Hi all, I hope you’re well, am I right to say that I can increase rent to market rate as long as it’s fair and if the tenant does not contest with the tribunal as the increase is legally binding? It’s a huge increase as the tenant was paying below market rate from £1000 per […]

Recently, we had the privilege of participating in a live online event alongside a group of 75 UK Property Sourcers and property portfolio sales specialists. During this event, Property118 was invited to present on the topic of how collaborating with our Landlord Tax Planning team could greatly enhance their ability to close more deals. By […]

These are the top six reasons why so many landlords have waited until now to form a Limited Company and sell their property rental business to it in exchange for shares. This process is commonly known as ‘incorporation’. Reason #1 The pain associated with the Section 24 restrictions on finance cost relief was bearable when […]

On paper my spouse and I were worth £3,000,000 but the reality was that we had no savings, no money whatsoever to live on after paying our tax bills, and this was despite having rental income of £300,000 a year coming in. In fact it was even worse than that, our tax bill exceeded our […]

Average house prices fell by -0.1% in June, Halifax’s third consecutive monthly fall. Its latest House Price Index reveals house prices fell to £285,932 in June, down by around £7,500, compared with the same month last year, recording the largest year-on-year decrease since June 2011. The high street lender also reveals average house prices are […]

Massive uncertainty = Massive opportunity I don’t know about you, but I am very excited about what is happening in the UK property market right now. There is massive uncertainty due to high interest rates, government legislation etc. so many landlords are selling up and retiring early. This massive uncertainty is understandably putting off many […]

Knowing that those who hate landlords will be spitting when they read this, I must explain why sharing the capital gains made from a rental property investment is nonsense. This is the argument made in a recent article in The Big Issue, which claims that renters should get a share of the profits from a […]

The Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) has revealed that 13 social landlords have breached current consumer standards over the past year. The regulator says in breaching the standards, the landlords posed actual – or created the potential for – serious harm to tenants. And now the regulator, which protects thousands of tenants in England, wants […]

Some rent guarantee companies are allegedly encouraging landlords to evict tenants who are not deemed profitable enough, even if they pay their rent on time and have no other issues, an investigation reveals. According to the openDemocracy website, some rent guarantee providers are advising landlords to use Section 21 ‘no-fault’ eviction notices to terminate tenancies […]

Hello, tenants were due to vacate the property this weekend. However, the tenants have told the management agency that they have been advised by the local authority to stay put as they are a couple with a young child. Where do I stand on this? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thank you, Sheila Editors […]

Hello, I exchanged on a new build flat before June 2022 when the new regulations on Ground Rent came into force. The property is due to be completed this month and the freeholder wants to charge £350 pa Ground Rent with five yearly reviews. Can the freeholder do this under the new regulations? Any advice […]

Housing affordability is at its worst in decades, according to new research. According to House Buyer Bureau, today’s homebuyers have by far the toughest financial task when it comes to housing affordability – with house prices sitting at 8.8 times the average earnings. The research reveals the average house price throughout the 1970s sat at […]

New research reveals despite demand falling, UK house prices are still rising. According to TwentyEA asking prices at original instruction have risen nearly 3.5% in the last year and more than 24% since 2019. Exchange prices have also grown by 4.7% over the course of the last year and more than 22% since 2019. London […]

It’s a double-edged sword for landlords right now, with 1 in 3 landlords saying they’re going to trim down or get rid of their portfolios, coupled with the looming eviction ban in just 12 months’ time. It’s no surprise, therefore, that landlords are looking to sell as fast as possible. But where do you turn […]

The government has been criticised by Labour for failing to deliver on its pledge to end section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions. First mooted by the Conservatives as part of its 2019 election manifesto, it was put forward in May as part of the Renters’ Reform Bill. But during Prime Minister’s Questions yesterday, Labour’s deputy leader Angela […]

Hello, has anyone used a Zero Deposit (ZD) scheme? I’m coming into the ZD scheme from fresh having always taken traditional deposits up front so I’m wary of the scheme at the moment. I have been advised it might be a way of getting tenants to come forward. Despite the housing shortages, I rent in […]

Both tenants and landlords are facing an ‘unstable market’ as rent prices reached record highs in June 2023, one expert says. HomeLet’s latest Rental Index data shows that the average rent in the UK is now £1,229 per month – a 10.4% increase from the same period last year and a 1.3% rise from May. […]

Hello, looking for advice, please. My tenant took it upon himself to install an air source heat pump without informing me. The property already has efficient underfloor electric heating (EPC C) I would have refused had he asked. He broke his tenancy agreement and left before the break clause. Now he wants to have ‘his’ […]

The Covid-19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on London’s private rental sector (PRS), with new research revealing a 41% drop in the number of properties available for rent since March 2020. The study, conducted by the LSE and Savills and commissioned by a group of organisations led by London Councils, warns that this trend […]

Since tenants pay for their landlord’s buy to let mortgage repayments, they should get a share of the profits, one leading commentator says. John Bird is the founder and editor-in-chief of The Big Issue, a social enterprise and street newspaper, and in the latest issue he says that ‘making money from buy-to-let properties has long […]

Hello, My company owns the freehold of a property which is divided into 2 self-contained flats, one of which is sold on a long lease and the other let on an AST. We are looking to secure a B2L mortgage but the lender requires that the AST flat is held on a long lease. That […]