Page 540 – Property118

How do we select the best tenants for us?

20th August 2019

We are first time landlords so looking for some advise on selection of tenants. We put up our property in Cardiff for lettings, and went through 6-7 viewings on 1 day. Out of these, there have been 2 parties interested, details below. 1. Two mates currently living in shared accommodation. They live and work locally. […]

The Guild claim Section 21 ban won’t be retrospective

20th August 2019

In an article written by The Guild of Property Professionals on the 16th August (click here to view the article) concerning the proposed Section 21 ban, The Guild claim to have had confirmation from government that it will not be retrospective. Iain McKenzie, CEO of The Guild of Property Professionals said: “What this means is […]

Stamp on 50% inheritance buy out?

19th August 2019

I have been left 50% of a property in a Will with the other half to my brother. We both own our own homes. I want to buy him out and he is happy to gift my wife his half for now to get out of paying any stamp duty (this gets the property into […]

Disrepair Claims Farmers should concern us all

19th August 2019

This post originally appeared on the Nearly Legal website. Disrepair Claim Farming is something I’ve been mulling over for a while, and have sounded off about in conversations, but the ongoing proliferation of housing disrepair claims farmers (and associated solicitors) has pushed me to go public with something of a rant. A justified one, I […]

Rate watch: Five-year fix drops four basis points

19th August 2019

The average five-year fixed rate has fallen by four basis points, dropping from 2.83% to 2.79%, according to data collected by Moneyfacts. Looking at the average two-year fixed rate, it has fallen for the first time since the start of July, dropping to 2.47%. This time last year the average two-year fixed rate was seven […]

Sajid Javid and Boris listened!

19th August 2019

It seems that Sajid Javid and Boris might have been reading Property 118, because they have just announced £600 million input into 50,000 new homes in Essex and Bedfordshire. The Country has been building 150,000 annually and this additional 50,000 represents a third more based on one year! Well that is certainly a step in […]

£600 million of new investment for housing

19th August 2019

Up to 50,000 new homes in high demand areas will be delivered through over £600 million of new investment for housing in England, the Chancellor, Sajid Javid, announced Saturday 17 August. The funding will be made available through the Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF), originally launched by Mr Javid when he was Secretary of State for […]

A Landlord’s Tax Planning Disaster

19th August 2019

This morning I have been reviewing all of the information provided by a client who booked a Tax Planning Consultation with us. The first step is always for my Executive Assistant to complete a thorough Fact Find and to obtain copies of Tax Returns, a property schedule, proof of identity and residence and other relevant […]

Sajid Javid backtracks on Stamp Duty proposal

19th August 2019

The current Chancellor of the Exchequer Sajid Javid has backtracked on proposals made by PM Boris Johnson in his Tory leadership campaign to make Stamp Duty payable by the seller rather than the purchaser of a property. In an interview given to the Times newspaper Javid said: “I’m looking at various options. I’m a low […]

£200 outstanding bill on prepayment/key meters?

19th August 2019

I eventually managed to evict a non-paying tenant using a section 8. However, it now turns out that they left an electric and gas bill of nearly £200 outstanding before they left. How it is possible to run up a bill like that when both meters are prepayment/key meters? I have no idea. The agent […]

Private Landlords are The Best!

19th August 2019

This is an extract from a response that I have written to a derogatory article on the Citizens Advice Policy Blog. My full response article is much longer and I may post it here shortly, but in the meantime: Let’s have a look at the facts: English Housing Survey 2017 2018 Table FA5431 (also in […]

Tax Planning Bodge Jobs – Limited Liability Partnerships “LLP’s”

18th August 2019

This is VITAL INFORMATION that all landlords need to know. Please share. Whilst LLP’s are one of the most popular structures we recommend to landlords, the purpose of this article is to serve as a warning that other firms are mis-selling the benefits of them. If it waddles like a duck, quacks like a duck […]

Tax Planning Bodge Jobs – inter company lending

18th August 2019

Having shared a Tax Planning case study on Facebook recently I have been amazed by the responses which show  how many landlords have bodged their tax planning in regards to lending money from their trading company to their property company. The problem with such a structure is that in the event of the trading company […]

Landlord points that should have been included by Panorama

16th August 2019

Yesterday I made the TV Video for The Good Estate Agent. The points that Landlords felt should have been included in the Panorama Programme were most definitely included in this video which is to be shown, uncut, on You Tube and takes 90 minutes. (see below) Landlords felt that Panorama was deficient in that it […]

New 1 bed apartments in the centre of Woking

15th August 2019

Property Investor Partnership is delighted to be offering 1 bed, build-complete apartments in the centre of Woking, exclusively discounted by 10% off list prices! Prices start from £193,500 rising to £247,500 for a 1 bed apartment, with amazing predicted yields of up to 7.1%. This development is located in the centre of town, and it is just a […]

Selective Licensing costs used for Nottingham Carnival?

15th August 2019

Nottingham Selective Licensing are sponsoring the local Nottingham Carnival this year. I believe this is being paid for out of the money raised from Landlords via the Selective Licensing Scheme. Now the government rules regarding Selective Licensing Schemes is very clear in that they are not allowed to make a profit from the money raised. […]

Update on Errors in English Private Landlords Survey

15th August 2019

I have received this email from the Govt EPLS Survey Dept: Re English Private Landlord Survey and English Housing Survey By email: From: EPLS Date: Tue, 13 Aug 2019 at 11:27 Subject: RE: English Private Landlord Survey and English Housing Survey Many thanks for your email and your interest in the English Private Landlord Survey […]

Scotland’s best

15th August 2019

Landlords of rented properties in Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire are being praised for renting responsibly after SafeDeposits Scotland researched rates of landlords failing to protect tenants’ deposits. The research found only 17 cases relating to properties with AB postcodes of landlords being taken to the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland (Housing and Property Chamber) by their […]

“Factually incorrect, misleading and just plain wrong”

15th August 2019

Claims that landlords’ use of section 21 “no fault” eviction notices is the leading cause of homelessness in the UK are “factually incorrect, misleading and just plain wrong”, says the National Landlords Association (NLA) as they take their case to No. 10. Research by the NLA, using the Government’s own statistics*, found that of 33,020 […]

High Court enforcement for business – Webinar

15th August 2019

In this CPD webinar the Sheriffs Office will cover High Court enforcement for business, this webinar will be useful content for solicitors and credit controllers and for any one who has their own business. Time and date of the webinar: Wed, Sep 11, 2019 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM BST Click Here to register Recover […]

Keeping the pot on the boil

15th August 2019

I make no apology for keeping the “Pot on the Boil” as the topic of how Boris intends to provide four million homes and where the Private Sector Landlord fits into his vision needs to be clearly explained. In 2010 Gordon Brown said we need three million more homes. Since then one million new homes […]