I am in a process of purchasing an ex-council property with aim to rent it out as multi-let. The vendor purchased this property from Council about 14 years ago.  The TP1 document received from solicitor shows the following clause in the Third Schedule “Not carry out any trade business or profession in or upon the […]

After being concerned about Universal Credit “UC”, I have just spent nine weeks going back and forth with housing benefit and the UC helpline What a nightmare!  When you phone the UC the message at beginning is blunt – “if you are not the tenant or their appointed representative we cannot speak to you.” Obviously […]

I have 10 investment properties in London which I started purchasing in 2008. I cannot decide whether I should start selling some as the value has increased very much in the last 18 months. For example, I purchased a 3 bed terraced house in N17 for £230k and have rented it since for £18,460 per […]

I am in the process of buying a ground floor/basement floor flat off a vendor that had bought the property at auction as a single dwelling & turned into 2 flats over the process of a few years. I have subsequently discovered that she (the vendor) obtained retrospective planning permission but never got any building […]

I wonder if anyone has any thoughts or advice on the advantages or disadvantages of installing solar panels onto the houses we rent out. We have a small portfolio of seven properties and are wondering whether it would be worthwhile investing in solar. I’m not sure how it works in terms of the electricity supply […]

Is there a time limit between the exchange of contracts and completion? I understand it is usually a couple of weeks but are there any rules regarding timescale. I have agreed a sale for my house and I intend to move into rented accommodation.  There was no point looking for rental property prior to the […]

My wife and I jointly own a detached house.  We have planning permission to convert the property to two semi’s and intend to sell one of the houses and retain the other as our own residence. What is the best way to structure the sale to enable Capital Gains Tax to be avoided? Thanks Ray […]

Breaking News from Enfield High Court  I just got off the phone and I’m delighted to report that Mr Constantinos Regas was successful in getting permission to proceed to with his Judicial Review at the Royal Courts of Justice this morning. Though not everything went his way, the judge didn’t accept his application in full, however […]

I am currently looking into the possibility of buying a small piece of land (around 15m2) from my next door neighbour. I have spoke to them about the purchase and they are happy in principle and just want to agree a price which suits both of us. The problem I have is how I go […]

I let my property in 2007 for £700 pcm (mates rates).  I didn’t bother to update the rental agreement and only raised rent by £75 in 7 years. When my tenant left due to a flood three months ago the loss of rent insurance kicked in at £700 pcm, even though I eventually rented for […]

I am about to purchase a house for cash and intend to sell it within 6 months. I have a buyer lined up but she needs the renovation works to be done first so that she can access a 85% mortgage. I am hoping to get the work done within a month but am concerned […]

We had a new roof put on and last week but because the roof was not covered properly a good amount of rain caused damage to my flat. Also most of the stud nails popped out and the place resembles as if someone has gone in with a shotgun.  The roofers have accepted liability and […]

The chronic shortage of housing in the UK is irrevocably turning Britain into a nation of renters. Increasing house prices and the inability to save for a deposit are forcing first-time buyers out of the property market and into private rented accommodation, in turn, creating a huge demand for buy-to-let residences across the country. A […]

I am renting out a flat with a mortgage of £100k which has come to the end of it’s latest deal. I have another mortgage on the house I live in which is £200k and it’s worth £350k.  I have been doing some sums and it appears that if I take the £100k mortgage from […]

Would appreciate any help the forum could give me on the following … After searching google and searching your forums I am still none the wiser will regards to self assessment.  My wife and I bought our first rental property in January this year and first rented it out in March, we always knew we […]

A property I like is under offer by sealed bids, my question is; is there just the one chance to submit your offer and the agent takes the highest or do the agents come back to ask for further higher offers e.g. if there are several offers round about the same amount? In other words, […]

I have privately rented my house for 5 years now and landlord my originally told me I could stay here until December 2015 as she wasn’t selling house until then. However, she unexpectedly gave me notice to leave on 1st July with 2 months notice!  I have always paid my rent on time and I’m […]

I did wonder what a council’s view is with (say) universities who actively broker and refer students to local Landlord’s and then the LL then turns out to be an unlicensed HMO, this surely puts the Uni on the hook? So in the spirit of finding out I did some additional HMO research and this […]

Foreign owners of UK residential property face a new capital gains tax (CGT) if they sell after 6 April 2015.  Some property experts believe sales will rise ahead of this date, pushing up the supply of available London property this year. Has anyone seen evidence of this yet? Regards David

I’m looking for a reliable tenant vetting service.  Do you use these services to verify your tenants? What are the best services available? What is your experience with these services? What are the alternative tenant verification processes (bad tenant registers; guarantors; rent in advance? Thanks for your advice! Helen

I put down the reservation fee to buy a property on a re-assignment basis (i.e. I am buying the right to buy from somebody else; not directly from the builder). I do not have any problem in putting down the 10% required to exchange contracts however, at completion (expected to be December 2015) I will […]