing greater penalties for rogue landlords. But a growing number of organisations…

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BTL Index report from Your Move and Reeds Rains

According to the latest Buy-to-Let Index report from Your Move and Reeds Rains, Flurry of buy-to-let property interest in March pushes total annual returns to 12.2% for existing landlords. Across England & Wales rent rises average 3.0% over the last year, to now stand at £791 per month. Midlands powerhouse pushes record rents, reaching £597…

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Lords vote on changes re social housing tenants

On Monday the House of Lords considered changes that would see social housing tenants charged market rates once a household earns over £30,000, this threshold would be more than £40,000 in London. The Lords reportedly voted 240 to 176 for allowing local authorities to decide whether or not to charge an increased rent for those…

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Bullying by Landlords in Glasgow.

Local news in Glasgow is highlighting new research by Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) that Glasgow landlords are “bullying” tenants and failing to carry out basic repairs. Citizens Advice Scotland said it received more than 6,000 complaints last year, with évidence of multiple cases of landlords failing to meet their legal responsibilities, many tenants are living…

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Smoke alarms in privately rented homes still an issue.

Figures from a recent survey showed that 20% of privately rented homes have no smoke alarms fitted, the report from the English Housing Survey revealed that households with a working smoke alarm increased among owner occupiers and  local authority tenants but had not risen in privately rented homes. Fire Chiefs are concerned about the number…

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Fairer deal for renters

Haringay Council is now set to offer a new non profit making letting agency service which is aiming to give tenants a “fairer deal” whilst offering landlords  reliability and affordability. Move 51 North,  the not for profits letting agency was set up by the council housing management company Homes for Haringey, it is pitched as…

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Private rented sector rents continue to rise.

Homelet Rental Index February 2016 The cost of taking on a new tenancy in the private rentals market continues to rise, with the average rental agreement signed in the UK outside of London during the three months to February 2016 costing 4.8% more than in the same period a year ago, new data from the…

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Healthier returns for Landlords

According to the latest Buy-to-Let Index from Your Move and Reeds Rains, taking into account both rental income and capital growth, the average landlord in England and Wales has seen total returns of 12.0% over the twelve months to January, this figure is up from 11.25% in the twelve months to December. Reed Rains and…

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Cash boost to help tackle rogue landlords

In a press release from the Department of Communities and Local Government and Brandon Lewis from last friday, it was announced a cash boost for councils to tackle rogue landlords. Councils across the country are to receive a £5 million cash boost to tackle rogue landlords in their area, forty-eight councils will share the funding…

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Continued crackdown on “Rogue Landlords”

Bradford Council has been granted £45,000 by the Department of Communities of Local Government (DCLG) according to a report in the Telegraph and Argus, to continue with its campaign to crackdown on Rogue Landlords offering below standard accommodation (slums), mainly flats above shops and businesses such as takeaways, In a previous report  in the Telegraph…

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Visit properties regularly to stamp out multiple sub-tenants.

Recent news released from the NLA (National Landlords Association) reported that almost half of the tenants occupying rental property also partake in subletting that is not known by their landlords. This illegal practice is a growing trend, especially as immigration in to the UK continues to rise and costs landlords £1,000’s in costs for repairs…

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Private tenants struggle to pay rent.

According to a recent article in The Guardian, the charity Shelter say that over half of private tenants are struggling to pay their rent. The survey revealed that 15% of private renters are worried about paying their rent this month and that nearly a third, have had to cut back on winter essentials such as…

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Calls for rogue tenant blacklist

Landlord Action the tenant eviction specialist is calling for a  list to be drawn up similar to that  drawn up by the government for persistent rogue landlords and letting agents, it is currently suggested the blacklist of rogue landlords and agents would be available to local authorities and central government, enabling them to keep track…

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Our tips for landlords: Make your rental property stand out.

Make Your Rental Property Stand Out

As mortgages are becoming harder to obtain; this especially applies to first time buyers. It is not surprising that people are deciding to rent instead of buying a home. This might seem like an ideal situation for landlords but in fact it starts a fierce competition between landlords and rental prices. So if you are…

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Huge interest in Right-to-Buy

Thousands of households across the country are signing up their interest for the Right to Buy, according to latest government figures. Communities Secretary Greg Clark says this shows the huge interest in the initiative, which allows families in social housing the Right to Buy their property with more than 5,000 coming forward in the first…

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