High demand and limited supply continue to push rents higher, with the salary needed to rent in London soaring. Propertymark’s rental price and average salary tracker reveals that London recorded the strongest monthly rental growth, with average rents rising from £2,385 to £2,484 (+4.2% month-on-month). This increase means the representative annual salary needed to secure […]

A landlord has slammed a council’s selective licensing application process as “not fit for purpose”. Paul Cunningham, chair of the Eastern Landlords Association (ELA), told Property118 that the software used to apply for Great Yarmouth Council’s selective licensing scheme is “not user-friendly”, adding to a growing sense of frustration among landlords in the area. The […]

Small landlords can now use a free system to log repair reports and retain evidence showing how each case was handled. Lettie has launched the plan for landlords with up to four properties, a group it says represents around 83% of landlords in England. Tenants can report problems through WhatsApp at any time, while communications […]

The rental market remains constrained by a lack of supply as some landlords choose to leave the sector. The latest RICS UK Residential Survey for July 2026 points to a subdued housing market, alongside continued shortages in rental stock. Landlord instructions remained firmly negative at -27%, with survey feedback indicating that some landlords are reducing […]

There is an uncomfortable statistic buried in the latest insolvency figures which ought to interest anybody wondering why Britain continually promises to build more homes while struggling to get them out of the ground. According to the latest figures from the Insolvency Service, 3,805 construction companies in England and Wales became insolvent in the 12 […]

Letting agents are being warned to watch out for AI-generated tenant complaints as the use of artificial intelligence continues to grow. Propertymark is warning members that while AI presents opportunities for the lettings sector, it also brings several challenges, particularly when dealing with tenant complaints and disputes. The warning comes as the government admits it […]

Rent controls could push more landlords to sell and reduce the number of homes available to tenants, Propertymark has warned as the debate over imposing rent controls gathers pace. The property body argues that limiting prices tackles the effect of the housing shortage rather than the shortage itself. In London, the average rent for a […]

Buy to let mortgage searches slipped in July as landlords continued to weigh borrowing costs, taxation and regulation before committing to new deals. Research firm Twenty7tec said BTL search volumes remained slightly below their level a year earlier, while residential purchase searches also fell 3% compared with June. Across the mortgage market, 1,790,196 searches were […]

The government claims it is taking action to tackle the impact of short-term lets. In response to a written parliamentary question, Labour’s Baroness Taylor of Stevenage said the government would review additional measures aimed at giving councils greater powers to tackle the pressures caused by short-term lets. The news comes as MPs have called on […]

Every reform has winners and losers. In this story, everyone already knows the cast: leaseholders good, freeholders bad, cap the rent — cue the applause. The proposal is simple. Ground rents in existing long residential leases would be capped at £250 a year for 40 years, then fall to a peppercorn. It sounds administrative, but […]

Landlords with properties in three Burnley neighbourhoods could face new or renewed selective licensing requirements under plans now open for consultation. Burnley Council is proposing to redesignate existing schemes in Burnley Wood with Healey Wood and around Leyland Road, while introducing a new licensing area around Lyndhurst Road. Residents, landlords, businesses and community organisations can […]

The following is the risk warning prescribed by the FCA for promotions relating to non-readily realisable securities. Commercial disclosure: I have personally invested in the type of loan note described in this article. Property118 may receive a commercial introduction fee if a reader subsequently invests. Property118 does not provide regulated investment advice. Don’t invest unless […]

A landlord who believed he had found an ideal tenant was later threatened with substantial financial penalties after his property was secretly converted into an unlicensed house in multiple occupation (HMO. The landlord let a four-bedroom house to a man who said he wanted it for himself and members of his family. He appeared organised, […]

Landlords defending a rent increase in a tribunal could strengthen their case with evidence of completed lettings after a tenant’s lower advertised prices failed to overturn a landlord’s proposed rise. The First-tier Tribunal backed Get Living London’s proposed increase from £3,102 to £3,180 a month for a two-bedroom flat in London. The tenant appealed the […]

The Private Rented Sector (PRS) Database must be workable for landlords and letting agents, claims an industry body. Propertymark is warning the government not to duplicate information already available through selective licensing, saying it risks increasing workloads without improving standards. Under the Renters’ Rights Act, all landlords will need to sign up for the database, […]

More than half of the taxpayers required to use Making Tax Digital, including landlords and sole traders, had still not registered as the first quarterly reporting deadline arrived. That’s according to the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), citing HMRC data. It shows that just over 400,000 of around 850,000 affected taxpayers had signed up […]

Hi, I’m an accidental landlord hoping for some advice from more experienced landlords, thank you in advance. We have had a flat rented through a Guaranteed Rent agency – i.e. a Rent to Rent agreement for over a decade. We have no direct agreement with the actual tenants, just an agreement with the agency. However, […]

A low-energy home offering much lower running costs can still leave a new tenant baffled at the front door, one organisation says. Now new guidance says landlords, Build-to-Rent operators and letting agents should support residents from their first enquiry through to later tenancies. The Future Homes Hub and Good Homes Alliance said all-electric properties increasingly […]

Social housing landlords already have strong powers to deal with anti-social behaviour, the government has claimed. In a parliamentary written answer, Labour’s Baroness Taylor of Stevenage said the Crime and Policing Act had strengthened the powers available to police to deal with anti-social behaviour. The news comes as a Labour MP suggested PRS landlords should […]

As the founder of Property118, I have watched our clients spend more than two years living with HMRC allegations, discovery assessments and repeated suggestions that the incorporation arrangements they entered into after taking professional advice were somehow artificial or improper. Many of those clients incorporated because they faced genuine commercial problems involving refinancing, succession, business […]

Every business uses its assets to generate better results.  Manufacturers buy machinery to increase productivity. Retailers buy stock before they can make a sale. Developers invest in infrastructure before they build. Landlords shouldn’t be any different. The equity tied up in a property isn’t simply something to collect when the sale completes. It’s part of […]