Hi, I’ve recently inherited a property from my mother with a tenant in situ. My first question is: Does the contract he signed with my mother (a 30 day rolling) still stand? I’ve read through it and it’s not very clear or robust. Depending on the first answer what are my rights. I’m going to […]

Rents across Great Britain continued their upward trajectory in July, with the North of England outpacing the capital by a significant margin, Hamptons reveals. Its data shows that the average rent for a newly let home jumped 5.7% year-on-year to £1,354. While this pace of growth has steadied, the picture outside London is very different. […]

Hi, I am in a very worrying situation. The tenant has always been difficult to deal with as he demanded to remove the furniture from the apartment in a very rude text message which made me feel uncomfortable. I shared the text messages with the letting agent who does not manage the property but manages […]

Landlords face an uphill battle to meet the Labour government’s 2030 target of all privately rented homes achieving an EPC rating of A-C, research reveals. The data from Hamptons shows that if energy efficiency improvements continue at the current rate, it will take until 2042 for all rented homes to reach the desired standard – […]

Hi, I own (through my limited company) a 1st and second floor 3 bedroom flat which is a rental property in a Victorian house which is share of freehold. I own 2/3 of the freehold and the owner occupier who lives on the ground floor downstairs owns 1/3 of the share of freehold. Traditionally, I […]

Hi, my property has been let for the last 3 years to a couple of otherwise very good tenants, on a fixed-term contract. I offered them another year’s fixed term but they didn’t get back to me (first red flag) and they’ve now contacted me saying that they’re giving their notice to move out on […]

We all know that landlords have to comply with a lot of legislation but how much legislation is that? You often see articles saying ‘landlords have to comply with 400 separate pieces of legislation’ or similar, but you never see of list of what those 400 pieces of legislation are. So, I have decided to […]

The average house price in England and Wales dipped slightly in July to £360,630, marking a modest 0.1% fall, the e.surv house price index for July reveals. Despite monthly fluctuations, prices have remained relatively stable over the past quarter, defying affordability pressures and election uncertainty. Annual house price declines have eased to 1.3%, a significant […]

It took more than 10 years of drafting and deliberation, but what could the Renting Homes (Wales) Act mean for England’s landlords facing the prospect of a Renters’ Rights Bill? Put simply, says one NRLA expert, it could be a disaster. Mia Rotaru, public affairs officer at the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA), says the […]

A leading property firm has accused the Scottish Government of setting ‘unachievable’ targets for decarbonising homes and buildings. DJ Alexander, Scotland’s largest lettings and estate agency, says the Heat in Buildings Bill needs urgent amendment to reflect the ‘reality gap’ highlighted in a recent report by the Just Transition Commission (JTC). The JTC report, ‘Investment […]

Hi, A third party recently carried out a routine inspection at my property. By the way, I knew nothing about the visit. The agent confirmed as they are way behind with their inspections (I attend with my branch every 3 months) so not a problem for the property being inspected again! A third party is […]

Hi, there is an opportunity for me to make a ground floor flat totally wheelchair friendly. Install wider doorways, flush flooring, lowered worktops in kitchen etc and wheel in bathroom/wet room. There will be an off road level car park space at the front and a private outdoor space off the lounge at the back […]

Hi everyone, My ex-tenant used my rental property as the office address for his Ltd company while he was living there. He left the property two years ago and has still not changed the office address with Companies House. I have since had a few bailiffs visits at the address for this company chasing money. […]

Hi, I am a portfolio landlord with a leasehold flat in a social housing block of 6. I am the only leaseholder in that block. Works have been completed on 10 separate blocks. A Section 20 notice was issued in 2020 for major works (roof and cladding) with a per flat contribution of £22.2k. The […]

It has been a legal requirement since April 2007 for landlords to protect a tenants security deposit in one of the three government schemes or face a financial penalty, since 2015 not protecting a deposit in time would also render a section 21 notice invalid until the deposit was paid back to the tenant in […]

Setting a SMART goal and having a step-by-step strategy is the first thing anyone looking to invest in property needs to focus their attention on. SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time bound. It’s crucial to be precise with your goal and to have a step-by-step strategy in place before getting sidetracked by […]

The Mortgage Lender (TML) and CHL Mortgages have both announced rate cuts across their buy to let product ranges as competition in the sector intensifies. TML has reduced rates by 10 basis points on its five-year fixed 75% loan-to-value products and Portfolio Multi-Loan, with its five-year fixed product at 75% LTV and a 5% fee […]

Hi, I have a pregnant tenant who has raised a question of how do we ensure that the carbon monoxide levels in the house are at the required level. As her CO level has been measured by the hospital and was at 13 parts per million (ppm). For a non-smoking person it should be around […]

Hi, in need of some advice. I rent out a flat in a university town, very often to international students. I have an international student arriving in September who will be paying 6 months’ rent in advance (for the initial tenancy of six months which will be renewed all being well). My only concern is […]

An announcement last night (8 August) has upended Tuesday’s announcement that Rightmove had severed ties with OpenRent. The property portal giant has confirmed that the online letting agent has signed a new membership agreement. Rightmove said: “Further to the announcement on 6th August, Rightmove announces that OpenRent has entered into a new membership agreement. Our […]

In this informative video, Ranjan Bhattacharya tackles a common concern for developers and homeowners: neighbour complaints during permitted development. Do these complaints hold any weight, and should you be worried? We break down the rules and regulations surrounding permitted development, the potential impact of neighbour objections, and how to navigate these challenges smoothly. Whether you’re […]