An independent councillor who referred to private landlords as ‘entitled parasites’ on social media has had complaints against him thrown out by an ethics watchdog, the Edinburgh Evening News reports. Coun Ross McKenzie made the comments during a discussion about new short-term let regulations – angering three landlords who filed complaints to the ethical standards […]

Wirral council has announced plans to extend and introduce selective licensing schemes for private sector landlords in four areas of the borough, targeting parts of Birkenhead and Wallasey. The schemes, which will run from 2024 to 2029, affect four areas – Birkenhead West, Seacombe St Pauls, Bidston and St James West, and Egremont North. The […]

Rents are expected to rise by almost 4% in the next year as the supply of homes to rent dwindles, the latest RICS UK Residential survey reveals. RICS also reveals that tenant demand is still increasing – but at a slower pace than before. The research highlights that tenant demand fell in London and the […]

Hi folks, Hope you all are well. My tenant has incurred rent arrears of nearly £4000 now. He keeps saying he will pay but never delivers the promise. I’ve served Section 21 and the Court possession order as a last resort. Wondering if a lawyer is required or compulsory for lodging a possession order to […]

House prices in November took a downward shift with a decrease of 4.6%. According to Acadata House Price Index, completed home transactions using cash or mortgages in England and Wales are at their lowest level in 17 years. The dramatic drop follows 15 months of gradual decline, from a peak growth rate of +12.7% in […]

The Property Ombudsman (TPO) has expelled two companies for failing to pay compensation to consumers. This year, 13 companies have been expelled from the scheme, down from 18 last year. Now the TPO’s Compliance Committee has ruled that the London-based Prinsegate Chartered Surveyors and Monsoon Properties should be excluded from the scheme. ‘Encouraging to see […]

A new guide to address the issue of damp and mould in privately rented homes has been unveiled to help landlords, agents and tenants. It is the creation of the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS) and the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) and provides essential information to better understand and address this common issue. The ‘Mould […]

Hello, I have 5 tenants in an HMO on a joint tenancy with one non payer who is refusing to communicate. What is the correct procedure to deal with her? Do I have to issue a section 21 to all tenants on that tenancy and then offer a new tenancy to the other tenants who […]

I posed the question “What is a Family Investment Company?” to Chat GPT recently and was pleasantly surprised with the accuracy of its response, as follows: – “A family investment company (FIC) is a private limited company that is established by a family or group of individuals to manage and control their collective wealth. The […]

The government’s Renters (Reform) Bill will fail without proper financial support of local authorities to deliver it, MPs have warned. The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for the Private Rented Sector has published a report on the Bill which will see a new decent homes standard for the private rented sector (PRS) being introduced and the […]

Hello, I have a tenant in her seventies who is in many ways a model tenant. She lives alone in my property. Owing to a family crisis, her 31 year old grandson is staying with her. He has been there a few weeks and I cannot see the situation changing any time soon. I do […]

Hello, with so many people finding themselves homeless being housed in B&Bs, I was wondering if they are required to pay towards the cost at all. Or do the local councils cover the entire cost? I am genuinely interested as it is a part of the current housing crisis that nobody talks about. For information, […]

The UK’s private rental sector (PRS) is showing signs of slowing down as the festive season approaches, but one expert is predicting a strong recovery in 2024. Nicky Stevenson, the managing director of Fine & Country, says the market is under pressure and expects a resurgence in rental growth next year, supported by positive indicators […]

Despite economic uncertainty, the property market remains resilient, according to industry professionals. The Guild of Property Professionals says despite the economic backdrop mortgage approvals have been on the rise. According to Bank of England data, mortgage approvals, a leading indicator of demand, are 18.5% higher than in January. The 8% uptick between September and October […]

Rural renters are bearing the brunt of rising rents which are rising quicker than the average rent price, a new survey reveals. The TDS Charitable Foundation interviewed more than 2,000 private tenants across England and found that rural renters saw their rent increase by 27% in the past year, compared to the national average of […]

In a dazzling evening of recognition and celebration, the Property Investors Awards announced the winners for 2023. In its biggest event ever, the awards, organised by the Property Investors Bureau, were attended by industry leaders from across the property investment world at the Intercontinental Park Lane Hotel. Nominees, finalists, sponsors and judges are honoured, with […]

What top 10 features do buyers look for in BTL investment property? Join Ranjan Bhattacharya and Andrew Roberts and fine tune your property investing game by learning the key features to look out for when investing in a property. Watch the video below  

Major structural changes are taking place in the UK’s private rented sector (PRS) with smaller landlords more likely to exit the market than those with larger portfolios. According to The Deposit Protection Service (The DPS), 24.5% of landlords with one or two properties plan to sell up and leave the PRS, compared with 12.2% of […]

The UK’s rent price growth is cooling down after reaching its highest point in three years with one prediction that rises will drop from 9.7% to 5% in 2024 – the lowest since September 2021. The prediction comes from Zoopla, and it attributes the slowdown to a combination of factors, including a decline in demand […]

Scotland’s ambitious plans to phase out gas boilers and switch to green heating systems could see many landlords being forced to leave the country’s private rented sector or pass on the costs to tenants, one critic warns. The Scottish government is consulting on its Heat in Buildings Strategy, which aims for 22% of energy being […]

Hello, I have owned 3 flats in a block of flats for 20 years, which I rent out, and the service management company have just changed hands and decided unilaterally to not allow rentals there because of “antisocial behaviour”. I had just agreed to sell one of these to an investor and the management charged […]