During a speech that laid out plans for the Government to meet its ambition of building one million new homes, Housing Secretary Michael Gove said that planning restrictions would be relaxed – especially to build homes in cities. He added that it would also be made easier to convert empty betting shops and retail premises […]

Hi all, we have a tenant who rented a flat from us. We did ID and NRLA checks and he passed. However, since signing the AST agreement he has been subletting through Airbnb. The profile picture on Airbnb is clearly not him and further enquiries reveal that the address he gave to us belongs to […]

Hello, just an idea, if Section 21 has to go then why can’t landlords at least be offered the ability to buy out their tenants’ contract, say a fee of 6 months rent that would be payable to a registered charity? The idea of banning Section 21 is to stop evictions because tenants are complaining […]

Hello, has anyone leased a property to a council under a five-year lease and had any problems getting it back? Is it considered a business tenancy and therefore it’s advisable to opt out of the 1954 Landlord and Tenant Act? I am also not concerned about a mortgage and lenders not approving anything other than […]

A leading industry body wants to hear landlord’s thoughts on the Renters Reform Bill. Propertymark has launched a survey to uncover landlord’s feelings on the Bill as it passes through Parliament. The industry body says so far more than 600 landlords have responded. Bill posing potential costs to agents and landlords Propertymark says: “We are […]

Are you one of the 1.8 million property owners who have a fixed rate on their mortgage ending in 2024? If so, I hope you will find the following information useful. Over the last 15 years, we have been spoilt by historically low-interest rates and have all enjoyed low mortgage repayments on our homes as […]

The Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has revealed that the Government will meet its manifesto pledge to build 1 million new homes in this Parliament. Since 2010, the Government says that more than 2.2 million new homes have been built and millions of people have moved into home ownership. The PM’s pledge comes ahead of a […]

The Housing Secretary Michael Gove says the Government is ‘asking too much too quickly’ of landlords to comply with EPC measures by a proposed date of 2028, he told the Daily Telegraph. Pointing to protests in Holland over tighter emissions regulations, Mr Gove says the ‘inflexible’ application of rules to reduce pollution will lead ‘to […]

Economists have sounded the alarm over the future of UK house prices by forecasting a significant decline of 12% by the end of next year. The predictions come amidst growing concerns that the housing market will fail to bounce back from the impending downturn, largely down to soaring interest rates. S&P Global Ratings, a prominent […]

A Tory MP has called on the government to withdraw the Renters Reform Bill. In a government debate, Christopher Chope MP said the consequences of the bill will result in a reduction of supply and high rents. His comments were made during a Westminister Hall debate about the cost of living and the private rented […]

New figures released by the Ministry of Justice have revealed a surge in Section 21 ‘no-fault’ eviction court proceedings initiated by landlords and letting agents in England. According to the data, between January and March 2023, 6,820 landlords started eviction proceedings – that’s up 16% from last year. There have been 61,000 no-fault eviction court […]

The Social Housing Regulation Bill has now become law in what is being hailed as landmark legislation in the sector. The Bill received Royal Assent last week and sets out new reforms for social housing landlords. According to the English Housing Survey 2021-2022, there are nine million people in England who live in social homes […]

The buy to let market is booming as landlords enjoy higher returns on their properties, according to a new report by Fleet Mortgages. The lender’s Buy to Let Rental Barometer, which tracks rental yields in different regions of England and Wales, shows that the average yield for both countries increased from 5.6% in the second […]

Strikes, rocketing-interest rates and high demand for housing. You would be forgiven for thinking that we were back in the 1970s! Fashion may have changed drastically since then but with housing affordability at its worst in decades, renters and homeowners now face heading back to the past. This Property118 investigation turns back the clock to […]

Let’s face it, the debate surrounding Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions in the UK has become increasingly contentious, with media outlets and tenant activist groups condemning landlords for our supposedly arbitrary use of this legal provision. However, it is crucial to shed light on the other side of the story and explore why we opt for […]

Tenants are feeling the squeeze as new rents outside of London have hit a new record high of £1,231 – that’s 33% or £300 more than pre-pandemic 2019. Renters in London are now forking out £2,567 for a new tenancy with rents 28% or £559 higher than in 2019. Data from Rightmove also reveals that […]

Hello, under the Renters Reform Bill, it states that a landlord cannot reasonably refuse a request for a pet from a tenant. Is there any provision for landlords that are allergic to dogs/cats for health reasons to still be allowed to refuse a pet? This might seem a petty question but we once had a […]

Hello, my London Borough is keen on licensing all HMOs. I live in a four-bedroom (now four-bathroom) house on my own; there are two living rooms and a year-round conservatory but only one shared kitchen. The local authority has said in the past that I don’t need to be registered if I have two lodgers […]

Demand still remains strong in London, according to new data. Latest figures from Foxtons Lettings Index reveal that applicant demand rose 19% from May to June this year. The letting agents say London enters the peak lettings season usually in August and September. Central London continued to have the highest average weekly rent Foxtons found […]

A new consultation has been launched for landlords and industry professionals to give their thoughts on how to make energy-efficiency improvements to properties. RICS has launched a consultation which will be aimed at helping surveyors provide useful retrofitting advice. The organisation believes part of the reason why consumers aren’t retrofitting their homes is that they […]

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, is demanding that he be handed powers to tackle London’s rented home supply which is being ‘decimated’ by short-term lets. Fuelled by the likes of Airbnb, the capital has seen an explosion in short-term lets in recent years. Figures show that there were 81,272 properties on the Airbnb platform […]