Here’s an interesting question for landlords to consider this week: would you prefer the government to offer you mortgage support or help your tenants pay their rent? I was pondering this issue with politicians calling for homeowners to get mortgage payment support to tackle rising interest rates. Why? Why is this an issue when calls […]

In a bold move, the Bank of England has implemented an unexpected half per cent interest base rate increase to hit 5% – the highest since 2008. Seven out of the nine committee members voted for the move, and they acted after seeing the mounting market rates for government borrowing. For now, this aggressive interest […]

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee voted 7 to 2 to increase the Base rate by 0.5% against the expected 0.25% to a new post-credit crisis high of 5%. Interestingly the two dissenting Doves voted for no increase and to hold at 4.5% The Bank of England stand accused of undershooting base rate increases, […]

Hold onto your seats because we have a jaw-dropping revelation about mortgage rates today that will leave you stunned. Did you know that a seemingly modest 6.43% rate offered today is equivalent to a whopping 25.7% rate back in 1980? That’s right, housing affordability has plummeted to an all-time low, and we’ve got the numbers […]

Fixed-rate remortgages continue to be the preferred choice for buy-to-let property owners – but the gap between choosing a two-year or five-year fixed rate is narrowing, a survey reveals. Landbay says that 79% of landlords will choose a fixed-rate mortgage when it’s time to remortgage though the preference for a five-year fixed rate has seen […]

At some point, most people will run out of their own deposit money, and that is when they think they have to stop investing. With the current falling property market, more and more great property deals are becoming available every week, so it’s a great time to invest, as long as you know what you […]

Hello, in case Property118 readers are not aware the building regulations changed on June 15th 2022 with a 12-month transition period just ended. It applies to new builds so if you are thinking of building an annexe which could be rented out at times (like we are) then they have just added £30-40k to a […]

A city council is to hire a third-party firm to carry out the licencing inspections of private rented homes at a cost of £4.4million over five years – while pocketing £1,014,500. Peterborough City Council also says that when its new selective licensing scheme is approved by the government, landlords will have three inspections over five […]

A general insurance platform provider has unveiled a new rolling subscription model for tenants’ contents insurance in a bid to deliver flexibility for renters. Paymentshield says that its offering is a first and 42% of UK tenants expressed a preference for the flexibility of paying for an insurance policy on a rolling monthly basis, compared […]

Hello, Property118 readers according to Section 75 and 98 of the 2004 Housing Act, it appears a section 21 is valid if the application for a selective license is made but has not yet been granted. Same interpretation from Shelter’s website. My question is having served a valid 21 notice, can or will its validity […]

Hello, I’m extremely surprised it has taken so very long for commentators to only now wake up to the fact that an ever-increasing number of major corporate investors, pension funds, American and other private equity companies have and are targeting the UK BTL market. It was several years ago the FT published an article reporting […]

The UK’s private rental market saw a 5% surge in rents in the year to May – with growth now outpacing the previous 12-month period, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveals. That’s when average prices rose by 4.8% with England’s rents increasing by 4.9%, while Wales and Scotland experienced slightly higher growth of 5% […]

Hello, I was a London resident all my life but moved with my mother to Yorkshire when she became seriously ill. As my studio flat was empty in London, I rented it out while I was in Yorkshire. When my mum died I could not return to London so I decided to keep the property […]

Landlords are now scrambling to sell their high-yielding rental properties as rocketing mortgage rates hit profit margins on even the most lucrative investments, the Daily Telegraph reports. In data provided by Hamptons estate agents, the report reveals that 25% of buy to let properties sold this year have boasted yields of 7% or higher. That […]

In a pioneering move, one buy to let specialist lender says it will offer a £1,000 cashback incentive to landlord borrowers who upgrade their property’s Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) level to C or above. This limited-edition feature applies to Fleet Mortgages’ five- and seven-year fixed-rate products, excluding Green options, and is valid for completions from […]

Max Scott’s journey began in 2013 when he decided to spend some of his savings on a year’s property investment training programme. Now his firm, Star Property Group, has a portfolio that has grown by £30 million in the last 12 months and Max is the managing director – and now the winner of the […]

Landlords and property investors are being warned that a plan by the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, to introduce an Ultra-Low Emission Zone (Ulez) expansion could put the skids under house prices. A study by London-based estate agents Benham and Reeves has found that the Ulez expansion is already putting a damper on property values. […]

Hello, there is a tenant who has repeatedly used the ground floor communal hall in the block to store large pallets of building materials for his wood floor laying business for weeks on end. The lease for the long leaseholder excludes storage of anything in the communal hall. The tenant takes no notice of warning […]

Hello, I’d be really grateful for suggestions on what I could try next – Neighbouring property applied to planning for a change of use from residential to HMO (we’re an Article 4 area) and the council quite rightly, refused two times. Subsequently, the same owner went ahead and did it anyway and even registered for […]

Hello, we have roof repairs to undertake and have notified leaseholders through the Section 20 process this process is completed. There were no responses during the consultation process. After this, we have received payment from the leaseholders except one, who subsequently on the request for payment has then listed objections and is refusing to pay. […]

There is a consistent stream of private landlords leaving the UK’s property market – and it has been a steady flow since 2018 – but it is not an exodus, Zoopla says. The property platform says the overall number of privately rented homes has remained unchanged since 2016, thanks to increased investments from corporate landlords […]