Monday this week we had a tenant abscond owing rent. Much more than the deposit. (yes, they past references etc.) The (now) ex-tenant point blank refused to give forwarding details. As is their right. It turns out the move was very local. There was no stalking, no hanging around street corners dressed as a detective […]

My daughter is about to exchange on the purchase of a new flat within a converted house. The ground rent is £300 per annum increasing every 10 years by the prevailing inflation rate at the time. I am aware of the scandal surrounding leases with ground rents doubling every 10 years as high lighted by […]

Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association (IMLA) figures show that Buy to Let investment has fallen by 80% since the 2015 Summer Budget Section 24 mortgage interest relief restrictions were announced. IMLA figures indicate net investment in new properties by Buy to Let landlords fell from £25 billion in 2015 to only £5 billion last year. IMLA are […]

I have two buy two lets on my sole name, 1x HMO and 1x single let. With the new tax changes to the property market I am looking add my wife’s name on to both properties to joint tenants to benefit from her tax allowance. I am 40% tax payer and she has no income […]

I need some advice from experienced investors please. I live in Oxford and am looking to buy my first Buy to Let property. I have a deposit of £120k and the normal 3 bed properties in Oxford are priced at around £380k to £425k. My mortgage advisor has advised that from financial point of view […]

Ombudsman Services (OS) has today announced that it will withdraw from complaints handling in the property sector as it launches a major dialogue with consumers to help tackle an ‘imbalance in power’ in the housing sector. The not-for-profit organisation, which is the largest multi-sector Ombudsman in the UK, will work with charities, consumer groups, property […]

Dear Ms Beddoes The Economist’s recent article below has just been brought to my attention.  It is a mixture of misinformation, government propaganda, hyperbole and irrelevance. Struggles of the landed gentry Britain’s buy-to-let boom is coming to an end New regulations and a cooler market are causing landlords to sell up My comments on excepts […]

I think it is highly likely my tenants are breaking the terms of the tenancy agreement I am looking for the best way to prove they are smoking cigarettes or weed in the house. I can smell it, but I doubt that is proof enough. What do you think I should do to get irrefutable […]

I’d like to hear about other landlords experience of remortgaging BTL Properties with the new portfolio landlord regulations bought in in September. How much longer does it take to process? Some lenders appear to be asking for more evidence than others. For some, it appears to be just a property schedule, others want more complex […]

We have just remortgaged on a rental property and our lender requires a condition inserting into the AST which is now on a statutory rolling tenancy. The condition would allow them to collect the rent directly from our tenants in the event that we defaulted on the mortgage payments. Has anyone had experience of this. […]

Dear Ms Beddoes. I am writing with regard to the following article: Struggles of the landed gentry Britain’s buy-to-let boom is coming to an end New regulations and a cooler market are causing landlords to sell up Unfortunately, this is a very ill-informed article. As an academic portfolio landlord (one who runs a property business […]

After many years of letting to ‘regular’ tenants, I’m now thinking about dabbling with holiday letting. I’ve just agreed to buy a modern mid-terrace house in a seaside town in Cornwall, and my own house is also by the sea, in Devon, and quite cute. My plan was to rent out the house in Cornwall […]

I’m keen to hear from other HMO/flatshare landlords on the topic of replacing existing flatmates – specifically, how much do you involve the existing flatmates in choosing the new person? I’ve got a HMO that I let to professionals (I don’t use agents). Tenants are all under 30. Broadly, I trust these tenants not do […]

This is a strange one, which I hope someone might have had dealings with in the past, so here goes. My wife rents a property at the moment, which she purchased back in the early 90’s with her partner at the time. The partner left her and moved out of the property around 18 months […]

Can I ask how many of us landlord readers take out landlord plumbing and drainage policies? I have recently taken one out and they sent me a lengthy policy document regarding what is and what isn’t covered. I called them the other day due to a pipe leaking and they said I wasn’t covered ! […]

Politics.co.uk are reporting the Right to Rent rules forcing landlords to check tenant’s immigration status and rights to remain are facing two independent legal challenges. These rules have been deeply unpopular with landlords and agents who feel the responsibility of the state to monitor our boarders is being passed on to them with corresponding penalties […]

I have a few Grade II buildings and have always worked on the basis that they are exempt from EPCs. However, I have heard that as part of the EPC standard (i.e. must be E or above to let) that comes in in April, all exempt properties need to be registered. So, not knowing if […]

The generally accepted view on the new Private Residential Tenancy in Scotland is that the tenant can end the tenancy by giving 28 days notice at anytime after the the start of the tenancy. Having read the relevant legislation (Private Housing (Tenancies) (Scotland) Act 2016) I am confused. Chapter 2, Section 49 Paragraph 3b (1) […]

I am one of the many non resident BTL landlords in the UK who had an unknown tenant placed in my property by Oliver-Knights with a fraudulent 3 year lease in 2014. See Paul Shamplina’s article Oliver Knights shuts shop leaving landlords and tenants in despair I was forced to honour this contract with all […]

Last week, whilst filming in the town of March, Cambridgeshire, for the fourth series of Channel 5’s ‘Nightmare Tenants Slum Landlords’, I experienced the worst living conditions I had ever seen in my 27 years in this business. Although a unique case, it was also tragic. The tenant living at the property was rent protected […]

I think this could be absolutely massive …. a UK Building Society offering BTL mortgages to Limited Companies with ‘No Personal Guarantees’ and on interest only terms. Granted, the maximum LTV is only 55% and the interest rates are not earth-shatteringly marvelous, but nevertheless I think this could open up a huge market for more […]