The Times has highlighted a First-Tier tribunal ruling that overturned a decision to charge the additional 3% stamp duty for a second property, because it was not deemed suitable to be used as a dwelling on the date of purchase. HMRC have to date applied the stamp duty surcharge for properties capable of being used […]

We are delighted to offer two amazing opportunities within this high specification refurbishment, in the sought after L25 postcode of Gateacre. We have been able to secure discounted prices exclusively for our investors.  The spacious 2-bed apartment is available for only £170,000 and the beautiful studio apartment for only £90,000.  According to local letting agents, these outstanding […]

Sorry last property now sold We are delighted to offer our investors one final opportunity to invest at this fantastic Newton Road development in St Helens, near Liverpool. Having already sold 6 plots at this popular development, and we have been offered one final 2-bed, build complete property for the amazing price of £117,500 with an anticipated […]

Dear Information Commissioner, DWP are disclosing multiple tenants’ National insurance numbers to me. I am also copying in some of the Universal Credit UC staff that I have been sending the below to, some quite high up people actually, so you can see the UC Director Generals know about this, but have done nothing. The […]

Private landlord, Rob Bloor, has received a payout of £100,000 by Doncaster Council after he threatened to take the council to court over alleged slander. This was reported in the Doncaster Free Press yesterday. Mr Bloor alleges the council had slandered him by making unfounded and disparaging remarks regarding his honesty to people who were […]

Please see this BBC iplayer link for the Inside Out North East episode 25th Febuary. It shows an environmental health officer inspecting problem properties. At 9.14 mins you get the council view acknowledging licensing plans could put rents up! At 11.10 mins Chris Jackson asks landlords to get in touch if they don’t agree with […]

James asked …. I asked some accountants about the directors loan in a company and they said you could gift the directors loan as a potentially exempt transfer for IHT purposes (tick! ?) but that from the moment, you as a director could then not ever have that money repaid to you from the company loan […]

This furnished holiday let investment opportunity is based on an operational holiday resort based in Cornwall – a popular tourist destination for British and overseas holidaymakers alike. As the site is successfully trading, the developer is looking to expand and therefore investors will have the opportunity to purchase the additional homes that will be built […]

It has just been announced that the Government are holding a consultation on the enforcement of possession orders. At present there are two routes to possession; the High Court route and the County Court route, both with different legislative and administrative processes. The consultation is looking at the differences in each approach and how the […]

A new free training course which guides letting agents through the key principles of disputes, has been released by The Deposit Protection Service (The DPS) and the National Approved Letting Scheme (NALS). Deposit Disputes  is an online training module written by The DPS’ Head of Adjudication and is available in The DPS Training Hub section […]

I have an ex tenant, who faced with the prospect of a confirmed court hearing under section 8 ground 8 has voluntarily terminated the tenancy AFTER the hearing date has been set. What are the advantages (if any) of continuing with the court action bearing in mind the additional costs involved to myself such as […]

If you have 15 or more properties do you pay the normal rate of Stamp Duty or is it the higher rate with the 3% surcharge? When the changes regarding Stamp Duty were first being discuss it was mentioned that if you had 15 properties or more you would only pay the basic rate of […]

Just to let you know, Lambeth Council are seeking views from tenants in the PRS in the borough. I’ve pasted an excerpt below and the story can be found if you click here I’m curious to know what additional support and advice the council are contemplating, or is it a route to further regulation via […]

I’m only aware of one bad tenants database and I would like to know whether there are any others? landlordreferencing.co.uk is the bad tenants database I have used in the past, but bad tenants names rarely appear when it is searched. I don’t think enough people know about it, my agents certainly didn’t. The reason I […]

It has recently been reported that according to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), there are 1.67 million homeowners in the UK on some form of interest-only mortgage. That accounts for over 17% of all borrowers. Subsequently, many of these borrowers are at risk of not having enough money to pay off their loans when they […]

A potential tenant has passed referencing, but the referencing process has flagged up a discrepancy in the name on their documents. The applicant has given the name Wilkinson which was used to pass referencing. However the name on the passport and driving licence is showing Wilkison! The birth certificate and payslips do however show the […]

My letting agency are looking to evict me, because I had my friends dog in the property when the owner turned up unannounced on a Sunday evening at 9.30pm, the dog was collected not long after this. I understand it says in my contract that I am not allowed to keep pets in the property. […]

The newly formed National Landlords Alliance has submitted proposals to the ministry of Justice concerning possession procedures. From the moment we set up, we identified the problems being faced by landlords when attempting to recover possession of properties, from delinquent Anti-social Behaviour tenants and rent defaulters. This issue is now under review by the Ministry […]

I sent the following email to the Prime Minister et al and would welcome comments from members: Dear Prime Minister, Leader of HM’s Opposition, Chancellor and Shadow, Housing Ministers and Shadow, Mayor and Hon MPs, As a single HMO-property landlord in Brent, I am writing this email because you, ladies and gentlemen, potentially have influence […]

While the tax and rule changes imposed on the Buy to Let (BTL) sector over the last few years have heightened the pressures felt by landlords and even forced some from the market altogether. Research from Moneyfacts.co.uk shows that the number of BTL products currently available is at a post financial crisis high. Today, landlords […]

ARLA Propertymark is today issuing its January Private Rented Sector (PRS) Report.1 Rent prices: The number of tenants experiencing rent rises increased in January, with 26% of agents witnessing landlords increasing them, compared to 18% in December. This is the highest figure recorded since September, when 31% of tenants were experiencing rises. Year on year, […]