Landlords watching the unfolding impact of the Renters’ Rights Act, now have another reason to look closely at London, where falling supply is already being linked to higher rents. Tom Bill, the head of UK research at Knight Frank, says the reforms should act as ‘a cautionary tale for policymakers’ because economic policy can create […]

Britain has some of Europe’s oldest housing stock, and with government plans to bring private rented homes up to EPC C, the question remains: how will older properties meet the standard? Industry bodies have warned a “one-size-fits-all” approach to energy-efficiency targets is not the answer for older properties. As older buildings become harder to maintain, […]

The Renters’ Rights Act has been in force for just over five weeks. In that time, one council has publicly admitted it will need to fund enforcement through the fines it collects from landlords. Another has updated its policy to allow formal enforcement without a warning letter first. And the government has told every local […]

Landlords are facing renewed rent pressure as tenant demand rises and the supply of available homes remains constrained. The latest RICS UK Residential Market Survey for May shows tenant demand recorded a net balance of +14%, while landlord instructions stayed firmly negative at -28%. Rent expectations strengthened to +36%, the highest reading since May last […]

The government claim Making Tax Digital works “well for those who need it”, despite ongoing criticism over the scheme. The controversial scheme came into force in April this year, with landlords earning more than £50,000 required to keep digital records and submit quarterly updates to HMRC using authorised MTD-compliant software. Landlords earning between £30,000 and […]

The latest e.surv report puts the average house price in Great Britain at £327,400, up 1.6% on a year ago. Its House Price Index reveals that prices have risen 0.2% over the month and 0.4% over the quarter. Yorkshire and the Humber is the strongest-performing region, with average prices up 3.6% year on year to […]

The Home Office has no ‘credible’ long-term plan for housing asylum seekers, MPs have warned, despite a government pledge to stop using hotels by 2029.  A highly critical report from the cross-party committee says the asylum system is under ‘severe strain’, with rising costs and persistent backlogs. The committee says the Home Office has not shown […]

Landlords with homes in cheaper rent markets are seeing some of the sharpest rises in the country, even as rent growth slows across much of the UK. Zoopla’s latest Rental Market Report says rents in areas where average monthly rents are £750 or less are rising by 5% a year. That’s more than twice the […]

The government has moved to reassure student landlords, confirming that HMO landlords will still be able to facilitate the “ongoing yearly cycle of short-term student tenancies”. In a written Parliamentary question, Conservative MP Gregory Stafford asked about “the potential impact of the abolition of Assured Shorthold Tenancies on university students in cases where previous fixed-term […]

A landlord association has warned that funding alone will not be enough to meet EPC C targets. The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) have urged the government to provide “a comprehensive package of support to landlords”. The news comes as the government have proposed all private rented properties will need to meet EPC C targets […]

Landlords with more complex portfolios, short-term lets or commercial property interests are being offered new mortgage options as lenders adjust their BTL ranges. Paragon Bank has launched a Tailored service for buy to let applications that fall outside standard lending criteria. CHL Mortgages has introduced limited-edition products from 2.7% and YBS Commercial Mortgages has cut […]

The Renters’ Rights Act has reshaped local rental markets across the UK as affordability pressures persist, according to new research. Data from Propertymark’s rental price and average salary tracker for May shows that rents have continued to rise, alongside an increase in the salary needed to secure an average-priced rental home over the past year. […]

One of the most interesting aspects of running Property118 is that we speak to landlords at every stage of their journey. Some are still actively acquiring properties. Others are reducing debt, selling selected assets, planning for retirement or thinking about how to pass wealth to the next generation. What often surprises me, though, is that […]

The government has confirmed it will keep its powers to regulate Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) under review after rejecting a petition calling for tighter controls on HMOs in a London area. During a government debate, Conservative MP Louie French presented a petition from more than 2,300 constituents in Old Bexley and Sidcup, which argued […]

Leaseholders have slammed a “shadowy lobbyist group” for its last-ditch attempt to derail leasehold reform. The National Leasehold Campaign (NLC) has hit out at a freeholder group for challenging the government’s reforms and threatening legal action. The move comes as the government has announced a range of leasehold reforms, including a legal right for leaseholders […]

Shelter says more than 1.3 million households are waiting for a social housing, while just 12,198 were built across England last year by councils, housing associations and private developers. The charity’s research says that means 110 households are waiting for every new social home delivered. At the current rate of building, it would take 119 […]

Landlords are seeing higher annual rent income as longer tenancies and happy renters continue to underpin the private rented sector. Research firm Pegasus Insight found that the average annual landlord income has reached a record £89,000. That’s up £14,000 in a single quarter and £16,000 higher than a year before. Its latest Landlord Trends research […]

Propertymark has backed plans to toughen Northern Ireland’s landlord registration rules, with gas certificates, electrical checks and alarm details among the extra information that could be required. The changes would give councils and enforcement bodies sharper tools to spot unsafe homes. The professional body said proposals to amend The Landlord Registration Scheme Regulations (Northern Ireland) […]

Landlords weighing up where London still pays its way are seeing the strongest gross returns in the east of the capital. Research by Benham and Reeves puts Tower Hamlets at the top of the table with an estimated gross yield at 6.3%, rising from 5.5% over 12 months. The firm said the increase was linked […]

The biggest obstacle preventing landlords from moving forward is rarely the property itself. It is usually the issues surrounding it. Many landlords know the feeling. A tenant issue drags on longer than expected, paperwork has gone missing and a refurbishment project keeps getting postponed. Before long, what was supposed to be a straightforward investment starts […]

Scottish landlords are being warned that fragmented guidance is increasing the risk of accidental rule breaches as regulation across the private rented sector continues to change. A study commissioned by the SafeDeposits Scotland Charitable Trust found that landlords report little or no direct communication from local authorities. And that’s despite being part of Scotland’s landlord […]