Responding to confirmation in the Queen’s Speech that the Government will bring forward its planned Renters Reform Bill to abolish Section 21 repossessions, Ben Beadle, Chief Executive of the National Residential Landlords Association, said: “We welcome the Government’s acceptance that reforms to the rented sector need to strengthen the ability of landlords to tackle anti-social […]

In the State Opening of Parliament, the Queen’s speech (this year given by Charles the Prince of Wales) sets out the laws her government wants to pass and the priorities for the months ahead. For the Property Sector the main headlines are: Her Majesty’s Government will introduce legislation to improve the regulation of social housing […]

Shelter claims Landlords and letting agents have got away with cutting corners for far too long and have released a satirical video with an agent played by comedian Rory Marshall. In the latest press release, Shelter’s ‘research’ also indicates one in six private renters in England (equivalent to two million people) are forced to accept […]

New research reveals that Sunderland has experienced the biggest increase in rental demand of all the main UK towns/cities. Data from SpareRoom, showed that listings posted on the platform for rooms in Sunderland saw a 165% increase in demand since Q1 2020, with the average cost of a room also rising by 24% from £327 […]

My net income for the tax year ending April 2021 will be £20,000 and I expect it to be the same next tax year ending April 2022. However, I now have a vacant property and am considering selling it. I have roughly worked out that after initial purchase costs, legal/agent fees, CGT allowance etc that […]

A constant barrage of regulations, restrictions, responsibilities and Selective Licencing has driven an overall decline of supply in England’s HMO sector by 3% from 511,278 properties in 2019/2020 to 497,884 in 2020/21. These figures come from market analysis performed by Octane Capital. In 2018, the UK government introduced new regulations which insist that a Houses of […]

Interest rates have now risen to 1%, and this is not the last time they will be raised, so what does the future hold for property prices and how can property investors battle the inflation in the market? Stay tuned to find out in the video below: 

My neighbour is a council tenant and is not the best neighbour it is possible to have. Her children have made the fence fall down and that has taken my tenant’s privacy. The fence belongs to the council and as such declined me from putting it back up as it is considered as council’s land. […]

The National Trading Standards Estate and Letting Agency Team (NTSELAT) has released its opinion, with the collaboration of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), on the use by agents of the term price on application (POA) in property listings. The settled decision was that this contravenes consumer protection legislation. This opinion was requested to provide […]

I am wondering what subscribers think about the new trend of large build to rent developments. I can see the attraction to young people, with communal hubs, IT suites and on-site coffee shops etc. It means that if their own home is the size of a box they can go and hang out in other […]

The latest Halifax House Price Index figures indicate House prices increased for the tenth consecutive month by 1.1% in April, the longest run since 2016. House prices are up £47,568 over the last two years with the average property price reaching £286,079 and Northern Ireland is now the UK area with the strongest house price […]

The number of people in the UK renting their homes is at a 13 year high and, as a result, the amount of people looking for temporary and reversible interior decorations online has increased by 200% over the last 12 months. Fortunately, there are many ways to decorate without breaking the bank, losing the deposit, […]

The Monetary Policy Committee have voted by a majority of 6-3 to increase Bank Rate by a quarter-point to a full 1% with 12 month CPI inflation rising to 7.0% in March, around 1% higher than expected in the February Report. This is despite the vast majority of inflationary pressure coming from external global costs […]

The NRLA is warning that government efforts to dampen investment in rental housing are fuelling a supply crisis, hiking rents and making homeownership more difficult to afford. All at the same time data shows demand for rental property is at a record high. Since 2015 the Government has embarked on a deliberate effort to reduce […]

Having recently let a two-bedroom flat to a young couple through my local letting agent, the tenants have recently moved in another person to the second bedroom. My letting agent says this new person, who would not pass their vetting procedure and was moved in without my knowledge or consent, needs to be on the […]

Hi everyone, I have recently been to court and got an order for a tenant who is in arrears with over £15000 of rental payments. The tenant was given until the 27th of April by the court to move out. However, he is still there and we can not instruct the bailiffs as the court […]

It is nearly 17 months since the Government’s consultation on improving the energy performance of privately rented homes closed. On Friday, 29 April 2022, iHowz landlord association wrote to Kwasi Kwateng, the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), to push for the publication of the findings of the EPC consultation together […]

The NRLA has sent an open letter to the Chief Executive of Shelter, Polly Neate CBE, looking to redress the imbalance of the latest Shelter press release: Dear Polly, I write following the publication of Shelter’s research: “Every seven minutes a private renter is served a no-fault eviction notice despite a government promise to scrap […]

Does anyone have the same issues with insurers as I have? My insurance company has refused to renew my policy and every broker I have contacted since then comes back with the same reply – The Underwriters are unable to cover me. The problem is a result of a fire in my property in October […]

I own four Buy to Let flats outright/unencumbered. I also have 4 grandchildren all due to attend private schools with correspondingly costly term fees. My question is: What is the best way to use my accumulated equity, but not cash wealth to support the parents with the school fees? Should I consider – Equity release, […]

Is there a simple answer to the question? If I put solar panels on a residential BTL property as a sole trader, in Scotland. 1) Can I offset the cost as an expense in the current year. 2) Is it just Capital offset at the point of sale. I understand there may be, or seem […]