Selective Licencing Website Set to Go Viral

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You may well have been following the campaign efforts of Nottingham based landlord Mick Roberts and his monumental efforts to persuade his local Council to scrap their selective licensing scheme.

Well he taken another giant leap forwards by persuading one of his website developer friends to build a campaign website for his

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I don’t think I need to be concerned about GDPR

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I don’t think I need to be concerned about GDPR, here’s why.

I live overseas and whilst my property rental business in the UK is a substantial one, I keep no records either written or electronically in regards to any of my tenants.

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BTL electric safety – Fan over bath?

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I’ve got a major worry at the moment regarding my electric work in my BTL. Essentially I’ve had work carried out in terms of having radiators installed (ex council house) and electrics sorted in terms of adding new plug sockets into the kitchen and installation of smoke alarms.

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Foxtons fined £35,000 over one letting

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Agent Fined:

Foxtons the iconic London agents has been fined £35,000 for safety issues involving a house it was letting. Foxtons had failed in its duty to prove to the local council information that the house it was letting was safe for the tenants in occupation.

Tower Hamlets Council, in east London, had asked Foxtons to provide safety documents for the property, but Foxtons had failed to do so despite warnings over an 18-month period.

A statement issued by Tower Hamlets Council, at Bow magistrates court, claimed that Foxtons had ignored requests to provide certificates showing that the gas, electrical and fire alarm installations had been checked.

Foxtons had also failed to supply details of the landlord and details of the tenants to the council on request.

Bow magistrates heard that although the house was believed to be in good condition, without serious safety issues, Foxtons’ failure to comply with the council’s requests “demonstrated a lack of regard for its duty to comply with legal requirements.�

Deputy mayor of Tower Hamlets, Councillor Sirajul Islam, said:

“This case has sent a very strong message out to landlords and agents.�

In passing sentence it was said by the court that the fines took into account of the size of the company, its profits and the ease with which it could have provided the information to the council.

The offence committed by Foxtons comes under Section 236(1) of the Housing Act 2004: failing to comply with a notice served under Section 235 of the Housing Act 2004. The notice requires a “person with a relevant interest in a property� to provide documents to a council for any purpose connected with its housing enforcement functions.

Foxtons pleaded guilty and in addition to the fine it was ordered to pay £3,603 in costs.

In mitigation Foxtons relied in court that it prided itself on its reputation as one of the county’s largest agents. It said it was “ashamed and remorseful� of the failings that led to the offence.

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Landlord Law conference important update on Gas Certificates

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Last Friday I attended the excellent and very informative Landlord Law Conference, which I thoroughly recommend to anyone. In particular it helped me keep completely up to date with all the latest legislation that has passed and is likely to be passed.

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Electric shower or combi fed shower in a tenanted property?

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To my surprise I find that one of my units is currently without a shower.

So I need to get one fitted.

The question is – should I go for an electric one (given the possibly considerable expense and inconvenience of running a new cable) or would a direct from the (combi) boiler one be a good choice?

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Forum Spotlight- allowing tenants to move in early

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This week’s forum spotlight focuses on a member who is new to being a landlord. She had previously used an agent for their property, but now decided to self-manage. The new tenant had requested moving some furniture into the property BEFORE the agreed start date, as this would help her with the move. If the […]

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Research survey into public awareness

admin    Uncategorized     agents

The Landlords Union intends to carry out research in the form of a survey into the public’s awareness for the causes of Rent increases.

Don’t all shout out at once, because landlords already know the answer:  “It’s the Extra Tax burden of Section 24 along with Licensing and all the other costs that the government loads onto Landlords.”

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Citizens Advice on top of Shelter wade in on Default fees

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Citizens Advice are calling the government to tighten the default fees clause which is part of the Tenant Fees Bill passing through through Parliament.

The Tenant Fees Bill unanimously  passed after a three-hour debate its second reading in the House of Commons.

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Citizens Advice wants to toughen-up fees ban Bill

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Tenant Fees Ban:

The national charity Citizens Advice (CA) has warned that a loophole exists in the Tenant Fees Bill currently passing through Parliament which would allow landlords and agents to still charge tenants fees, for tenancy contract defaults.

Examples of defaults might be fees for such things as late rent payments, replacing keys and locks, and keeping pets without permission. The CA argues that the default clause in the Bill, which does not clearly define what these charges might be, could lead to unscrupulous landlords and letting agents hitting tenants with unfair charges.

The default fees clause was included to allow landlords some flexibility to charge for tenancy breaches, but the CA thinks this is too open ended and does not give sufficient protection to tenants.

The Government has promised it will issue guidance on when and how default fees could be charged, but, argues the CA, that would not be legally enforceable.

The Citizens Advice wants a clearer definition of when a default fee is legitimate inserting into the Bill before it is written into law.

This, the CA says, would also benefit landlords by providing a “clearer steer on the rules� and stop rogue landlords and agents who are prepared to abuse the clause from gaining an advantage.

The CA also thinks that the bill should to be amended to make security deposits capped at four-weeks rent, as opposed to the proposed six-weeks currently written into the Bill.

The CA says that tenants have already paid out £235 million in unfair and uncompetitive fees since the government promised to ban them in November 2016 – a rate of £13 million a month.

Gillian Guy, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice, said:

“The government’s pledge to ban fees will be fundamentally undermined unless the clause on default fees is significantly tightened.

“The loophole leaves tenants vulnerable to rogue landlords and agents looking to continue charging unfair fees.

“The government must tighten this clause and issue a clearer definition of what a default fee is. Leaving this just to guidance risks poor outcomes for both renters and landlords.�

David Cox, chief executive of ARLA Propertymark has said:

“There is clearly overwhelming support in Parliament for the ban, however tonight’s debate makes clear MPs do not understand what is meant by default fees and the implications of reducing tenancy deposits,”

“As the Bill goes to committee stage it is more important than ever that agents go and see their MPs to make the case for why these fees remain vital even after the ban comes into force.â€�

The Citizens Advice service provides a network of local centres providing information and advice and by influencing policymakers. www.citizensadvice.org.uk  

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