The Mortgage Works backs down as the balance of risk has shifted again and The Mortgage Works (TMW) are now committed, once more, to supporting property investors who accept tenants in receipt of housing benefit. Some may say that TMW (owned by Nationwide, which is owned by its members) has a duty to protect the […]

Can you believe these were real headlines in an email that landed in my inbox this weekend? Well my spam folder actually! ….. soon to be renamed my scam folder HAHAHA How can people be so stupid to fall for scams like this? OK, so I’m on another one of my rants, feel free to join in by […]

Hounslow Council is warning rogue letting agents that they could be prosecuted for advertising illegal backyard dwellings. More than 100 letting agents in and around the borough are being contacted by the council, urging them not to market illegal developments built without planning permission or building regulation approval. The message is being sent out to […]

Sarah Peach of London SW11 I am a Landlord Based in the SW11 area of London and support The Good Landlords campaign

Ian MacQueen of Glasgow I have been a landlord for a few years now and I currently rent out two properties in Scotland. I try to provide the best level of service to my tenants and provide them with a higher standard of accommodation. I manage both properties and carry out all repairs by myself. […]

I enlisted an Estate Agency (one of the big expensive international ones) to help me find tenants for a property I have to rent out as I can’t afford to live there myself! Initially I was looking to pay for a Management service, but they were too expensive, so I negotiated a drop in the […]

Nearly half of the apartments at Liverpool’s West Tower have been sold within just weeks of the the new owners re-launch. London-based Delph Property Group, which invests in prestige residential properties, acquired the freehold to the landmark tower from Grant Thornton in December 2012, after its developer Beetham collapsed into administration with just 17 of […]

My letting agent is saying that I cannot request an increase in rent without switching the tenancy back to a fixed period tenancy from a periodic tenancy. Is this true and why? The tenant has been in the property about 3 years with no problems, and the tenancy started on a fixed term; it then […]

A Newbie Investor, who wishes to remain anonymous, has submitted the following and would really appreciate any help and guidance you GOOD Landlords and property people can offer. “I’m 22 and a joiner/carpenter, I’ve done this since leaving school and love it but.  However, recently I was diagnosed with a condition which makes it very hard […]

Currently there are over five million people claiming LHA and this is set to grow over the next 2-3 years as we face a tough economic period and continued austerity measures from the Government.  According to Dssmove.co.uk, letting agents and landlords will miss out if they ignore LHA tenants.

The biggest landlord provider of Tenancy Deposit Protection (TDP) in England & Wales, has announced it is to reduce its fees from the 1st April. The changes, which recognise the rising value of deposits, mean that the scheme continues to provide benefits to its members regardless of the value of the deposit they take.

Ian MacQueen has submitted the following “Readers Questions” article seeking advice on offsetting property income tax. I have been renting out two properties for a number of years now. In the first few years the interest on my mortgages was so high that I could offset this against the earnings with little tax to pay.

The story of the Bank of Ireland decision to increase to the differential (interest rate margin) on  tracker mortgages started on this forum when a professional landlord contacted Property118 within minutes of a letter from Bank of Ireland landing on his door mat. What ensued was outrage from landlords and affected residential mortgage borrowers. The […]

We are working with a range of dedicated Development finance lenders for our readers to get the best criteria terms and conditions available in the current market. The Lenders are all long established and recognise that a good development project carried out by an experienced developer deserves consideration based on individual merit, rather than a […]

Most Landlords do not realise that Agents normally outsource the production of residential property inventories to specialist inventory companies. Ultimately, if you are unhappy with the inventory service, i.e. the quality of the report or price, you may insist on using another firm as it is the Landlord and Tenant who must actually agree the […]

Landlords and letting agents who visit their female tenants need to be ultra careful based on this landlords story of a crazy tenant. The guest author of this post wishes to remain anonymous. About two years ago I went to collect my keys from a female tenant. She wanted me to come and collect my […]

I’m often asked what I would buy if I was starting again today ….. HMO’s would definitely be on my shopping list 🙂 The reason for this is that I can only see that demand for this type of accommodation will grow. Rental yields are already well into double figures for this type of investment. […]

Our accountants have sent the following important tax news to all of their  landlord clients. Please take heed and share this information with all other landlords you know. The End of the Renewals Allowance from 6 April 2013 HMRC have announced that from 6 April 2013 allowances for the replacement of furnishings will no longer […]

Scottish landlords want at least three things from their tenants:- – Rent paid on time – Respect the property – Respect the neighbours There are many ways to find these perfect tenants and to insure against the risks of any problems. The cost of full property management in Scotland has been increasing as agents are […]

Scott Hymas has written in to ask what other landlords do in terms of bank accounts. Scott said  … “I have always used the same bank account for all my finances. What I want to know is what does everyone else do and what is best practice? Should I have one account for my personal […]

James Shanahan of Birmingham We are new (from early 2013) landlords with two houses and plans to grow gradually with a focus in and around Birmingham. Our houses are good quality, safe family homes and we are committed to looking after our tenants and after our houses. We are also committed to keeping our houses […]