NLA Warning on Pets’ Deposits

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The National Landlords Association (NLA) has highlighted an issue which could affect the Government’s proposed new law, The Tenants’ Fees Bill, in the Queen’s Speech, which may effectively ban tenants with pets, or at the very least discourage landlords from accepting tenants with pets. The NLA has pointed out this anomaly which may have a […]

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Declaration of Trust to company Questions

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I’ve been researching the merits of buying a property as an individual, and creating a Declaration of Trust (DoT) to nominate the beneficial owner as my company. What I have determined so far is: • The mortgage lenders take their security against legal ownership ie the individual. • The legal title at HM Land Registry… Read more

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Landlords MUST be ready for changes to EPC rules

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The government has confirmed that changes to EPC rules preventing landlords from renting out inefficient homes WILL be brought in next April. In a high level meeting the department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) confirmed to the RLA there will be no movement on the implementation date – which is now just eight […]

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Gifting property share with hubby but avoiding SDLT

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My husband and I own 6 houses, 4 are in joint names, 2 are in my sole name only. I work part time and my husband is retired so we are relatively low earners. Even with our rental income we are well below the higher level tax bracket. We are looking to buy another property… Read more

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Cardiff landlord fined over £4,000

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Rogue Landlord Fined: Cardiff Magistrates Court has issued a fine of over £4,000 to a landlord who pleaded guilty to eight charges relating to a student property in Albany Road, Cardiff. The five tenants living in the landlords’ flats had complained to Cardiff Council about the condition of the property, and said they feared for […]

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Car Logbook ‘Loan’ as Property Deposit answer to Universal Credit?

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I have mentioned this once or twice in the past, but I’m now giving it serious consideration as the roll out of Universal Credit looms. I’m not looking for alternative suggestions on how to solve the problem, rather just answers as to how this could be achieved. I’m talking about car logbook loans as a… Read more

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RLA work quoted in Commons Library Paper

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The work of the Residential Landlords Association has been name-checked in a House of Commons Library paper on tenancy deposit schemes. The paper, which explains the duty private landlords have to protect deposits and summarises how the schemes operate, talks about the helpful advice available from the association’s website, and the work it undertook in […]

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Landlords attacked for being wealthy fallacy

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The Residential Landlords Association (RLA) have reported on figures obtained from DUP MP Jim Shannon’s parliamentary questions requesting figures on HMRC self assessment tax brackets for the 1.9 million unincorporated individual landlords in the UK. Of these 66% or two thirds of all individual landlords are basic rate tax payers, 30% are high rate tax… Read more

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Confusion over Section 21 notices leaves landlords at unnecessary risk

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Landlords are unwittingly issuing incorrect Section 21 notices, resulting in thousands of pounds being wasted on aborted possession claims and extensive delays in recovering property, a leading solicitor has revealed.

Danielle Hughes from Kirwans law firm said that the confusion has arisen as a result of legislation changes applying to residential Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST) agreements which began on, or have been renewed since, October 1, 2015.

‘Old’ Section 21 notices, which can still be used in relation to AST agreements made up to September 30, 2015, require a minimum standard of proof from landlords that there is a written AST in place, that the deposit is protected and prescribed information relating to the deposit was served on tenants. Licences are also required for HMOs or in Selective Licensing areas.

The ‘new’ Section 21 notices, however, which are currently intended for AST agreements made from October 1, 2015, onwards and won’t apply to older AST’s until late 2018, impose several additional obligations on landlords which must be complied with before the eviction notice can be served.

Now Danielle has voiced her concerns that landlords and agents are serving new Section 21 notices on old AST agreements, putting them at greater risk of having their case thrown out of court.

Danielle said: “There are multiple reasons why it is beneficial to serve the old Section 21 forms on AST agreements made prior to October 1, 2015.

“Section 21 has until recent years been known as the non-fault notice, with the landlord required to provide only basic information for the older form to be valid, while tenants have limited grounds on which to dispute a possession claim.

“However, the new form sets out strict requirements with which the landlord must comply prior to serving the notice, including providing the tenant with an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC), a Gas Safety Certificate, and the government’s ‘How to Rent: The Checklist for Renting in England’ booklet.”

In addition, said Danielle, the new notice has a shorter validity period compared to the older forms, and can only be relied upon for a limited time after service, meaning that the landlord either has to issue a possession claim within four months or serve a new notice.

“A failure to adhere to any of these requirements renders a notice invalid, which could see the case being struck out of court, a minimum 12-week delay to the landlord, loss of the court fee of £355, and a possible order to pay the tenant’s legal costs,” she explained.

The new notice also provides tenants with grounds for defending the claim on the basis that the eviction was retaliatory and came about only because they had raised concerns over repairs that needed undertaking on the property.

“If a tenant has reported a repair that needs undertaking to the local authority and an improvement notice has been served, the landlord may be prevented from recovering possession of the property using Section 21 for over six months under the new regulations,” said Danielle.

“Service of the new notice where it is not needed, therefore, puts the landlord at unnecessary risk of this defence being successfully raised by the tenant in court.”

Danielle is now urging all landlords and agents to take advantage of this crossover period to use the old Section 21 notice where circumstances permit before the regulations come into force across the board.

“I would urge landlords and agents to seek advice and to carefully consider how they approach Section 21 Notices if their AST pre-dates October 2015” she said.

By Danielle Hughes, Solicitor

https://www.kirwanssolicitors.co.uk

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Challenging the myth: Two thirds of landlords pay basic rate tax

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Two thirds of individual landlords are only liable for the basic rate of income tax according to data released by the government. The Residential Landlords Association (RLA) says that it challenges the myth that landlords are wallowing in vast sums of money and so can cope with tax rises. According to the figures obtained in […]

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