Foundation Homeloans has released improved criteria updates that can help if you are a Higher-Rate Taxpayer. Previously, you would have to look at a lower loan due to the 145% stress rate knocking you down, but with this offering, they may have tipped their corner of the remortgage market in your favour. These new products […]

Leaving a rented property unoccupied can spell trouble for landlords. This is where unoccupied property insurance comes in and can help when the property is left empty between tenancies. Here at Property118, we have teamed up with The Home Insurer who can help with unoccupied property insurance and could help save you money. Why landlords […]

The buy to let mortgage market appears to be stabilising after a period of significant product reduction, according to new data. The research from Moneyfactscompare.co.uk found that while the increase is modest – just 39 deals – it follows a drop of 276 deals between the beginning of the year and February. That was the […]

Hi, in short: this is an EDF supply dispute. Our last tenant had an account with EDF for electricity. The new tenant has asked to have the account released so they can sign up with another supplier. EDF has refused for 5 months to release the account, we assume because there is a debt. We […]

Hi, here’s something I’d like the views of Property 118 readers on. Some of you will have read of my ongoing saga with my tenant. Briefly, after many years I asked him to leave in December 2021 he’s still there. My Section 21 application failed as the judge at Willesden County Court invented a deposit […]

Asking prices for new properties are on the rise, with the average price reaching near-record highs, according to Rightmove. This increase is being driven by the top-end of the market which is seeing its strongest start to a year for price growth since 2014. However, despite the positive outlook, high mortgage rates are still a […]

Tenant evictions are on the rise as landlords look to avoid the imposition of the Renters (Reform) Bill which will abolish Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions, the Daily Telegraph reveals. The newspaper has analysed the number of property repossessions that are carried out by bailiffs and found that landlords are increasingly removing tenants. It says that […]

London’s prime residential rents have seen a significant slowdown after three years of record growth, Savills’ says. The firm’s associate director of residential research, Jessica Tomlinson, says: “Over the course of 2021, 2022 and 2023 rental values of prime residential property in London rose by an eye-watering average of 23.1%. “But over the last six […]

Shelter says “26,000 no fault” evictions have been enforced by bailiffs since 2019. If this relates to the 5 million in the PRS then this represents around 7,000 tenancies a year or 0.1% of total. Yes as many as one in a thousand tenancies end up in a “No fault enforced eviction.” Odd but shelter […]

Hi, I get direct rent payments from Universal Credit for a tenant who has been in the property for 2 years. The tenant moved out yesterday (17th April) and declared a new address as of 18th April. I’ve just called UC to check that I am still due the last rent payment which would be […]

Dear tenants everywhere, I hope all is well and for the majority of you who don’t know about the Renters (Reform) Bill, that life continues to be sweet. For the few renters who are aware of the upcoming law, you need to know about a growing misunderstanding among politicians, the media and homelessness campaigners about […]

In a world where the conversation about landlords and tenants has become increasingly polarised, one platform is calling for more balance. As the largest flat-sharing website in the UK, SpareRoom has witnessed firsthand the evolving landscape of rental housing over the past two decades. The flat-share website is now urging the government to support landlords, […]

One of your goals as a property investor should be to acquire High Cash flow generating property, which means that you don’t need many of them to replace your income. Would you like to replace your income in the next 12 to 24 months? Is that even possible, you might ask? Well, yes it is, […]

The Renters (Reform) Bill, designed to shake up the private rental sector (PRS) in England, is nearing a key stage in its passage through Parliament. It is scheduled for its report stage and third reading next Wednesday (April 24), but the Bill has already undergone significant changes. Originally introduced to fulfil a Conservative manifesto pledge, […]

Scottish private sector rents have risen at a rate in line with inflation over the last nine years, according to a new analysis. The data from letting agents DJ Alexander shows rents increased by 40.7% between January 2015 and February 2024. However, inflation rose by 32.25% over the same period, resulting in a net increase […]

Three leading buy to let lenders in the UK are offering rate cuts, faster remortgages, and simpler valuations to help landlords navigate the current market. Landlords looking for specialist buy to let mortgages can now access cheaper deals from Shawbrook. The lender has announced a range of reductions on its complex BTL products, with some […]

Londoners are feeling the squeeze of Stamp Duty Land Tax the most as they fork out 40.7% of the national total, research reveals. According to a study by Benham and Reeves, over the past year, an estimated £3.657 billion has been paid in stamp duty across England. And a whopping £1.49 billion of that coming […]

Hello, buy to let was seen as the ideal ‘pension’ investment for those who didn’t have the luxury of a gold-plated public sector or final salary pension. But with landlords now struggling to make a profit, and actually losing money on their BTL investments [despite record rents], many thousands have already exited the PRS, and […]

It’s a mixed bag for landlords at the moment, with previous uncertainties around EPC regulations and the stress of mortgage repayments. For accidental landlords, or older landlords who’ve been hit badly by the rise in interest rates, there’s a rush to cut their losses and sell. But landlords need to be careful. A recent report […]

Homelessness charity Shelter claims that since the government unveiled plans in 2019 to abolish Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions, nearly one million tenants have been evicted under the process. It also warns that any further delay in banning Section 21 will see more renters being ‘tipped into homelessness’. The charity’s survey also found that the moving […]

Whilst reading about how long it’s taken to reform Section 21 evictions, it occurred to me that if five years ago a “Reason for Eviction” field had been added to the application, we might actually have been able to demonstrate that there were legitimate business reasons why landlords took that route, rather than being perceived […]