Another TV Programme!

Well, Fergus. I hope the programme isn't edited like the previous one - which presented you as a cold, arrogant landlord who could kick people out at the drop of a hat. As you later mentioned, it left out the parts we landlords need covered - such as the impact of Section 24, the need for Section 21 and a description of the billions of pounds of damage caused and arrears accrued. The last one effectively used you to push the left's agenda to scrap Section 21. I hope you haven't been used like this again as it is then bad for all of us.

Perhaps Fergus, insist on seeing the edited version before they air it this time. Hopefully you could highlight the two opposing forces at play, with local gov desperate for social housing to the point of some Councils having to offer cash incentives to the PSL, whom in turn many are looking to exit the business because of the onslaught of anti landlord policies by central gov, such as Rosalind's point with S-24 plus the whole shopping list of other policies which are causing rents to now increase, leaving vulnerable and HIB people with less and less homes available. Giving tax incentives to holiday homes whilst placing vulnerable people in bed and breakfast is strangely something the media of course don't highlight. Instead of taxing and red taping PSL's into the ground, tax incentives should be made to those landlords providing quality homes and even those able to build new homes for rental.

Ever since George Osbourne launched his 'moving goal posts' policy of S24 on existing BTL mortgage commitments (rather than applying to new BTL finance after that date) I like many landlords have lost both faith and trust in gov and unless Boris makes serious urgent change will likely end up evicting my own vulnerable tenants, some of which have disabilities and mental health issues in order to sell up.

Good luck Fergus.

A few thoughts come to mind here:
1) Do private landlords have the experience and training necessary to handle social benefit tenants ? It’s a specialist area with many having mental health issues. Then there’s the way Universal Credit provides the rent payments. I’ve absolutely no idea how to be a landlord in this sector. I’ve had no training and my knowledge and experience is pretty much zero so for me sorry I’m unable to help.
2) Don’t want to make this a rant about immigration but Boris will just make the housing crisis much much worse. Immigration targets are to be scrapped so there will be no cap on the numbers of new arrivals. An Australia points system will be introduced so we only take arrivals with a high skill level, such as nurses and doctors as just one example, depriving their own countries of health care. And illegal immigrants who’ve managed to stay in the U.K. for 15 years are to be given an amnesty thereby encouraging even more to come. So yes the housing crisis is set to get much worse. Good old Boris.

Can I make a really useful suggestion to fergus and property 118.

I don’t watch that much tv anymore, but instead get a huge amount of info on the world from all the different utube channels.

The information on there is eye opening and it is where the truth in society sits. The mainstream media all over the west no longer has the monopoly on the truth and instead we can now see this is the same as Russian propaganda pushed out to its population.

So start your own utube channel covering the topics specific to housing. The audience will be small at first but it will grow.

Douglas carswell (ex MP) has just set up his new channel and I am sure he would welcome a discussion about housing provision with fergus.

Property 118 is missing a trick if it has not considered running its own tv productions on utube.

Reply to the comment left by John at 05/08/2019 - 14:17You can easily have your accounted deleted by Youtube if you start telling the truth and isn’t in accordance with the version approved by the Ministry Of Disinformation. Much better to start your own website.

Reply to the comment left by Dylan Morris at 05/08/2019 - 14:27
Yes but that seems to apply to the perceived righter wing sites on utube.

They would not censor the truth about the U.K. housing market.

If you want to get an audience utube is the best way. You would run your own site as well in tandem but the utube channel would feed and compliment.

Reply to the comment left by John at 05/08/2019 - 14:34Fair enough John yes I agree with you.

Fergus very well put ,
I concur with pretty much most of what you have stated. I have been providing accommodation for the last 35 yrs , but I have to say its becoming harder to keep doing so with the constant lashing out at us.............

From my perspective we "Greedy Landlords " have become very much a target for all and sundry...this largely due to the failure of Government policy to implement a fundamental & basic requirement on housing needs

The bottom line is we simply would NOT be in business at all, if there was a sustained program to build enough affordable homes for all categories including key workers ..

From a personal standpoint I let to several categories students in HMO properties, Professionals in apartments and to housing associations

A number of my long term Tenants have not seen a rent increase in excess
of 6 years.

We need to take examples from other countries where homes, can be put up very quickly , not necessarily brick & mortar

I am sure the majority people do not want to see tenants in the PRS having to rent from a landlords for decades ??

Going forward my own take on this and one part of the remedy for what bits worth , would be the government automatically steps in after Tenants having demonstrated they have been renting at the full market price for 5 years after which then offered a contribution perhaps 30% that is ring fenced to accrue a deposit to purchase their own property?

Fergus may you get your card from the queen ...........

I think most private housing providers are staunch believers in owner occupation. They are also however, realists and business minded people. Home ownership for all is idealism. Reality is a different thing.
Blaming the PRS for providing housing when successive Gov’s couldn’t or wouldn't is only going to reverse rental housing provision as is happening now and gathering pace. Enough is enough.