Property118 is in favour of new Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) proposals where insurance companies may be banned from automatically opting customers in to purchasing extra add-on insurance policies. ‘Opt-out’ selling is the practice of defaulting the consumer into buying an add-on insurance product on top of their main policy, using pre-ticked boxes. Common insurance add-ons […]

I have issued a Section 13 notice to increase the rent on my rental property – tenant has been in situ for over 4 years. In that time I have never increased the rent and have worked with her during difficult times she has had. However, I am now getting £100 per month LESS than […]

I’m on the verge of rapidly expanding my BTL portfolio. I’ve had one on the go since 2011, bought my second in 2013 and am just about to exchange contracts on a 3rd property. However, this time I’ve borrowed some of the deposit.  I’m up in Yorkshire and the returns on 2 bed houses/flats are […]

Landlords up and down the country will (or should) be celebrating the demise of the ridiculous rules we have all had to put up with following the Court of Appeal decision in the Superstrike case.  This is due to the amendments in the Deregulation Act 2015 which received the Royal Assent on 26 March, and […]

Last February I purchased my first buy to let property, a 2 bedroom mid terrace house in Lowestoft. The house had been owned by a lady for the last 58 years and was practically uninhabitable. Nevertheless, The Mortgage Works valued it at £67,500 and agreed to a 75% mortgage with no conditions of repair.  I […]

I have a friend who would like to rent me their buy to let property with a view to me using it as a small HMO.  I purchased the Property118 rent to rent lease agreement and it’s fantastic and I have used it on deals where the owner owns the property outright. However, the latest […]

I bought my lovely flat because it’s on the top floor so there’s no one thundering around on top of us and because it’s quiet so I can sleep during the day, (I work shifts).  Now the freeholders, in a staggering display of greed and profiteering over the well-being of the people who actually live […]

Has a new tenancy been created? If so should the deposit have been re-registered? My tenants were on periodic tenancy following 12 month AST. They served notice via my agent as they had found them a better house. Their last day would have been 15 Nov 2014. However, the new house fell through and as […]

I had previously thought I only needed to provide an EPC to prospective tenants for a property which I was letting.  But Bury MBC have now told me that as a result of new Regulations introduced in 2013, I must now supply an EPC to all my tenants, irrespective of the date in which they […]

I have just completed on my fourth HMO. It comes complete with six tenants all professionals and all paying rent happily. However, no ASTs , only a “Lodger’s Agreement” which is a single sheet of A4, and explicitly states on it that no tenancy has been formed by this document. I am not sure if […]

I have had a tenant living in one of my properties for the last 18 months. The tenant has now vacated without giving the notice period required so will be charged the notice period rent as stated in the AST. The tenant has taken the carpet in the hall and underlay and has completely destroyed […]

I purchased a property nearly 2 years ago as a btl. All has been fine. 9 months ago I had my first service charge bill with arrears from the previous leaseholder. I queried this (obviously) as it was a large sum of money – and was a bit puzzled as I knew that I had […]

According to the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) there have been times when county court bailiffs and High Court Enforcement Officers (HCEOs) have turned up at the same address to evict a tenant, causing confusion over who has jurisdiction. I have to say that in all my years at The Sheriffs Office I have never come […]

My tenant has given his notice after being 3 months in arrears with his rent. However his partner [now ex-partner], who is named as Permitted Occupier, is refusing to leave the property. What rights does this PO have or can I just go and change the locks after the tenants notice expires? Many thanks John

It seems we may have set up a method of working that is incorrect and seek your opinion. We own several properties in husband and wife names, we then set up a Limited Company and lease these to the company for a peppercorn rent. The Limited company then lets the properties and manages them to […]

The National Landlords Association (NLA) is demanding that Liverpool City Council (LCC) postpones the launch of its city-wide licensing scheme – due to go live on 1 April – because its current application process would put every landlord in Liverpool in breach of the law. The NLA claims that the current online application process provided […]

Finally I have managed to secure a property as my first buy to let. I had posted previous discussions which have helped me in making an informed decision. As I have now my offer accepted, I have to send my solicitor details and start with all the formalities. But before I could dive in this […]

My husband is the executor of my late mother’s estate (her only asset was her home), and I was her only beneficiary. My niece has now placed a caveat on the will so probate cannot be granted until the dispute has been resolved. As executor can he rent this property out? We had no intention […]

Property118’s Landlord Insurance experts have expressed concerns over the Government’s plans to allow private tenants to sub-let properties. Included in last week’s Budget small print, under the title “Support for the sharing economy”, was a clause seemingly giving the green light to sub-letting. See what readers think here. The wording said that the government intended […]

At 4:15pm on Friday 17th April I will be presenting a seminar on buying and selling tenanted property at the Property Investor Show 2015 at Excel London (Theatre 7). FREE tickets and guaranteed entrance to my seminar are available for Property118 members, just click THIS LINK and then complete the registration form to get your entrance […]

We have a tenant that has left the family home, he has left his wife & two kids but the wife is not on the tenancy Agreement. We have served a section 21 notice addressed to the tenant on the agreement.  The council have told her they can’t help her with housing if /when she […]