Feedback Requested On Our New Website Layout

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We redesigned the Property118 website to improve Navigation, searching and the general user experience and went live last Friday.

Inevitably there will be a few Gremlins to deal with and we would really appreciate you help in terms of pointing these out to us.

Please leave comments below and rest assured that we take all user feedback very seriously and will do whatever we can to continue to improve your user experience.

Thanks in advance for your help.

All the best

Mark Alexander – founder of Property118.com

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HMRC brings in £29 billion by cracking down on evaders

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Tax Revenue:

The latest HMRC Annual Report and Accounts for 2016-17 shows that HMRC brought in an additional £29 billion by cracking down on a minority of individuals and businesses who try to avoid paying the tax they owe.

Jon Thompson, Chief Executive and Permanent Secretary, HMRC, said:

In the last year, we have generated £28.9 billion of compliance yield, billions of pounds that would have otherwise been lost to the UK through avoidance, evasion and organised crime but will now be spent on public services.

That’s around £1,000 for every household in the UK. We have also strengthened our grip on the minority who deliberately try to cheat the system and continue to pursue those who refuse to pay what they owe, on behalf of the honest majority. The message is clear to those who try to not pay their fair and legal share: there is nowhere left to hide.

Edward Troup, Executive Chair and Permanent Secretary, HMRC, said:

Our ability to collect the money required to fund the UK’s public services is, of course, the ultimate yardstick by which we will be measured, but the public rightly judge us on the quality of service we provide to the overwhelming majority of people in the UK who are honest and pay the right amount of tax on time.

Our continued focus on giving our customers the service level they deserve is paying dividends. There are now quick and simple online tools to allow people to deal with their taxes or tax credits anywhere, anytime and the best phone service in years for those wanting to call us.

See the full HMRC 2016-17 Report here

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Can I Keep a Holding Deposit?

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Holding or Pre-Contract Deposits:

I thought it would be a good time to review the situation with Holding Deposits as they are in the news currently, about limiting the amount of the deposit a landlord or agent can take when a tenant puts down this payment to “hold” the tenancy, while the usual verification checks are carried out.

I personally, as a landlord have always found the holding deposit (an initial retainer paid to the landlord or agent to reserve a tenancy) is a very useful device to commit the tenant to your letting. But is it legal to withhold this advance deposit you take from a prospective tenant if they back out, and also does this deposit fall under the rules for the deposit protection scheme?

In my experience a prospective tenant makes his or her mind up pretty quickly if they are genuinely interested in letting. Then, to close the sale, so to speak, you need commitment. Asking for an initial payment certainly focuses minds and prevents time wasters making excuses like, I’ll go away think about it, or I’ll be back (after I’ve looked at several other properties).

When demand for properties is high, tenants know that good properties let quickly, so it’s usually in their own interest to retain it if they like it, whilst the usual checks are carried and a tenancy agreement is prepared.

However, there is often confusion about the difference between a holding deposit and a “damage” or security deposit, and whether it comes under the rules regarding deposit protection. Also, it often leads to disputes when one or other party backs out for one reason or another and the whole or part of the holding deposit is being retained.

In effect the taking of a holding deposit is a contractual arrangement (a pre-contract or a contract for a contract) which has legal implications. It is very common, and has become custom and practice in the letting industry, that a deposit is taken without any written agreement, and the landlord / agent expects to retain the deposit if the tenant backs out.

This may well work in practice but legally this leaves the landlord on shaky ground as a court would be unlikely to enforce the arrangement if it came to a dispute. Like any other contract, the arrangement should be in writing and each party should be aware of the consequences in advance of not fulfilling their promises.

The holding deposit, if genuinely for that purpose, is not subject to the Deposit Protection Scheme (DPS) rules, though there is some doubt as to whether it would be if taken a long time in advance of the tenancy, for example a student paying 6 months in advance for a letting for the following year.

Most holding deposits are taken for one week or so, and with the new rules this one-week rent amount will be in law) and I would suggest one week’s rent is the appropriate amount, so as there’s 30 days to protect a security deposit, the DPS rules issue does not arise.

A holding deposit agreement (example here – www.landlordzone.co.uk/documents) should be drawn up and signed by both parties, clearly setting out the details of the parties, the property to be let, the date of the start of the tenancy, any admin fees to be charged, and under what circumstances the deposit or part of it will be retained.

This also acts as a receipt for any cash payment changing hands and it will state that the holding deposit is to be applied to the security deposit and be protected in a DPS scheme once the agreement is signed.

Courts will enforce contracts when the terms are considered reasonable. For guidance on this landlords and agents should refer to the “Guidance on unfair terms in tenancy agreements” published by the Office of Fair Trading Sept 2005 (now replaced by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and the Financial Conduct Authority) – http://goo.gl/G9YyQ6

The relevant sections state: Sections 3:37 to 3:42:

A ‘no refund’ term where the tenant is required to make a substantial prepayment before a tenancy agreement is signed, is likely to be unfair… Where cancellation is the fault of the tenant, the landlord or agent is entitled to hold back from any refund of prepayments a reasonable sum to cover either the net costs or the net loss of profit resulting directly from the default… Tenants would be at fault if, for instance, they gave false or misleading information, but not merely because the landlord thought their references were not sufficiently good.”

Put simply, (1) you cannot impose on the consumer (tenant) a penalty which is greater than that on the business (landlord), and (2) any penalty must represent the financial loss to the injured party.

So, if a tenant backs out the landlord / agent should deduct its costs / losses from any holding deposit taken and refund the difference, if any.

A landlord would incur costs if it removes the property from the market and advertising, and carries out checks and paperwork etc., so is entitled to recover these reasonable losses if the prospective tenant backs out.

On the other hand, should the landlord decide not to let the property for any unjustifiable reason, the tenant would be entitled to a full refund, and possibly even some compensation for any reasonable costs / losses sustained. The arrangement must always be even handed for the contract to be enforceable.

Article by Tom Entwistle 

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TDS launches Code of Recommended Practice

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The UK’s longest running provider of tenancy deposit schemes, TDS, today launches its Code of Recommended Practice for deposit protection, continuing its on-going remit of improving standards in the private rented sector.

The code (which builds on existing guidance to members) outlines the standards it expects of its members and covers: protecting deposits and serving prescribed information, terms of business with landlords, tenancy agreements, check-in/check-out reports, and proposing and negotiating deposit deductions.

Designed to dovetail with codes of practice from the Property Ombudsman, ARLA Propertymark and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) the work acts as a practical and convenient resource for everyone in the private rented sector.

Michael Morgan, director of dispute resolution at TDS, said: “Dealing with over 15,000 deposit disputes a year gives us an outstanding insight into what causes tenancy deposit disputes, and what can be done better to avoid them arising.

“With this in mind, TDS has launched the Code of Recommended Practice. It captures, in an easy to understand statement, those ‘best practice’ requirements which we would expect TDS members to follow in their dealings with tenancies and deposits.

Steve Harriott, TDS chief executive added: “I am delighted to commend this Code to all TDS members and their tenants. As part of our commitment to raising standards in the private rented sector, it reflects the very purpose of tenancy deposit protection – to improve practices for dealing with tenancy deposits, and work to reduce disputes.”

TDS’ Code of Recommended Practice and FAQs are available to view on the links below:

http://bit.ly/TDS_booklet

http://bit.ly/TDS_FAQs

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Minimum EPC Rating for Rental Properties after 2018

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Following some confusion and debate about a deferral for the new standards following the MEES* deadline in April 2018, the new government has confirmed that changes to the EPC rules, preventing landlords from renting out homes below rating E, will definitely be introduced from April 2018.

According to a recent communication the Residential Landlords Association (RLA) has had confirmation from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) that there will be no putting off the MEES implementation date for residential lettings.

From next April all residential lettings (new and renewal tenancies) must reach a minimum Energy Performance Certificate rating of E, or it will be an offence to rent them out. All existing tenancies will need to comply by April 2020.

Any landlord with properties with EPC ratings below E (F or G) are now on notice that these must be improved before signing up a new tenant, or renewing an existing tenant’s contract.

It had been suggested that an initial cap of £5,000, which landlords would be expected to spend to bring a property up to standard, would be applied, but until the government publishes more retailed guidance (expected in the autumn) this cannot be confirmed.

It has however been confirmed that listed buildings will be exempt the exact standard, on condition that landlords have carried out work to the extent they are permitted under the planning rules, to make them as energy efficient as possible, and the properties will have to be registered online.

Older properties including stone and brick terraces, cottages and Victorian and Edwardian homes are likely to need the most work to bring them up to standard, as these properties are likely to have solid walls with no cavities, and many will lack double glazing, underfloor and loft insulation.

5 Steps to Improve Energy Efficiency:

1. Loft Insulation

This is one of the easiest, cheapest and most effective measures to start with. The recommended depth of blanket style insulation (glass or mineral wool) for a loft is 250 to 270 mm. If you already have insulation, but it was put in some time ago, it is worth checking the depth, as only a few years ago the recommended depth of insulation was 200mm, and before that it was as low as 100mm.

2. Wall insulation

Uninsulated walls account for up to 33% of the heat lost in a home. Filling cavity walls can save up to a lot per year for the average home, and reduce carbon emissions by a tonne. This doesn’t come cheap as cavity wall insulation cost £500 upwards depending on the size of the property – but there may be grants available to help with the cost. Look under the ‘search for grants and offers’ section on the Energy Saving Trust website, which will tell you more about offers available in your area.

If the property has solid walls, these may need to be insulated either internally, externally or both. There are several methods of doing this, some more expensive than others. To insulate solid walls internally, you can fit insulation boards to the walls. This is otherwise known as dry lining. It involves fixing insulation material to the inner side of a solid external wall, and then covering it with plasterboards or cladding. The thicker the board the more effective it will be in insulating the house, but it can be impractical as it reduces the amount of floor space in a room. Most boards are around 100mm. Alternatively, there are some wall coverings not much thicker than wall paper that will at least provide some insulating qualities much more cheaply.

To insulate solid walls externally, a layer of insulation material needs to be fixed to the walls with adhesive, then covered with cement or cladding. Both will change the appearance of a house externally, so this is less appealing than insulating internally. Rendering the exterior walls can be expensive and care must be taken not to create damp issues.

3. Double Glazing

If there is no double glazing fitted, this will make a big difference to energy efficiency but it is a relatively expensive job. Your initial investment will be fairly high but double-glazed windows will trap more heat inside a home, meaning they will save tenants money in the long term. Double glazing is available in a variety of styles, so it doesn’t have to ruin the look of a home. When you are choosing your windows, look out for the ‘Energy Saving Trust recommended’ logo as this seal of approval is only given to the more efficient windows.

4. Boiler Upgrade

Inefficient boilers could be adding considerably to your tenant’s energy bills? That means that upgrading could be a great way to dramatically reduce a home’s carbon emissions and improve the EPC rating as boilers account for 60% of the carbon dioxide emissions in a gas heated home. Boilers are rated on a scale of A to G, with A being the most energy efficient. If yours is old and at the lower end of the scale then investing in a new one could save dramatically long-term.

5. Cut out Draughts

Close fitting doors and windows will cut down on draughts and cooling airflows, which will dramatically reduce energy loss and the cost of heating for tenants.

Some landlords will consider fitting solar panels to the roof if there is a suitable south-facing aspect, but these are obviously expensive investments initially, which will only pay off over a long period.

With all of these measures to improve your properties, if you use contractors to do the work, take care because there are a lot of fraudsters around in these industries. Try to get recommendations, inspect previous work, consult with satisfied customers and draw up specification contracts before commissioning any work.

*The minimum energy efficiency standard (MEES) was introduced in March 2015 by the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015. The MEES Regulations originate from the Energy Act 2011 which contained the previous coalition government’s package of energy efficiency policies including the Green Deal.

Minimum Energy Standards Fact Sheet from Knight Frank

Energy Assessors – LandlordZONE® Directory

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Investment House Fidelity raises Funds for Real Estate

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Commercial Property Investment Europe:

The Fidelity and its investors in the Eurozone Select Real Estate Fund demonstrate confidence in the commercial property markets of continental of Europe, as it has raised more than €150m (£132m) from European investors thus far in 2017 and is looking to raise more later this year.

Interest is coming from European institutional investors looking for income opportunities, and Fidelity have so far committed to five assets totalling €129m: two DIY retail stores in Germany, and a logistics asset in Greater Paris and in Germany.

The purchase initial yields have been in the range of 6% to 7%, reflecting the fund’s current preference for assets in the secondary non-prime markets of Germany, France and Benelux countries.

Neil Cable, head of real estate at Fidelity International told Property Week:

“Fidelity’s focus on high quality income from institutional grade real estate in the core Eurozone markets has resonated with investors seeking alternatives sources of investment grade income. Appetite has primarily come from France, Ireland,” he said.

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UK House Price Index (HPI) for May 2017

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House Prices:

HM Land Registry Published:18 July 2017.The UK House Price Index shows house price changes for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The May data shows:

• an annual price increase of 4.7% which takes the average property value in the UK to £220,713
• the monthly house prices have risen by 0.5% since April 2017
• the monthly index figure for the UK was 115.8

The data shows:

• in England, an annual price increase of 5% which takes the average property value to £237,662. Monthly house prices have risen by 0.5% since April 2017
• in Wales, an annual price increase of 3.8% which takes the average property value to £149,817. Monthly house prices have risen by 0.6% since April 2017
• in London, an annual price increase of 3% which takes the average property value to £481,345. Monthly house prices have fallen by 0.3% since April 2017

The regional data indicates that:

• the East of England experienced the greatest increase in average property price over the last 12 months, with a movement of 7.5%
• the North East experienced both the greatest monthly price growth with an increase of 1.8% and the lowest annual price growth with a movement of 1.6%
• London and the South East saw the most significant monthly price falls of 0.3% each

The UK Property Transaction statistics showed that in May 2017 the number of seasonally adjusted property transactions completed in the UK with a value of £40,000 or above increased by 13.4% compared to May 2016. The unusually low level of transactions in May 2016 was associated with the introduction of the higher tax rates on additional properties introduced from 1 April 2016. Comparing May 2017 to April 2017, property transactions fell by 3.3%. See the economic statement.

Sales during March 2017, the most up-to-date HM Land Registry figures available, show that:

• the number of completed house sales in England fell by 44.3% to 62,342 compared with 111,901 in March 2016
• the number of completed house sales in Wales fell by 35.5% to 3,451 compared with 5,354 in March 2016
• the number of completed house sales in London fell by 57.5% to 6,941 compared with 16,322 in March 2016
• there were 743 repossession sales in England in March 2017
• there were 76 repossession sales in Wales in March 2017
• the lowest number of repossession sales in England and Wales in March 2017 was in the East of England

See the full report here

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What Confusion in Westminster Means for Leaseholders…

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Long Leasehold:

The UK has had some form of election or referendum every year since 2014. There was the Scottish independence referendum, followed by the general election in 2015, followed the referendum on the European Union, followed by the snap election this June. What’s more, there’s the strong possibility of yet another election before this year is over.

To say that “Westminster is in chaos” is a clichéd and overused expression, but to say that “Westminster is confused” is about right. When Cameron won his majority back in 2015, nobody would have predicted that Theresa May would be leading a minority government with the DUP to negotiate a Brexit deal just two years later.

While all this confusion is going on, an issue which all parties were once passionate about dealing with has taken a backseat: the leasehold trap. In what has been described as “the PPI scandal of the housing market”, many first-time homeowners have found themselves buying leasehold properties with some nasty surprises hidden in the fine print.

What Is The Leasehold Trap?

To understand what the United Kingdom’s “leasehold trap” is and how so many first-time homeowners have been caught up in it, it’s important to understand how the UK’s leaseholds should work. When people buy detached, semi-detached, or terraced houses, they tend to own the freehold. This means that they own the property, as well as the land the property is on, and so they can do what they want with the building — providing the council approves, of course.

However, if you buy a flat from a block of flats, you won’t be given the freehold to the flat. This is because your flat is in a shared building with common areas — such as stairs, hallways, receptions, and lifts — that need to be maintained by someone. As a result, flat owners in the United Kingdom are given a leasehold to their property, rather than a freehold. Jersey is slightly different in that shared buildings are owned by flying freehold or through a company’s structure.

Leaseholds don’t last forever, so you can’t pass your flat onto someone else when you die. However, most leaseholds tend to be over 80 years, so it’s not a serious problem. What’s more, most landlords have no issue with extending a lease. Leaseholds also come with ground rents which need to be paid to cover the maintenance of the rest of the building, and these don’t tend to cost much money.

All of this was how things used to work. However, as the UK housing market has become more and more lucrative, as homes have become more and more scarce, some landlords have been using leaseholds to trap first-time buyers into paying for ever-increasing ground rents on properties which are impossible to sell because the leaseholds are often less than 80 years.

Unaware of these risks, first-time buyers purchase these onerous leaseholds and are then essentially trapped in a flat which they can’t sell but where they also can’t afford to pay the increasing ground rent.

But things can get even worse. Some landlords are even selling new-build houses as leaseholds, rather than freeholds. The longheld assumption is that a house is always freehold property. However, the leasehold trap has meant many first-time buyers are  purchasing houses which they had assumed would be freehold but which are leasehold instead.

How Have People Reacted, and What Can Be Done?

When the story first broke, there was a cross party consensus that something needed to be done about the UK’s leasehold trap. An all-party group made up of 43 MPs and Lords from the Conservatives, Labour, and other parties met up to discuss the issue. A popular solution — backed by MP Justin Madders — is a change in law: ban the sales of houses as leasehold properties.

Yet, without a majority government and with Brexit negotiations taking up all of the column inches in the UK’s newspapers, it will be hard for any single party to push any kind of reform act on leaseholds through Parliament. While leaseholders can take some solace in the cross-party consensus on this issue, as well as Theresa May’s hubris when she expressed interest in working with other parties, the issue remains unresolved, and there is nothing to suggest that this will change anytime soon.

There is some hope, though. The Leasehold Reform Act of 1967 gives leaseholders the legal right to force the freeholder to negotiate a fair deal. The problem with this act is that it leaves far too much wiggle room with its wording. A new or updated reform act will be needed, but at least homeowners have something to work with in the meantime.

Knowing your rights in the Leasehold Reform Act of 1967 while negotiating is one way of ensuring a fair deal after you’ve bought your property. However, to avoid the problem altogether, leasehold conveyancing can go a long way to ensuring that the leaseholds people buy are not complete scams.

In the case of new-build houses, landlords shouldn’t be selling leaseholds at all. In the case of flats, leasehold conveyancing can help people to understand the terms of their leasehold in plain English so as to avoid any nefarious traps.

Yet more good news comes from the Nationwide Building Society. In an altruistic move, the bank is refusing to give landlords mortgages on properties where the ground rent is more than 0.1% of the value of the property. If other banks adopt a similar move, landlords will be forced to reduce the ground rents on their leaseholds or revert back to selling them as freeholds in the case of new-builds.

Then there is Taylor Wimpey, the housebuilders who have been pressured into compensating its homeowners with £130 million after it conceded that leasehold new-builds were so unfair that people deserved their money back. There was no legal reason for Taylor Wimpey to give out that money, but public anger can sometimes be just as powerful a force as the law for making businesses act.

The Leasehold Trap is a Lesson for Landlords, Too

There’s nothing illegal about selling British houses as leaseholds, and there is nothing illegal about putting onerous terms or sky-high ground rents on leasehold flats. However, the public perception of landlords and homebuilders as a result of this scandal is not good. To further abuse the public’s trust by attempting to profit from leasehold traps will make you public enemy number one.

What’s more, if Westminster ever does manage to get its act together, you might soon wind up on the wrong side of the law. Parliament may be in a miserable state at the moment, but there is a cross-party consensus on this issue. When the inevitable reform bill does emerge, it will be the land

Author: Carl Parslow, Solicitor

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Why should I check potential tenants?

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Tenant Checks:

More and more landlords are realising the importance of doing thorough tenant checks. Relying on “gut feel” and trusting in your own judgement is outdated and quite frankly in this modern age, with fraud and serial bad tenants around, quite risky.

Experienced landlords know that you cannot rely on trust anymore, a sceptical approach to any new tenant, unfortunately, is vital if you are to avoid trouble. Most tenants of course are reliable, they pay their rent on time and look after your property, but if you like to gamble with the one in 20 or so that are real trouble for their landlords, then go ahead and had over the keys without a proper screening process – you will almost certainly regret it.

Knowing the trouble, headaches, stress and worry, not to mention the finical loss a bad tenant can bring, it’s well worth taking a bit of extra time and trouble to properly screen, verify and select your tenants.

When you next let your property and consider a potential tenant for your property, you should know exactly who you are dealing with, their identity, their track-record on payments, their behaviour in a previous tenancy if there is one, and their ability to properly manage their finances – a good credit score is essential. Without doing careful checks you will never find out if they are a serial bad tenant with a list of County Court Judgements (CCJs) as long as your arm.

Without the confidence a good screening process gives you, you are gambling with your most prized asset, the rental property you are about to let. Too late when you’ve handed over the keys, the tenancy is in place and it will take you up to a year to take re-possession if it all goes wrong.

Only by doing a thorough assessment can you make an informed decision and know with a high degree of confidence that the tenant is going to pay the rent on time and keep your property in good condition.

Renting out a property will always carry some risk, no matter how many checks you do, 20,000 claims for possession by landlords last year can attest to that, but a thorough referencing process will reduce that risk to a minimum, saving you time, trouble and money later.

TenantVERIFY® has produced a “20 Point Checklist”, a very thorough process you should go through to check out your prospective tenant – you will need to register first, but the document is free to download here: www.tenantverify.co.uk/useful-documents.html

Here is a very brief guide on what you should be checking on:

Before you attempt to let your property, make sure you are aware of the letting regulations (read the appropriate articles here on the LandlordZONE® website) make sure the property meets the necessary safety requirements and that it is fully insured with a landlords’ policy.

Don’t be in too much of a hurry to sign up the first prospect that comes along, there is plenty of demand for rentals but you also need to be aware of the equality and discrimination laws.

Don’t be too squeamish about asking for personal information such as income and national insurance numbers etc., you are doing no more than a bank would do if they were lending money, which in effect is what you are doing when you transfer a legal right in your property to a tenant.

Using a professional tenant referencing company such as www.tenantverify.co.uk that does Right to Rent checks, credit checks, and landlord and employer referencing as part of the process is the only way to do this properly,

What you need to establish right from the start is that the tenant has a genuine reason for renting from you and has the wherewithal to pay the rent – does this prospect have the financial means and resources to pay the rent on time every single month? Is this a trustworthy enough prospect to be entrusted with your valuable investment?

Here are a few key checks that landlords should make:

• Proof of identity – you need to have sight of (original documents) a driving license or passport, including photo and address details, and take a copy for the right-to-rent check. The copies should be kept for 12 months after the tenancy ends. Make sure every adult occupant is checked in this way. Since February 2016 all landlords are required by law to conduct ‘Right to Rent’ checks to ensure tenants have a legal right to be living in the UK.
• Credit reference checks – A credit score from a reputable reference agency will cover a multitude of background financial data and will show-up any false or undeclared addresses, debt repayment arrangements or County Court Judgements.
• Proof of address – you need to see letters which show where the prospective tenant has been living, usually a utility bill, gas, electric or water, HMRC letter, Social Services correspondence etc.
• National insurance number – you need to take a national insurance number which proves that the prospective tenant is legitimately living and working in the UK.
• Employer’s reference – contact the employer (check out the firm on the internet first) by telephone (never a mobile phone) and get verbal and written references from a named and responsible person.
• Previous landlord’s reference – if there is a previous landlord or a letting agent who can verify the prospect’s behaviour in a previous tenancy this is very worthwhile, so use the same process as the employer’s reference. Ownership of the previous landlord’s property can be confirmed with an online Land Registry check.
• Bank statements – you can get a very good idea of the prospects’ ability to budget their spending and their income and financial commitments by asking to see the previous three months’ bank statements.
• Guarantor referencing – if you deem it necessary to have a guarantor in place, for those with a borderline affordability issue (rent should not normally be higher than one-third of the prospect’s income) or letting to a young person or student, the guarantor should be referenced in the same way as a tenant, checking home ownership with the Land Registry.
• Your own assessment – always interview your prospects, asking some pertinent and searching questions, answers to which should be matched to other information you have gathered and also matched for consistency. Question any anomalies and drill down further if necessary.

Finally, if you have any doubts at all, unless these can be satisfied later, don’t go ahead, you will almost certainly regret it.

If you are new to letting property, read this: www.tenantverify.co.uk/20_steps_to_successful_landlording.html

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Agent Steels £100,000 from Norwich Landlord

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Agent Theft:

Norwich Crown Court heard that Stephen Webster, 38, a director of The Letting Business, a property management agency, stole almost £100,000 from a large portfolio landlord whose properties Webster was managing.

Prosecutor John Morgans told the court that the thefts were uncovered after the landlord became suspicious and was not happy with the way his portfolio of around 95 properties was being managed by Webster and his The Letting Business company. After an accountant checked the figures it was found that £97,498 was missing.

After the matter was reported to police, they found that Webster had also pocketed a deposit of £695 from another landlord.

Webster of Norwich Road, Dereham, who had a previous conviction for fraud in 1999 when he worked for Camden council, admitted the thefts, which he used to fuel his drink and drugs habit.

According to the Dareham Times, after being told that Webster had sought help for his drink and drug problem, and paid back the £695 to one landlord and more than £30,000 to the other landlord, the court imposed a 20-month jail sentence, suspended for two years, and ordered him to do 200 hours unpaid work.

The Recorder told Webster he had come close to going to straight to jail.

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