True cost of DIY!

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Having a go at home improvements may be more costly than we think, according to a recent study by construction supplier Burton Roofing. 

 

By analysing monthly housing data from the Office of National Statistics and talking to 1,000 UK homeowners, 

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First signs of industry consolidating ahead of the tenant fees ban

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ARLA Propertymark is today issuing its March Private Rented Sector.  David Cox, ARLA Propertymark Chief Executive, said: “Whilst its really positive that the number of properties available per branch hit a record high last month, this may be the first signs of the industry consolidating ahead of the tenant fees ban as agents either sell-up or merge.

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Work and Pensions Committee ‘No DSS’ discrimination evidence heard

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The All Parliamentary Work and Pensions Committee has widened its inquiries to take in other potential forms of direct or indirect housing discrimination against benefit recipients It will now look at the “no DSS� ads run by letting agents or the tech companies that promote them

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Chimney exhaust ownership

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Hello everyone, I have got a terraced house and we need to replace chimney at the top which is moving a bit due to weather.

This chimney is in between my and neighbour’s house. The question is how do I find out who owns the chimney as I want to split the cost as it can cost close to 800 pounds to repair

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Landlord harassing tenants fined £2,000

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Harassment:

A landlord has been fined almost £2,000 after he locked the tenants’
bathroom and cut off the gas and electricity supplies because the tenants were
in rent arrears.

The HMO landlord 66 years old Amrik Manku, tried to extract
the arrears by withholding the services to his tenants, and act of harassment
in contravention of the Protection from Eviction Act 1977, a criminal offence.

One of Manku’s five tenants reported issues to Brighton and
Hove City Council in November 2018 about the landlord not having an HMO licence
for the house in Ashurst Road, Moulsecoomb. When Manku subsequently received a letter
from the Council informing him that he was committing a criminal offence, he
started taking revenge on his tenants.

Prosecuting for the city council at Brighton Magistrates
Court yesterday, and reported by Brighton
& Hove News, Len Batten said:

“The officer visited the property on 17 January … and was
told that Manku and his son had been aggressive.

“Keypad locks had been fitted to the electricity cupboard
and the bathroom to stop the tenants using them until they had cleared their
rent arrears.

“The tenants had removed the locks by the time of the visit.

“On 31 January, a member of the public, Jenny, who lived in
the adjoining property called and said the previous evening the defendant and
his son had removed parts of the boiler, electricity box and front door lock,
leaving the property insecure.�

A further visit by Council housing officers found that the
house was without a usable gas and electricity supply.

Manku, who is reported to live in a £1m property in Amesbury
Crescent, did have an HMO licence for the two-storey house, but it had expired
in November 2017 and was not renewed. He blamed his daughter, a legal executive,
for the oversight as she had been responsible for the paperwork on the flat and
had since moved abroad.

Pleading guilty to both charges of having control of an
unlicensed HMO, and withdrawing or withholding services (harassment) Manku told
the court:

“Five young men who set upon me, a 66-year-old man, what
they have done is aggravated the situation and I can only apologise to the
court for my behaviour.

“The tenants also changed the locks, once when I was abroad
at the beginning of November and secondly in January. I have a right to inspect
the property and any attempt to update the property was not possible because I
could not get access.

“They actually barricaded the back door, denying me access
and that’s unlawful on their part.�

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Landlord harassing tenants fined £2,000 | LandlordZONE.

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Landlord Incorporation Presentation

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Until now, the recorded footage of this packed out meeting at the Baker Street Property Meet has never been officially released, but it is still as valid today as it was when it was recorded live in May 2017.

Grab a coffee and and click below to enjoy the video.

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Labour would end Permitted Development

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Labour has accussed permitted development rules, which allow office blocks to be converted into residential housing without planning permission, of giving corporations permission to escape their responsibilities to build good quality, safe, affordable housing. Instead of adding to the housing stock slum housing and rabbit hutch flats are being created.

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Leak left – Grounds for redress against agent?

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About 7 weeks ago, after evicting a non-paying tenant, the agent notified me that there was a slight leak under the sink. I asked them to arrange to get it fixed.

Now, 7 weeks later, I’m told that I need new pipe work

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Foxtons denies misleading couple about flat they rented

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New Letting:

In a practice known as “bait-and-switch� a London couple claim they were show a better flat than the one they ended up with.

As reported in the Sunday
Times, the couple were seeking to rent a flat in Brixton but were signed up
to a different property than the one they viewed. They only realised the error
when they went to try the keys in the door of the flat they expected to occupy,
only to discover the one they had paid for was one floor below.

Foxtons has strenuously denied that they were using the “bait-and-switch�
tactic, one known to have been used in a difficult market, as now, showing a
more desirable property to attract tenants, then substituting it for a lower
grade one.

Tenants Naomi Trent and her husband Anthony Regan claim they
were shown the £1,400 a month two bedroom property in Brixton agents Foxtons, but
after signing a 12 month tenancy agreement and paying £3,500, including the £500
Foxtons fee, the couple were given the keys to a different one.

They discovered the keys did not fit the flat they expected,
but they did fit the one downstairs which was a one-bed flat and poor value for
the £1,400 per month they had paid. They told the Sunday Times:

“The downstairs flat was not what we were looking for at all
and it wasn’t a good deal at £1,400 a month�.

“The agent started badgering us with calls and emails saying
we would lose the flat if we didn’t sign the lease straight away. It all felt
very urgent. … Everything was done through an online portal so we didn’t have
the opportunity to ask questions. It was a standard rental agreement with no
details of how many bedrooms or anything else about the property� they said.

However, Foxtons said the agent was a new staff member and blamed
human error for the mistake.

Foxtons has since returned the couple’s £500 fee and has
given them compensation of £1,500 which they have used as a despot for another flat.

The agent told the Sunday
Times:

“We would like to take this opportunity to again apologise
to Ms Trent and Mr Regan. They were shown around a flat by a new member of
staff.

“The cost, tenancy agreement and paperwork for the one-bed property
the couple initially inquired about were all correct. But, as a result of human
error on our part, the [viewing] was mistakenly for the wrong property.�

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Foxtons denies misleading couple about flat they rented | LandlordZONE.

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The End of Section 21 – YOUR questions answered in this lunchtime webinar

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The government have announced that they intend to remove landlords right to use the no fault ground for eviction in section 21 of the Housing Act 1988.

But where does that leave people now?  For example:

1.

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