The private rented sector in England and Wales is thriving, with robust tenant demand, rising rents and steady landlord activity signalling strong market confidence, a report reveals. Fleet Mortgages’ Q2 2025 Rental Barometer found that rents grew by 2.9% across all regions in England and Wales in the second quarter. It says there were rent […]

A stamp duty break for downsizers could free up more than 500,000 homes in just one year, according to new research. Data from estate agents Jackson-Stops reveals that stamp duty relief for downsizers could unlock over half a million homes in the short term, with a further 2.8 million properties potentially released to the market […]

Hi, any advice would be welcome. My tenant has been in hospital for 5 months and is in a bad way. He lives alone, with no family support and is unlikely to work in the near future. We have been skirting the issue, but have no clue when he could return home, if he could […]

Hi, I’m seeking some advice.  I have a tenant in my property in Wales, who is a month in arrears, (she has been in there for 18 months). The tenant said they had a medical emergency and had to go private, they stated in the email that bill was paid. This is the second time […]

The housing market shows signs of stabilising ahead of rumours of an anticipated interest rate cut in the summer. e.surv House Price Index for June reveals the housing market is stabilising after a period of decline due to samp duty changes. e.surv predicts the housing market will improve in the summer months due to an […]

Student renters are worried about how landlords are selling up ahead of the Renters’ Rights Bill, claims a new survey. According to Housing Hand, student renters are worried about how the bill will impact them and the loss of rental properties. The news comes after an industry body claimed students could be left worse off […]

Housing Minister again denies the Renters’ Rights Bill will have a “destabilising effect on the rental market”. In response to a written question, by the Shadow Housing Secretary, Kevin Hollinrake, on the impact of the Renters’ Rights Bill on the Build-to-Rent sector (BTR), Matthew Pennycook claims the bill will NOT have a bad effect on […]

Hi, I rented out a property to my brother’s friend, completing all proper documentation last September on the basis that he would move out when it was put up for sale. As you can now guess, he is refusing to move from a lovely 4-bedroom detached house in Wales. I did this favour because I […]

More than 290,000 homes have been lost from the private rented sector in England as more landlords are looking to sell than buy, according to a new report. Research by Savills reveals smaller private landlords are selling their properties and being replaced by the more expensive Build-to-rent (BTR) sector. The data by Savills comes from […]

At Property118, we have always aimed to present a truthful and unflinching view of the challenges faced by landlords. For over a decade, we have addressed some of the most difficult topics in our sector. From Section 24 and the erosion of finance cost relief, to regulatory upheaval and legal complexity, we have never shied […]

As Ronan Keating once said: “You say it best, when you say nothing at all”,  Angela’s appearance in front of a friendly Parliamentary committee was an education in how much the government’s housing experts really don’t know about the sector. A year in the job, and at least two years of slagging off landlords, and […]

Landlords are being promised a streamlined tenant selection process by Rightmove which is integrating its enhanced leads feature with letting agents’ CRM systems. It says the development will deliver faster, more accurate matches for rental properties. The enhanced leads feature provides letting agents with pre-qualified tenant information, including affordability details, move-in timelines and co-tenant plans. […]

The Scottish government’s focus on bringing empty and second homes back into use will not solve the nation’s housing crisis, one property expert says. David Alexander, the chief executive of Scotland’s largest lettings and estate agency, DJ Alexander Ltd, says the efforts are commendable but won’t tackle the urgent need for homes. His comments come […]

I have a tenant who upped and left, yes unusual I know, she was always late with rent but did pay it. She has a guarantor. She informed me on the day she left not to Nigeria but to Dublin claiming her right to rent / live in UK has ended as she was pulling […]

Despite rents in London stabilising, affordability remains out of reach for many renters, claims SpareRoom. A report by the flat-share website reveals that although average room rents in the capital have fallen marginally by 0.4% year-on-year to £980 per month, strong and sustained demand is preventing a further decrease. It’s not just in London where […]

Should the government implement rent controls through the Renters’ Rights Bill then landlords will simply stop investing, a survey reveals. The findings from Landbay show that when asked about rent caps, 37% of landlords said they would halt investment in their properties. With England’s PRS encompassing 4.7 million properties, this could mean 1.75 million homes […]

A council has promised to “become a good landlord for tenants and leaseholders” following a series of failures in its housing stock. Southwark council has approved its Good Landlord Plan, which aims to tackle damp and mould and build more council homes. The news comes after the Housing Ombudsman blasted the council for failing to […]

Older private renters represent a fiscal risk for the Treasury, warns the Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR). A report by the OBR warns Britain’s ageing population will force more people to rent from the private rented sector. Generation Rent is now calling on the government to limit rent increases for older private renters. A fiscal […]

Angela Rayner has rejected calls to unfreeze the local housing allowance (LHA) arguing that increasing LHA rates would simply funnel more money to landlords. In a Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee (HCLG) session on the spending review, Housing Secretary Angela Rayner rejected calls to unfreeze the Local Housing Allowance, emphasising that the solution was […]

Specialist lender CHL Mortgages for Intermediaries has announced reductions in its limited edition buy to let mortgage offerings, trimming rates by up to 15 basis points. Landlords can now access two- or five-year fixed rates starting at 2.56% for single dwelling properties, or 2.60% for houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) and multi-unit freehold blocks (MUFBs). […]

Both the PRS and residential property sectors are showing tentative signs of recovery, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) says. Its UK Residential Market Survey for June found that while the lettings market grapples with persistent challenges, the sales market is showing early indications of stabilisation. Respondents say that tenant interest has remained largely […]