Landlords are facing the prospect of stiffer sentencing when charged with the unlawful eviction and unlawful harassment of tenants. The Sentencing Council has unveiled a public consultation that appears to suggest that not enough landlords are currently being imprisoned for the offences. Council chair, Lady Justice May, said: “Housing offences such as unlawful eviction can […]

Scotland’s finance and local government secretary, Shona Robison, has set out the Scottish Budget 2026-27, unveiling housing measures that have drawn criticism from across the property sector. The plans include two new council tax bands for homes valued above £1m, scheduled to take effect from April 2028. Ministers also confirmed the existing Land and Buildings […]

Average advertised rents across Britain ended 2025 up 2.2%, with growth easing as tenant competition cooled and more homes came onto the market. That’s according to new figures from Rightmove which says that outside London, asking rents fell 1.1% in the final quarter of the year. They are down £15 to £1,370 to become the […]

Estate and letting agents are bracing for what many see as a defining year, with costs rising, regulation tightening and margins getting thinner, a survey reveals. The findings from Alto show that nearly two-thirds of agents expect economic uncertainty to be their biggest challenge in the year ahead. Its 2026 Agency Trends Report, based on […]

England’s landlords remain overwhelmingly small-scale – with just under half owning one rental property – and older, an analysis from Propertymark reveals. Reviewing the English Private Landlord Survey 2024 alongside the latest English Housing Survey findings, the organisation said the make-up of the PRS has barely changed. It also found that 38% of landlords hold […]

Tenant demand in the private rented sector weakened again in December, while the flow of new landlord instructions remained sharply negative, the latest RICS survey reveals. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors says tenant demand is at a net balance of -27%, with new instructions from landlords even weaker at -39%. The imbalance is leading […]

Council officers and environmental wardens have stepped up engagement with tenants and landlords in a bid to curb fly-tipping and littering. The move comes after council officers said misunderstandings around bin collection schedules and presentation are behind repeated issues. That’s particularly the case where residents and tenants are unclear about how and when waste should […]

Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook has rejected claims that more regulation will drive small landlords out of the market. During a debate in Parliament, Conservative MP Edward Leigh warned that imposing more regulations on small landlords would cause them to leave the private rented sector, ultimately harming vulnerable people. However, Mr Pennycook said that “not all […]

An estate agency has warned that small landlords may exit the private rented sector, as larger landlords are better able to handle the additional regulatory burdens ahead of the Renters’ Rights Act. A Savills report on the 2026 property market outlook warns that while larger landlords are likely to stay, the sector will continue to […]

Nearly two thirds of landlords expect their next buy to let purchase to be made through a limited company, research reveals. According to Paragon Bank, the long-running shift away from personal ownership is far from over, with younger and newer investors driving the change. The study shows 63% of landlords plan to acquire future rental […]

A tenant group and a homelessness charity have claimed that unaffordable private rents and a chronic lack of social housing are forcing more people into homelessness. The Renters’ Reform Coalition and Crisis warned that increasing numbers of people are being pushed into temporary accommodation or onto the streets as freezing temperatures set in. Government figures […]

Affordability pressures remain despite a slowdown in rental prices, according to a new report. Propertymark’s rent price and salary tracker reveals December saw the usual seasonal slowdown, with some regions such as Yorkshire and the Humber seeing a dramatic drop in rent prices. Propertymark warns without “meaningful increases in the number of homes available to […]

The Scottish government has come under fire for proposals to introduce a tax on housebuilding to help fund the repair of unsafe cladding. Under the plans, developers would pay a levy when building new homes, student accommodation and build-to-rent properties. The Scottish government says the Building Safety Levy (BSL) Bill will force developers to help […]

I am a leaseholder of a top flat of a multi-storey building. A water leak occurred on the flats underneath mine on Sunday, 13/7/2025. The fire brigade was called, and according to my tenant, they advised to keep an eye out for any leaks, as they did not know the source. The fire brigade was […]

Lower mortgage rates could support house price growth this year, according to new research. Data from Moneyfactscompare.co.uk suggests the mortgage market may be at its highest point in five years following Liz Truss’ mini-budget in 2022. With rates easing, borrowing is becoming more affordable, potentially encouraging more buyers to return to the market. Mortgage landscape […]

An organisation claims private renters and social housing tenants are suffering anxiety as damp and mould problems in their homes go unresolved. Research by the Centre for Ageing Better says landlords play a vital role in tackling damp and mould issues, but claims many tenants’ mental well-being is being negatively affected when problems go unresolved. […]

We are the Leeds Landlord Lobby Group, currently organising a Judicial Review into recent regulatory decisions affecting the private rented sector in Leeds concerning selective licensing, which we believe are unlawful, disproportionate, and damaging. This issue does not affect landlords alone. It directly impacts estate agents, increasing compliance burdens, operational and legal risk, and exposure […]

Specialist lender Together has trimmed its headline pricing by up to 25 basis points across a wide range of buy to let products. The cuts span regulated first and second charge variable mortgages, regulated consumer BTL variable lending and unregulated BTL variable deals, each reduced by 0.25%. Bridging finance sees regulated rates now starting from […]

Demand for UK property is soaring, driven by interest from overseas buyers, according to new research. Data by Butterfield mortgages reveals mortgage brokers are seeing interest in UK property from every continent. The news comes after the Chancellor’s Autumn Budget in November last year, which raised tax rates on dividends, property, and savings income by […]

When landlords think of insurance, they often focus on buildings and contents. Yet liability insurance can be even more important. If a tenant, visitor, or tradesperson is injured on your property and alleges negligence, the costs of defence and compensation can be devastating. Liability claims can run into hundreds of thousands of pounds. This article […]

A campaign group has called for a statutory public inquiry into the cladding and building safety crisis. claddingscandal.co.uk has written to the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, Housing Secretary Steve Reed and Building Safety Minister Samantha Dixon, calling on the government to take urgent action to hold those responsible to account and protect affected leaseholders. […]