A Judge in a Newcastle Upon Tyne has sentenced a man named Karl Bestford to life imprisonment and a minimum term of 22 years for the murder of Gateshead landlord Simon Meech. Described by other tenants as being “the perfect landlord” Mr Meech had visited his flat to discuss rent arrears amounting to hundreds of […]

David Brinsden has a Green Deal problem and has requested advice from Property118 readers as follows: “I have two Victorian flat conversions in Bedford, both let on LHA. Both properties have been visited by a council surveyor with a list of improvements needed. This came as a bit of a surprise! One was easy as the property […]

There are 52 London and Home Counties properties going under the hammer in the McHugh & Co property auction on 25th February 2013 (unless sold earlier). The venue is:  BAFTA, 195 Picadilly, London W1J 9LN – start time 12 noon. For further information please contact:-

The next Lambert Smith Hampton property auction sale will take place on 25th February 2013 at Millenium Hotel, London Mayfair, Grosvenor Square, London W1K 2HP. Please note the new venue. The sale starts at 11am.

We are particularly interested in hearing from Letting Agents who would like to become a Guest Writer for Property118. Many of our readers are new to the business and are looking for good areas to invest into. Often they choose to buy close to home. However, a growing number of Londoners can’t afford to invest […]

Laniora Lay has raised the following Landlords CGT Question:- “I have been renting out my former family home for the last three and a half years. Meanwhile I myself have been living in rented accommodation.   I now wish to move back in to my former home and would like to know how long I need […]

I have a situation and I would like some other landlords thoughts and advice please. I completed the refurbishment of a large property last August and lret the property in October 2012. A few weeks ago I had a late night call from my tenants to say that water was coming  through the ceiling of the […]

We have recently changed letting agent as they were taking weeks to pass the rent on and were difficult to track down. The new letting agent has received the paperwork which shows that the current tenant is under age (17) and that no references were taken out on either her or her boyfriend. The new […]

NEWS from Paragon Mortgages for Professional Landlords Paragon Mortgages has updated its product range for professional landlords. The range includes six two year fixed rate products fixed until May 2015 with rates starting from 4.99%. There are also 12 two year trackers, with maximum LTVs between 65% and 75%, and one five year tracker. Intermediaries […]

Can you offer any advice to Roberta whose tenants have put in a request to change carpets? Roberta wrote in to say:- “This is something that has just arisen – a new tenant moved in earlier this week when I was away for a few days so I haven’t met her yet. I have used a […]

I have a court date coming up in April as I am taking my ex tenant to court over damage caused to the property by condensation. Does anyone have any experience with claiming for condensation as this is my first and hopefully my last court case? The tenant and his wife was with me for […]

Hi Mark (and all Property118 readers who may wish to chip in with an answer too) I am reading lots of really good articles on your website. Great information! Your article on Richard Baker inspired me to target Northampton, thank you for that. I actually live in London and really only have Saturdays to travel […]

Norwich property investment up for auction The freehold ground rent interest in Sentinel House in Norwich’s Surrey Street comes up for sale at the Acuitus commercial property auction on February 14 2013 together with an additional 41 lots. The current ground rent from the 104,000 sq ft office building (pictured left) is £100,000 pa and it […]

Mark Garner, a regular reader of Property118 has very kindly written in to share these thoughts on simple changes the government could make to incentivise the necessary growth of the UK’s Private Rented Sector.   What do you think? To increase the size of the UK PRS the Government need to change their current policy on:- Pensions […]

Auction House Devon and Cornwall are delighted to announce their next property auction will be held at 2pm on Thursday 14th February 2013 at Lewtrehchard Manor, Lewdown, Oakhampton, Devon EX20 4PN Contact details for further information are:-

The following Landlords Story about “Repeat fraudulent Tenants” came from a landlord who wishes to remain anonymous but who would also very much appreciate any advice you can offer. “I let a property to a couple found through agents last year. They have failed to pay any rent since then, save for the deposit and […]

I’ve put together a secret page called “20 Hot Tips for Buy to Let Property Investors”. This page contains links to my favourite articles and blog series’ I have added to Property118 over the last two years. In these articles I share ideas on how property investors can save money, minimise risks and maximise returns.

42 lots are going under the hammer on 21st and 22nd February 2013 in the Auction House Cumbria sale. Lots 1 through 26 are properties in North Cumbria where the auction will take place at carlisle Racecourse, Durdar Road, Carlise CA2 4TS and will start at 2pm on Thursday 21st Feb 2013

I have a single rental property which I bought in 2009. I refurbished it to a good standard and rented it to a young couple using an agent on a tenant find basis. The agent took the deposit. I allowed them to have dogs at the property. The young lady and dogs left, and a new […]

What will happen to your rental properties if you suddenly pass away? For landlords, it is more important than ever to protect both your rental properties and your family’s future.

Shawbrook Bank specialists in commercial and BTL finance have reduced their arrangement fees to 1.70% a saving of 0.80%, and their rates by up to 0.60% across their term product range. Big advantages Shawbrook have over many other commercial lenders is their desire to lend with far less onerous stress testing compared to high street […]