I have just received a letter from the Council dated 21 November 2018, advising me that a tenant’s Housing Benefit claim has been terminated with effect from 25 April 2014 – Yes, that’s right, 4 years 7 months ago!!!!! How can it possibly take the Council 4 years 7 months to make a decision? Thankfully […]

Two thirds of councils in England and Wales brought no prosecutions against private landlords in 2017/18 according to research by the RLA. Nearly a fifth of councils didn’t even issue any Improvement Notices which order a landlord to carry out certain repairs or improvements to a property. Following the introduction in April 2017 of new […]

This was found by our Property118 member Juliet who said: “This tube line goes through king’s cross, so potentially people from all over the country might see it! It turns out to be an advert for a letting agency! “I have now seen by going to the website, however when I saw the advert yesterday, […]

I was just reading an article about narcissism and noticed some spooky similarities with Shelter. Of course we are used to seeing narcissists defined as individuals who engage in a range of manipulative behaviour which is abusive to others. But studying Shelter’s behaviour, I kept seeing parallels, leading me to ask the question: is Shelter […]

This is a rather sad case study, but it is also a very real situation that anybody reading it could find themselves having to deal with at some point. I am sharing it to demonstrate how effective tax planning can be and to give people a ‘heads up’ as to what is achievable in this […]

When instructing High Court enforcement agents to undertake a residential eviction it is important to understand the main restrictions that are set out by law, so that you as a landlord can manage your expectations. We have put together a handy list so that you can be aware of some of the restrictions which enforcement […]

On 7th November we held a webinar covering residential evictions, below are a selection of questions we were asked along with our answers. What are the grounds a tenant can request the Court to delay eviction? The tenant can apply for the possession order to be set aside, suspended or postponed or for the terms […]

When sourcing suitable investment properties for our clients, we don’t just think about the here and now we look to the future. What does the location have to offer in years to come? Is it a regeneration area? Is investment being ploughed into the infrastructure? Is the location within a high rental demand area and […]

Readers letter to MPs: In my opinion some of you if not all, who are pushing for all new laws like scraping section 21, bringing in 3 year tenancy, all the fines, tenant to be given free solicitors to sue the landlords, etc, etc. You are inciting hatred/stiring up hatred against landlords. Landlords were called “Bastards” by […]

Larry Sweeney of The National Landlords Alliance was on BBC Radio 4 You and Yours lunch time today; Click on the image below Larry starts 9.42 into the programme if you want to fast forward to him. Why didn’t Shelter appear? What are they scared of? Larry telling it as it is regarding Shelter providing […]

The Leeds Building Society has launched 2 new headline catching Buy to Let mortgages that are both two year discounted rates priced to reflect the maximum Loan to Value: 1.14% two year discounted variable followed by 3 years SVR minus 1% currently = 4.99% with a £2499 product fee. Maximum LTV of 60% 1.34% two […]

We recently purchased a property with a declaration of trust drawn up to split the ownership and therefore the profit 90/10 in my wife’s favour. Question is, does the Form 17 need to be completed within 60 days of the Declaration of Trust being signed or the Form 17 itself. The wording on it is […]

I have a rental property held in a SPV (Single Purpose Vehicle Ltd. Co.) with myself and my wife as directors. The rental property held in the SPV has no outstanding mortgage. There is no income currently generated by the rental property as a family member is living there at the moment. Our family home […]

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth wants to rephrase the words ‘ Rogue Landlords’, to the words ‘Bastards Landlords’, as Rogue sounds to soft and cuddly. In my eyes the words should be rephrased to ‘Criminal Landlords’, as they can make tenants lives horrendous, but you need more enforcement and convictions for that word to be officially […]

If/when a viable alternative to the PRS exists landlords will be forced to reduce rents, sit on empty properties or sell up. Meanwhile, piling on more legislation only serves to discourage private investment, the consequences of which are felt most by the people who are not in a position to buy their own home, i.e. […]

Just in case you didn’t know, Property118 has been nominated for an Award for being the Best Property Website For Landlords in 2018. Voting was earlier this year and the recipient of this award goes to the website with the most public votes. We know a lot of Property118 members voted for us so we […]

Hi there. Was wondering if there are any planning experts/lawyers on here who could give me a 2nd opinion please. I have a property which is divided into self contained studios, but I can find no evidence of planning permission. They have been in existence for just over 4 years (which I know is significant) […]

There appears to be a conflict relating to the need for a kitchen fire door in two storey HMO’s. The Lacors Housing Fire Safety Guide, click here to download, and The Licensing and Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation and Other Houses (Miscellaneous Provisions) (England) Regulations 2006 Schedule 3 Article 3 (ix) click here to […]

I was recently considering extension of my BTL with possibility of a 5 room HMO or 4 bedroom Family home. Searched online and registered with localsurveyorsdirect.co.uk to get some quotes and soon architects and planers started contacted me. Had two architects with their builders turn up to meet for advice and measurements of what it […]

With a limited number of people interested in applying for a new mortgage of any type at the moment, product numbers being at all-time highs and competition still pushing interest rates down, mortgage providers seem to be turning to cashback incentives as a way to stand out from the crowd. The latest research from Moneyfacts.co.uk […]

Private landlords have to wait an average of over five months to regain possession of a property when applying to the courts according to new figures from the Ministry of Justice. Where a landlord needs to regain possession urgently because of tenants’ anti-social behaviour and the tenant refuses to leave, landlords have to resort to […]