Page 523 – Property118

Is it reasonable to ask for extra security on front door?

11th December 2019

Hello, I am a newbie to the forum and I have a question. A friend of mine has just viewed a ground floor flat yesterday which she really likes. Her only reservation is that she feels the front door is not secure enough. There is only one lock on the door and it is old […]

Ipsos MORI indicates 71% approval for Rent Controls

11th December 2019

Ipsos Mori have conducted a poll on public confidence in different parties’ housing policies and how likely they are to deliver. Click here When asking for public opinion on specific housing policies 71% said they would support introducing rent controls so rents cannot increase faster than inflation. Only 9% were opposed with the rest neutral […]

Yields – Long term let vs holiday let?

11th December 2019

I have inherited some money and am looking at advice about the best investment vehicle for it. I was initially interested in buying a place in North Wales / Anglesey (we live just over an hour from the area) with a view to renting it out as a holiday let with us having the option […]

How do I get away from my awful letting agents?

10th December 2019

I’ve been using a letting agent on a fully managed service for over 2 years now. They’ve never been great – considering the service is fully managed I end up doing an awful lot of stuff myself, having to remind them of certificate renewals, dealing with leaks, chasing them to do their inspections etc. Recently […]

Information Commissioners Office logo

ICO demand – is it a scam?

10th December 2019

Our Ltd company has just received a demand from ICO (Information Commissioner’s Office) claiming that we are not registered with them. That is true…. I have never heard of or from them before. They say our customers, clients and tenants expect us to take our data protection obligations seriously like the many real estate companies […]

Just a Criminal

10th December 2019

George Lindsay aged 55 from Erdington was successfully prosecuted by Birmingham city council and sentenced to pay a fine of £19,970 and only got away without jail time, because the guidelines did not permit the judge the option. Lindsay was found guilty of failing to obtain an HMO licence and 13 infringements of HMO regulations […]

Can ‘Major Works’ be used by freeholder to gain possession?

10th December 2019

The lease says I as a leaseholder am entitled to stay in my flat while major works are carried out. That the only way for the freeholder to buy you out is with a compulsory purchase order. Shelter says that major works cannot be used to gain vacant possession of the tenants flats so they […]

Landlords – no more excuses please

9th December 2019

As I write this blog, I’m on a train down to Devon to do a talk at the ARLA Propertymark Devon Regional Meeting. One of the many hats I wear in my role as Director / Brand Ambassador for Hamilton Fraser Group is overseeing ‘Education’.  For me, this has become one of the most important […]

The Tories’ silence

9th December 2019

Owners of small companies would pay more tax under Labour – up to 45% more – but the Tories haven’t mentioned this. Commenting on the Labour manifesto, John McDonnell said “In terms of income tax, the top 5% will pay a bit more, and actually not a great deal more. 95% of earners will not […]

Third of generation Z think landlords should change their light bulbs

9th December 2019

A study, conducted by broadband and utilities provider Glide, surveyed 1,000 tenants who are either currently renting a property, or have previously, to find out which issues they expect their landlords to be responsible for dealing with. And one in seven (14%) say they’d leave a dispute over how to split bills with flat mates […]

Is Robert Jenrick going soft on Rent Controls?

9th December 2019

Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, Robert Jenrick, gave an interview to the I newspaper detailing conservative plans and policies to tackle the housing crisis. When questioned about the Tory commitment to end Section 21 eviction notices and what was the point if landlord could instead ‘constructively’ evict tenants by increasing rents […]

Tenancy Deposit Scheme award short of costs?

9th December 2019

I have over a £650.00 repair bill but I have only been awarded £65.00 by the Tenancy deposit scheme. My agent advised me that there is nothing I can do. However, I have spoken to TDS who advised me that if the agent sends in certain details. They can advise me how they came to […]

Hand reaching toward a house-shaped safe representing secure rental deposits

Average tenant deposit set to drop for first time since 2015

9th December 2019

Research by Hamilton Fraser’s deposit alternative scheme Ome, has revealed the current cost of the average deposit facing UK’s tenants and how this has changed since 2015. The data shows that so far in 2019, the current tenant is paying an average rental deposit of £1,299, with an estimated 1.5m new deposits paid this year […]

Benefits of a family partnership we had not previously considered

6th December 2019

When my twins turned 18 years old I made them both partners in my property rental business and gifted 1% of the beneficial interest in my properties to each of them. We then registered a Partnership with HMRC, which meant I could allocate profits disproportionately to ownership by granting ‘Partners Salaries to each of my […]

Halifax House Price Index up 2.1%

6th December 2019

The latest Halifax House Price Index report has been released.  House prices in November were 2.1% higher than in the same month a year earlier with the average house price now £234,625. However, on a monthly basis, house prices rose by 1.0% and in the latest quarter (September to November) house prices were 0.2% higher […]

New Tenant Fees laws = new problems for landlords?

6th December 2019

Something has come up and I am a tad worried about it, as I am not sure that I have correctly complied with the new laws. Prior to the new legislation, I always asked the tenant to pay the small fee (only £20) for their reference checks, making it clear that I wouldn’t entertain renting […]

Selective Licencing – 1 room is 10cm too small?

6th December 2019

Hello fellow landlords, I have a small portfolio of properties in Tower Hamlets. They introduced an Additional Licencing scheme throughout the borough in April. I’m just now starting to get the notices back and find that 3 of my 3-bed properties are only licence-able as 2-bed properties. 2 are with rooms 6square meters (51cm squared […]

Tips for Overseas investor partnership?

5th December 2019

Hello everyone. My name’s Riccardo and I’d love to ask a few questions and hopefully get some good guidelines! A little introduction of me (better say us) We are 4 newbies on our early 30′ sharing the dream and goal of running our own business and become entrepreneurs on the property business.We def want to […]

Scotland is home to the highest rental yields

5th December 2019

Lettings management platform, Howsy, has revealed the most appealing markets for UK landlords based on the annual rental return available as a percentage of the property investment cost. Across the UK the current annual rent of £11,436 accounts for 4.9% of the average UK house price (£234,370). But where in the UK sits way above […]

Christmas is not the time to find New Build bargains

5th December 2019

The latest research by new homes specialist, Stone Real Estate, has revealed that the level of new build properties being sold accelerates as we head into December, while sales across the regular market drop a gear in the run-up to Christmas. The research shows that on average over the last five years, the number of […]

2019 Property Investors Awards recognise sector’s most outstanding individuals

4th December 2019

The Property Investors Awards is delighted to announce the winners for 2019. The annual event, celebrating excellence in property investing, included a glittering evening of fine dining and entertainment, with the winners receiving the much coveted awards themselves. Property Investors nationwide celebrated their success throughout the year at the ceremony on Saturday 30 November at the […]