My 5 year fixed rates came to an end in June of this year, I began nudging my brokers in September last year, and they only started dealing with them in May of this year. One mess after another preceded the properties surveys, which came back valued the same as they were valued when they […]

Hi, any advice would be appreciated. I am selling a flat in a small development. The buyer’s solicitor has asked for proof that the Community Infrastructure Levy was paid. As far as I know, this is payable by the landowner or developer at the start of the build. They are implying, if it has not […]

Responding to new Government funding to tackle Covid rent debts, Chris Norris, Policy Director for the National Residential Landlords Association said: “We welcome the announcement of this funding and urge local authorities to target it at those tenants most struggling with Covid rent debts. “It is great news that those households worst hit by Covid […]

Vulnerable renters struggling due to the impact of the pandemic will be helped by a £65 million support package announced by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities today (23 October 2021). The funding will be given to councils in England to support low-income earners in rent arrears, helping to prevent homelessness and support […]

New support for councils to raise awareness and enforce rules banning landlords renting homes with worst-performing energy efficiency ratings has been announced by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy. Along with a campaign to fund local radio ads, landlord workshops, free property surveys and a thermal imaging drone for inspections. Since April last […]

Tenants, your rents are getting more expensive. It’s getting worse for you unless you see both sides of the story and write to the MP’s. The Green Party wants a 1% tax on All Landlords property. Because they say we’ve had rent increases of 6.6%. They estimate this will cost the average Landlord £1700, per […]

I have been with Birmingham Midshires since 2017 under an interest-only 5 year fixed rate buy to let mortgage. They have recently written to their customers informing them that they have migrated onto Lloyds Bank systems (who own BM) and as a result, changed the dates they calculate mortgage payments which then created for me […]

Today I’m in Henley On Themes for a property investment tour with past course delegate, Satnam Bhuller, as he plans to convert a shop and uppers into serviced accommodation which in turn transforms his pound per square foot from £200 to £600. That’s 3x the original value! Watch this video to find out exactly how […]

Guaranteed rent, or rent to rent, is becoming more and more common in the private rented sector as it offers a lower barrier to entry into the property market for would-be investors and a guaranteed rent with no hassle for landlords. But if the rent to rent arrangement is not carried out diligently, the landlord […]

For several years we have let our house in Mijas, Spain, as a holiday let. On preparing my quarterly tax return for Spain, I find that expenses are no longer allowed, due to Brexit, as we are no longer in Europe as UK residents. Is there any way we can claim these expenses, in our […]

Hi, I waited for over a year for a hearing date to recover possession from my ex-tenant with arrears. Originally the hearing date was last week, but the Judge was ‘busy’ so I’ve been given an adjourned hearing date of August 2022 at Medway County Court! Is this the timeline experienced by others due to […]

A piecemeal approach risks undermining efforts to improve the energy efficiency of the private rented sector, the NRLA is warning. The Heat and Buildings Strategy published today announced that grants of £5,000 will be made available to households to replace gas boilers with systems such as heat pumps. Following discussions with the National Residential Landlords […]

A record level of nearly 7 out of 10 landlords reported rising tenant demand in the third quarter of the year. A survey of over 600 landlords by BVA BDRC, carried out on behalf of Paragon Bank, showed, when excluding those who were unsure, 69% of landlords reported increasing levels of demand, with over a […]

Landlords don’t hold your breath as the Government announces £3.9 billion for decarbonising heat and buildings. Of this only £450m is allocated for grants of £5,000 to replace old gas boilers with new heat pumps. This would equate to 90,000 installations over 3 years for England and Wales. Currently, an air source heat pump costs […]

Rents on detached homes increased twice as fast as the average for all UK properties during Q3 2021, according to The Deposit Protection Service (The DPS). The average rents for detached properties during Q3 2021 rose £38 (3.52%) from £1,079 to £1,117, with rents on detached London properties rising £93 (5.27%) from £1,764 to £1,857 […]

I started possession action due to persistent non-payment of rent in Autumn 2019. Possession was under S21 rather than S8 as advised by my solicitor. I obtained a court order on 27 March 2020 the day after the Govt ban on evictions. The tenants appealed, which was dismissed on 23 April 2020. They however remained […]

The national average asking prices of newly marketed properties have risen by 0.3% (+£1,091) this month to hit a new all-time high of £338,462. Despite the traditional summer holiday lull, fierce competition continues among buyers for the record low number of available properties for sale. That competition is hotter than ever, with buyer demand per […]

Sadly, following a bad experience, one of the sites was converted into a Cannabis Factory. After usual arguments, AGEAS accepted liability and paid for lost damage around say £50k (Insured losses) uninsured cost (£20k). The loss was in Jan, renewal of policy in Feb and policy renewed. However, midterm AGEAS advised that they didn’t wish to […]

The number of buy-to-let acquisitions made by later life landlords nearing retirement age increased by more than half following the re-opening of the housing market, more than any other age bracket, Paragon Bank analysis has revealed. There was a 52% increase in the number of buy-to-let house purchases made by landlords aged between 60 and […]

The Value of Cryptocurrencies has grown exponentially from being worth $16 billion five years ago to currently $2.3 trillion. What if the value of these assets crash? Could it cause a wider contagion in the real-world financial markets? The sub-prime mortgage market that was considered the trigger for the financial crisis in 2008 was only […]

I own three BTL properties on three separate independent developments that have their own Right to Manage Companies in place. I am an active director on each of the companies, and a common Property Management Company is independently managing all three developments. My son has owned and let a property, in one of these developments, […]