Yes, you read that correctly! We represented a Landlord at the First Tier Tribunal recently where a Rent Repayment Order (RRO)  was being sought for 12 months rent due to no Additional Licence. The hearing turned to Landlord and Tenant conduct, which is one of the few aspects to mitigate against a full rent repayment. […]

I am planning to sell off one of my Buy to Let properties, which is currently lightly furnished. An agent has advised me to either sell the property fully furnished with reasonable quality furniture or to sell it as completely empty because they do not think my now rather worn furniture will add to the […]

The latest research by Sequre Property Investment, estimates that the current bricks and mortar value of the UK’s private rental sector sits at almost £1.4trillion. The data was compiled on the number of current private rented dwellings across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, before looking at the total value of these rental portfolios based […]

Class G of the General Permitted Development Order (GDPO) a permitted development right to create 2 flats on the upper floors without asking the council for a Use Class E building has been consigned to history from the 1st August 2021. CLASS G CHANGES:  2 Flats above a shop/office are currently fully permitted development, but […]

A tenant moved into a flat in August 2020. Universal Credit set up direct payments to Landlord as agreed (also requested by tenant as history with gambling etc). It transpires in April UC asked the tenant for a copy of the tenancy agreement as evidence of tenancy etc, but he didn’t act. Direct rent payments […]

I notice the government frequently use the word ‘guidance’ on many of their sites. Does ‘guidance’ mean – law – advice – or whatever? I also noticed re evictions under section 21/8 assured tenancies are mentioned but not assured ‘shorthold’ tenancies with no mention of arrears on their main page! ??? I also noticed the […]

With gas heating under pressure from future government green legislation for residential properties, and potential bans for the installation of new gas boilers, is this heating fuel now falling out of favour and not the way forward? The question is at this early stage what is the best form of electric heating available and is […]

Mark Smith (Barrister-At-Law) will be live on Thursday 29th July presenting on Tax Planning and Business Structures for Landlords. The Virtual Property Exhibition features 8 property industry experts, for a full day of online training to update you on the current property market opportunities. This exhibition is being run by property investors network (pin) and […]

Freedom day for property investors comes on August 1st because the planning system that has constrained us for so long is opening up! In this video, I’m going to be sharing with you 5 property investment strategies that require full planning permission today, but not from August the 1st thanks to prior approval. Register For […]

Paragon Bank’s recent FACT report indicated 53% of mortgage brokers surveyed in the last quarter anticipate increased Buy to Let demand over the next 12 months, despite the tapering of the Stamp Duty holiday. This is up from 50% in the first quarter of the year, but a consistent 10% of brokers still think demand […]

All buildings in Wales over 11m will be eligible to apply, with high rise buildings (18m+) prioritised initially for fire safety surveys. The surveys will go beyond cladding issues, including assessing internal issues such as ineffective compartmentation. Minister for Climate Change Julie James confirmed the surveys will be funded by the Welsh Building Safety Fund. […]

I have two properties owned jointly, no tenants in either. The Rateable value of one is £2,435, the other £1,650. They are both shops in listed buildings (residential flats above). Are both exempt from business rates even if empty or tenanted, as both under £12kRV? I thought anything under £12k RV was exempt anyway BUT […]

The founder of the Big Issue, Lord Bird, Nigel Mills MP, a Conservative member of the Work and Pensions Committee, and Yvonne Fovargue, Labour Chair of the All-Party Group for Debt and Personal Finance will be addressing an online event on tackling COVID related rent arrears. Government data shows that in England, since the start […]

Buy to Let mortgage rates have been falling as product choice continues to expand with increased market competition from lenders. However, as we have all found in the current exceptional climate, there are no guarantees that rates will continue to fall, or for how long these record-low deals may be available. Therefore, it would be […]

In this video, I explain why Property Prices and property values are different terminologies and why understanding the distinction between the two is so important. You’re also probably wondering what Ed Sheeran has to do with all of this. Take a watch and find out:

I would be most grateful for any advice because Universal Credit are claiming back the last month’s rent for a tenant who was still residing in the property. It appears she has taken the tenancy of a social housing property and has given this information to UC. We received the last payment on Friday 2nd […]

I am buying a 2-bed house off-plan, which specifies that there will be a bath with an overhead shower in the bathroom (there is no en-suite). I plan to rent the house out for a couple of years and then sell another property to enable me to then use this one as my holiday home […]

I am considering renting my London property to an agency that ‘finds secure homes for councils in London, so families can move out of temporary accommodation or avoid becoming homeless.’ They seem to pay LHA (£1067 per month for my one-bedroom flat) rates which are slightly higher than private-sector market rates (£1025 per month) plus […]

Rents paid by private tenants across the UK are falling in real terms according to official data published today. The figures from the Office for National Statistics show that private rents rose by 1.2% in the 12 months to June of this year. This increase remains well below all measurements of inflation with the smallest […]

This week, on Channel 5’s ‘Evicted! Nightmare Tenants, Slum Landlords’ [Thursday 15 July, 10pm] I expose a rogue letting agent offering “guaranteed rent” and confront the agent at his office in Walthamstow. Landlords Suketu and Minesha Patel own a three-bedroom property in East London. They used a local letting agent to manage their property and signed […]

The choice of products in the Buy-to-Let market is increasing for landlords, property investors and when purchasing in a Limited Company. These latest BTL mortgages include deals with no product fees, deals with free/refunded legal fees, deals with free/refunded valuation fees and cashback deals. I have included an interesting selection of current Limited Company Rates: […]