In a bid to protect its tenants from costly legal battles and mounting expenses, one council has issued a stark warning. City of York council has advised its tenants to report repairs to them instead of engaging in expensive legal claims. The move follows an incident where an unsuccessful claimant was ordered to pay a […]

I have always stood up to bullies and have a reputation for integrity and winning legal battles. The legal case that stands out above all others is Mark Alexander (representing Property118 Action Group) vs West Bromwich Mortgage Company at the Court of Appeal. Feel free to Google it if you’re not familiar. Needless to say, […]

And so, to the Labour Party conference where the sparkling wit and wisdom of Angela Rayner on the opening day managed to chill landlords everywhere. There was nothing much to be surprised about, the normal platitudes about poor tenants having to put up with shoddy homes. And did anyone else notice how she practically spat […]

Hello, I have a prospective tenant whose reason for wanting to pay rent upfront for 12 months appears genuine. If rent is paid in advance into a separate account, from which monthly payments to my rent account are scheduled, how does HMRC view it? I don’t want to get everything within the current tax year […]

Hello everyone, I hope someone can help with my query. I re-gained possession of my property via legal action and High Court eviction. On the day of the eviction, the tenant was about 6 weeks in rental arrears. My agent has been holding 1 month’s deposit in their client account and not in a Rental […]

Hi again 118’s, so I’m going to trial re-counterclaim for disrepair. I’m truly by to gain repossession of my house. The courts stated that statements from both sides had to reach the courts by 4 pm. Mine did – but the tenants was seven hours late. I have just had sight of the tenants statement […]

UK landlords are facing mortgage costs rising quicker than rent increases in the past year – but they aren’t passing all the rise on to tenants, a new study reveals. Octane Capital has compared how rents have increased over the past year versus the average cost of buy to let mortgage payments, based on the […]

The UK’s housing market is facing a tough time, with the latest survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) revealing that rents are expected to rise by 5% over the next year, while house prices are on a downward trend across the country. The survey, which covers September, depicts a challenging market backdrop, […]

Landlords who want to switch their buy to let mortgages can benefit from lower rates offered by The Mortgage Works (TMW), starting today (Friday 13 October 2023). TMW, a specialist lender for property investors, has announced rate reductions of up to 0.25 percentage points across its Buy to Let Switcher range. The new rates apply […]

London’s rental market reached its peak last month with a growing trend of landlords lowering their rents, and Chestertons helped a record number of tenants into their homes. The lettings agency says that the boost in activity was driven by increasing demand for short-term rentals from business and leisure clients, as well as corporate relocations […]

One-in-four landlords are planning to sell a property in the next 12 months as they face rising costs, tax increases and new legislation that could affect their business, a survey reveals. The Simply Business Landlord Report 2023, which surveyed almost 1,500 landlords in August, shows that the buy to let market is facing several challenges […]

Renters in the UK are facing a ‘bleak’ future as the average rent price has reached another record high of £1,276 in September 2023, according to one index. The data from HomeLet, the tenant referencing and insurance provider, reveals that the average rent price in the UK has increased by 8.9% since September 2022, and […]

Student landlords are seeing higher returns on their investments in smaller university towns and cities, according to a new analysis. Paragon Bank says that the average rental yield for buy to let properties in popular student postcodes has risen from 5.63% in September 2020 to 6.66% in August 2023. The highest yields were recorded in […]

The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) has called on the Government to lift the freeze on housing benefit rates, which it says is a ‘travesty’ that harms tenants and landlords. The NRLA made the plea at a Labour Party conference event, where it also highlighted the need for more investment in private rented homes. The […]

Living in a private rented property is related to faster biological ageing, according to new research. Findings by the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health reveal living in a rented home can make you age at double the rate of those who own their homes. The health journal says the scrapping of Section 21 will […]

Hello, in March of this year, a heat pump was installed in a large Victorian HMO, great idea. Since then Octopus hasn’t removed the old gas meter, and keeps on charging a maintenance fee, yet the gas meter is disconnected and gas isn’t used! I have frequently asked for the meter to be removed therefore […]

Following the social media frenzy regarding HMRC’s Spotlight 63 on “Hybrid LLP” abuse we have been asked numerous times by our clients how they might be affected by planning we have recommended to them. The answer is simple, they are not. There are times when landlords opt to place their property rental business into an […]

In a feisty exchange on LBC, the Shadow Housing Secretary Angela Rayner refused to comment on Labour’s plan for landlords. Ms Rayner found herself in a heated exchange with LBC presenter Andrew Castle, who repeatedly pressed her about the growing number of landlords leaving the market. The Labour politician vehemently disagreed landlords were leaving and […]

While Labour leader Keir Starmer didn’t mention the private rented sector (PRS) in his speech to his party’s conference in Liverpool, a fringe meeting held earlier will alarm landlords. That’s because a Labour MP promised that the Renters (Reform) Bill will become law under a Labour government – and says it is a ‘good starting […]

The mismatch between supply and demand is worse than ever with a frenzy of activity in the rental market. New research by Rightmove reveals letting agents report an average of 25 enquiries from prospective tenants for every property on offer. One of Nottingham’s largest landlords reveals why tenants are struggling to get housing and why […]

Scotland has seen a remarkable surge in house prices since the start of the pandemic, according to a leading property firm. DJ Alexander Ltd, Scotland’s largest estate and letting agents, said that average prices have increased by 27.4% since March 2020 when the pandemic began. This is a stark contrast to the previous 40-month period, […]