Landlords with homes to let in one county have helped 100 households move into privately rented homes since the start of 2026. To help, the landlords are offered financial help, free paperwork and ongoing support when housing people at risk of homelessness. Dorset council says its Key4Me scheme has seen more than 270 households securing […]

The Renters’ Rights Act has led to landlords increasing asking rents to test the market, claims an estate agent. Chestertons’ lettings report for July reveals a surge in tenant demand after the act was passed, while landlords appear to be testing how far they can push asking rents in a stronger rental market. The Renters’ […]

There have always been bad landlords, just as there are bad operators in every industry, and nobody is suggesting councils shouldn’t act when tenants are being put at risk. But something else appears to be happening in the private rented sector. New research from the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) suggests hostility towards landlords is […]

More than a third of tenants (37%) didn’t know what a guarantor was before being asked to provide one as the Renters’ Rights Act triggers guarantor requests. According to Housing Hand’s Understanding Renters in 2026 report, 31% of renters only learned they needed a guarantor after finding a property they wanted. The news comes as, […]

Poorly maintained rental properties could wipe nearly £60,000 off the value of a landlord’s investment in London, new data reveals. Research by Rushbrook found landlords across England could lose up to £30,172 from the value of the average buy-to-let property if it is not properly maintained. Rushbrook analysed landlord-specific property values across each region of […]

I have come across something odd with York City Council and their Council Tax on Student Properties at a change of tenancy. In York, you will be charged one night of Council Tax for a tenancy that ends on the 30th June and the new students move in on the 1st July, I am told, […]

A group of MPs has warned that residents living in housing association properties are being “failed” and is calling on the government to introduce further legislation. In a letter to Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook, the MPs claim that while recent legislation has strengthened accountability for private landlords and local authorities, housing associations have “fallen outside […]

Rental stock has surged across the UK, but some regional gaps persist, according to new data. Tenancy platform Propoly reveals England’s rental listings have climbed by an average of 7.4% in the past year, led by an 86.6% increase in Tyne and Wear. However, a number of places such as Norfolk and East Sussex have […]

Stamp Duty receipts have remained above most pre-pandemic levels despite signs of a cooler housing market, with HMRC collecting an average of £1.108bn a month during the first half of 2026, research reveals. The findings from Yopa show the figure is below the £1.285bn monthly average recorded in 2025, when transactions were boosted by buyers […]

Article by Katherine Simpson, Partner at Edwin Coe LLP The draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill, published in January 2026, has generated plenty of coverage about what flat owners stand to gain. Less has been written about what they will be taking on. For agents advising buyers and sellers of flats, understanding both sides of […]

The number of build-to-rent (BtR) homes under construction in Scotland has fallen sharply, recording the largest decline of any UK nation. Figures from Real Estate: Scotland and Savills show that 1,466 BtR homes were under construction in Scotland in Q2 2026, down from 1,995 in the same quarter last year. This represents a 27% year-on-year […]

When a fire tears through a home or business, the damage is immediate and obvious. What’s less visible, but often more drawn-out, is what happens next: the disputes between landlords, tenants and neighbours over who is responsible for what. Having acted for both commercial and residential landlords for 20 years, I’ve seen this pattern repeat […]

HMRC has changed its published guidance on the controversial 20-hour test for landlord Incorporation Relief, expressly confirming that somebody who spends fewer than 20 hours a week on their property activities may nevertheless be carrying on a business for the purposes of section 162 of the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992. The amendment to […]

King Charles and Prince William could reportedly face a bill of around £10 million to improve the energy efficiency of rental properties across their estates. That is a hefty bill, even by royal standards, but the Government expects ordinary landlords across England and Wales to find nearly £9.9 billion. The Guardian has reported that King […]

HMRC has published detailed new guidance explaining exactly what taxpayers must provide when claiming Section 162 Incorporation Relief for business transfers taking place from 6 April 2026. The change is particularly important for landlords incorporating property businesses because, unlike transfers completed before 6 April 2026, Incorporation Relief is no longer automatic even where all of […]

Landlords who transferred their property businesses into companies could face unexpected Capital Gains Tax bills after following what was widely presented as the conventional incorporation process. The warning concerns landlords whose personal or partnership mortgages were repaid using new borrowing taken out by their companies at the time of incorporation. For many years, landlords were […]

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A council has announced a new civil penalty policy for the PRS and told landlords how to tackle anti-social behaviour from tenants. Bristol City Council has published a new Civil Penalty Policy for private housing offences to reflect changes introduced through the Renters’ Rights Act, saying civil penalties will be used “proportionately”. The council has […]

Landlord confidence is growing as the number of landlords experiencing rent arrears falls to a record low, according to new data. Research by Paragon Bank reveals the second quarter of 2026 saw 26% of landlords report experiencing rent arrears during the past 12 months. This was down by four percentage points from 30% in the […]

A council has admitted a new licensing scheme for houses in multiple occupation (HMO) landlords could lead to them passing the cost on to tenants. Bolton Council plans to launch a new licensing scheme for HMOs early next year, meaning nearly all HMOs in Bolton will require a licence to operate legally. However, the council […]

The government has claimed, despite not setting a specific target for the number of affordable homes to be built, it remains committed to “delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation”. In answer to a written parliamentary question, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing Baroness Taylor of Stevenage claimed that the […]