Labour needs to re-think its sequestration proposals

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Right-to-buy:

Right-to-buy was a main plank in the Thatcher era property
owning democracy drive, when the Conservatives introduced laws to allow council
tenants to buy their homes at discounted prices.

David Alexander, MD of DJ Alexander, Letting and Estate
Agents in Edinburgh and Glasgow, says, perhaps what’s good for the goose, is
good for the gander? Why shouldn’t the shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer John
McDonnell propose applying the same medicine to private landlords’ properties?

Mr McDonnell of course has suggested it may become Labour policy
to give private tenants the right to buy their rented properties’ at discounted
prices.

“A compulsory ‘right to buy’ in the private rented sector is
just plain loopy,� says Mr Alexander, writing for The Scotsman newspaper. Descend from planet Zog to planet earth and
it becomes clear the consequences would not only destroy confidence in the
housing market as a whole but create havoc in the national economy by
trip-starting a massive flight of capital from the UK,� he says.

In all seriousness Mr McDonnell reiterated the idea following a wider report Where We Stand: Housing for the Many in an interview last weekend.

But there’s a big difference between the government selling
off council houses at below market value when council homes are public property,
and applying the same logic to private property.  The council house building initiative was a massive
Second World War building programme funded by central, not local government, continuing
up until the 1970s, so a Westminster inspired sell off was perfectly logical argues
Mr Alexander.

On the other hand the effective sequestration of private property
goes against every tenet of a free democratic society: over a thousand years of
English common law, the British Constitution built on individual rights set-out
variously in Magna Carta 1215, the Petition of Right 1628, and the 1689 Bill of
Rights, also known as the English Bill of Rights, not to mention the United
Nations Declaration of Human Rights of 1948 and the European Convention on
Human Rights of 1950.

It has long been argued that relative prosperity in the West is a direct result of the rights conveyed in these principles; not so of course in communist countries, largely of the east, where collective ownership, not private ownership of real property was a fundamental part of the Marxist theory and philosophy. 

“Look around the globe: countries where the law respects
property rights have free and fair elections, freedom of speech and consumer
choice; those who do not tend to be authoritarian and struggle economically.

“Requiring landlords to offload their own private assets
(especially at below-market rates) is totally different. It also seems ironic
given that most private landlords have managed to buy into the market through
taxed income amassed by their own efforts rather than inherited wealth; indeed
it is probably fair to say that many of them were brought up in Labour-voting
households.

“So while a compulsory “right to buy� in the private rented
sector is wrong in principle, in practical terms it is just plain loopy.
According to the shadow chancellor, the outcome would be improved quality as
too many landlords spend too little money on their properties to make a “fast
buck�. “In my street now… a third of the houses are right-to-buy, badly
maintained, overcrowded; it’s horrendous,� says Mr Alexander.

“If there is concern about safety and overcrowding in
privately-rented homes then affected tenants would be better served by a future
home secretary making sure the full force of the law is brought down on “rogue�
landlords rather than penalising responsible owners.

“But if a law giving tenants the right to buy is ever
foisted on the private sector there will be few responsible landlords left
because most will have sold up before a compulsory sales regime further
diminishes their properties’ value. Where will that leave Labour voters for
whom renting privately is essential because they can’t raise the deposit on a
mortgage?� askes Mr Alexander.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Labour needs to re-think its sequestration proposals | LandlordZONE.

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Meeting MP about S21 Abolition – What’s the latest status?

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With the ‘B’xit’ word taking up everyone’s attention does anyone know the latest in regard to plans afoot to abolish Section 21?

I have a long pestered for a meeting with my MP tomorrow morning to discuss my issues with this from a Landlord perspective.

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Average Property Scam Costs Victims £107,669

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All property titles (in England and Wales) are published online and scammers can access this information to commit property fraud by forging your identity.

You’re probably thinking that this isn’t likely to happen to you. However, research by ABC Finance has uncovered that there are twice as many property fraud claims than there are prevented cases suggesting that this scam is something that could affect any of us.

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McDonnell’s distorted and dangerous version of Right to Buy

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The think tank Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) has written an article for release describing Labour’s private sector ‘Right to Buy’ policy as dangerous and damaging.

This is superficially similar to a scheme proposed by the Centre for Policy Studies in October 2018

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Lack of Enforcement affecting PRS Standards

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Enforcement:

Landlords are well aware of the blizzard of new regulations
impacting on the private rented sector (PRS), but the National Landlords’ Association
argues, it’s the lack of effective enforcement in many localities that is affecting
the general standards existing in the PRS.

In a London Assembly Housing Committee session, Assembly
Members (AM) were given evidence from panellists, including the NLA, regarding
the standard of privately rented homes in London and the role of local
authorities.

Assembly members present explored the case for extending the
mandatory requirement for the Decent Homes standard to the private rented
sector. This argument was based on the 25 percent of the PRS which was deemed
to be non-decent in the 2018 English Housing Survey, says the NLA.

In the evidence session, the NLA argued that extending the
Decent Homes requirement would not increase standards because local authorities
already had the necessary powers under the Housing Health and Safety Rating
System (HHSRS).

The issue was not the absence of regulation, the NLA argued,
but the lack of ability to enforce existing standards. The NLA acknowledged
that under staffing was an issue and more needed to be done to support local
authorities in retaining qualified personnel.

Estimates suggest, according to the NLA, that the private
rented sector (PRS) provides 935,000 homes in London compared to 800,000
socially rented homes. The Decent Homes standard was introduced in 2000 to
reduce the number of non-decent social rented homes.

These standards require that properties must be:

• Free of Category 1 hazards under the Housing
  Health and Safety Rating System
• In a reasonable state of repair
• Reasonably equipped with modern facilities and
  services
• Able to provide a reasonable degree of thermal
  comfort

To hear more from the London Assembly Housing Committee evidence session, click here to be redirected to a recorded webcast.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Lack of Enforcement affecting PRS Standards | LandlordZONE.

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Nottingham Selective licensing adds £40 pm costs to tenants

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Nottingham City Council 5-year Selective Licensing period

A typical family home, under this scheme will see rents impacted by circa £40.00 pcm over a 5-year period. (See table) We have not accounted for other pressures such as landlord tax changes

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Tenants’ Fee Ban implemented in Wales

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Tenants’ Fee Ban:

Following on from the tenants’ fee ban which came into force
in England 1^st June 2019, a similar fee ban came into force in Wales
on the 1st September 2019. It applies to the new assured shorthold tenancies in
Wales.

The Welsh Government has published a detailed guide – Renting Homes (Fees Etc.) (Wales) Act 2019: Guidance for landlords and agents – though it points out that the publication is for guidance only and is not a definitive statement of the law.

However, Robin Stewart of Anthony Gold solicitors points out
that the guidance contains some serious errors and omissions, in particular whether
statutory periodic tenancies arising at the end of a fixed term after August
2019 would come within the scope of the Welsh fee ban. This issue and others require
further urgent clarification.

In Wales the fee ban applies to new assured shorthold
tenancies only, not licenses as is the case in England. The new rules will
apply to tenancies granted from 1 September 2019 and to holding deposits taken
from that date.

Excluded or “permitted payments� set-out in Schedule 1 of
the Renting Homes (Fees Etc.) (Wales) Act
2019:

1. Rent
2. Security
   deposit
3. Holding
   deposit
4. Payments
   in default
5. Payments
   in respect of council tax
6. Payments
   in respect of utilities
7. Payments
   in respect of a television licence
8. Payments
   in respect of communication services.

There appears to be some confusion over what landlords can
or cannot charge with respect to tenancy amendments and changes of sharers in
joint tenancies.

Mr Stewart thinks that the, “…confusion [cause by errors in
the guidance] is only going to result in difficulty for landlords, tenants and
agents to keep track of their legal rights and obligations during what is
already a time of significant legal upheaval for the Welsh private rented
sector.�

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Tenants’ Fee Ban implemented in Wales | LandlordZONE.

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Right to Rent: government appeal date set

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The government’s appeal against a damning ruling by the High Court that the Right to Rent breaches human rights law will be heard in January. Following a Judicial Review of the policy secured by the JCWI and supported by the RLA, the presiding judge concluded that discrimination by landlords was taking place â€œbecause of the scheme.â€� In his […]

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Block insurance leak excess £10,000!

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In a conversion, containing over 100 apartments, there has been a spate of insurance claims relating to water leakage. This has resulted in increased premiums, and more specifically, a £10,000 excess for water damage claims, which the managing agent passes on to the individual leaseholder for the apartment responsible for the leak.

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Who needs a guarantor agreement?

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Legal opinion appears to be that it is difficult to create a guarantor’s agreement that can be enforced. Apparent problems include:

• It must be executed as a Deed.
• LL must advise Guarantor to take legal advice before signing.

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