Hello, with a glass of red in one hand I had a thought . . . I am considering selling off a BTL house valued at £1.4m which makes less than 3% return in rent – but I hate the idea of giving this government the £350,000 CGT it will force me to hand over […]

Research shows that 99.7% of home sellers in England and Wales managed to achieve their home’s asking price over the past 12 months, on average – and some have sold for 110%. The findings from GetAgent highlight that a year ago, 98.5% of sellers achieved the asking price. The firm also found that the best […]

Homeowners and landlords in one in five of the UK’s local authorities have seen the average rate of house price growth outpacing the rate of inflation – and in some areas, prices have leapt by 25%, research reveals. The findings from Octane Capital show that price increases are higher than the current inflation rate of […]

Hello, I’m looking for some advice from the Property118 community. My ex-tenant has left quite a lot of rubbish in the flat and the flat also needed quite a bit of repair to allow for re-letting. Our conversations about this are all on WhatsApp. If I go to court to claim the money from her, […]

The long-awaited Renters’ Reform Bill which could lead to a massive shake-up of the private rented sector (PRS) is set to be published next week. However, there is no confirmed date and no mention of it in the Parliamentary timetable for next week. And the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities could not confirm […]

Calls by London Mayor Sadiq Khan for a rent freeze in the capital have led one resident to pen an open letter in the hope of a response. Rob Thomas is a mortgage market researcher, and he was prompted to write to the mayor after reading on Property118 that Mr Khan had signed a letter […]

Rents across the UK have continued rising to a new high with the average being paid by tenants reaching £1,199, an index reveals. HomeLet says that the average rent grew by 1.3% from March to April – and by 9.9% annually. The data shows that rents have gone up in every region and when London’s […]

Hello, is the zero deposit scheme a better option than a normal 5 weeks deposit? I have an agent looking for a tenant and he’s pitched both options as available to an incoming tenant. I am looking for pros and cons for each from a landlord’s perspective, please. How do I satisfy the deposit protection […]

Hello, We had a burst pipe in the loft. Our tenant was away and considerable damage was done to the property. The insurance company sent a loss adjuster but unfortunately we did not get our own assessor. As requested by the insurance company, we have sent our bills totalling over £15,000 (for repair work and […]

Critics are lining up to condemn a government plan to remove the HMO licencing regulations for landlords who will house asylum seekers. Housing and refugee charities have condemned the move as ‘shameful’ and an ‘assault on human rights’. The condemnation follows a draft law that has been quietly published which would remove a landlord’s obligation […]

Landlords will increasingly look to sell up if interest rates continue rising, a round table discussion reveals. The host Phil Spencer was chatting with Vanessa Warwick a landlord and co-founder of the platform Propertytribes, and Timothy Douglas, the head of policy and campaigns at Propertymark. The trio discussed the impact on renters if a large […]

Almost two weeks ago the team from Property118, along with all the big names in the property industry were exhibiting at the 2 day Property Investor Show at Excel. Friday (the first day) was particularly well attended (usually by the more professional investors) and the Saturday (which is normally busier) was not as well attended. […]

Hello, The managing agent for my block of flats in London NW4 is unresponsive at most times and is very very slow or non-existent when it comes to attending to building management issues. There is no residents’ association and I have written to the landlord but I’ve had no response from them either. I have […]

Hello, I have a tenant who denied that she signed the tenancy receipt document at the court hearing last week. I tried to evict her using section 21. I have her 10 signatures on different dates during her one year stay. Every signature is different when I compared them after the court hearing. The judge […]

While house price growth has slowed to 3%, the country’s high rents mean it is cheaper for tenants to buy, research from Zoopla reveals. The platform says that the worst of the house price falls ‘is over’ and buyer demand is continuing to recover. Also, the supply of homes for sale has risen by 66% […]

When a tenant pays rent 12 months in advance you don’t have the concern of whether the tenant will pay on time, the hassle of chasing them if they are late or the legal concerns that accompany the situation if they fall into arrears but not every tenant has the available capital to do so. […]

Hello, As legislation around landlords has increased, I am nervous that if a tenant dies in one of my properties and the insurance company finds a loophole, I or my company are held liable (we have some properties personally and some in a company). It has been suggested that if I set up a management […]

Hello, has anyone had any dealings with any contractors who are applying for government funding for insulation under the National Grid insulation scheme? I have a flat that is a bit low on insulation. It has been agreed by the surveyor it can be topped up for free and they have put me in touch […]

England’s rents are on the rise and London is leading the way, one rental index reveals. According to Goodlord, rents in the capital hit a high for 2023 last month as rents steadily increased in most regions. However, renters in the South West saw their rents fall. The index also reveals that voids either remained […]

More than half of students living in the private rented sector (PRS) are living with mould or damp, according to a new study. The research by SOS UK and Universities UK reveals 57% of students have experienced condensation in their current accommodation. And nearly half (49%), also said their accommodation is poorly insulated and draughty. […]

Scottish house prices have rocketed by 50% over the last decade, according to a leading property firm. The findings from DJ Alexander reveal that whilst average house prices have risen by more than half, there are enormous variations across Scotland. For example, in Aberdeen, average house prices have fallen by 16%, while in Glasgow they […]