Jenrick overhauls tenancy agreement to help end pet bans

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Out of the Blue the Housing Secretary, Robert Jenrick, has called on landlords to make it easier for responsible tenants to have well behaved pets in their homes as he announced an overhaul of the model tenancy contracts.

The Press Statement says:

More young people and families than ever before are renting and should be able to enjoy the happiness that a pet can bring to their lives.

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First time landlord tax return confusion?

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I got permission to let my property in 2018 so that I could do some travelling. I’ve now got the not so fun part of sorting out the taxes for 18/19.

First tenant: I let the property July 2018 until Feb 2019.

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Experts predict modest price rises through 2020…

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House prices:

The Conservative election victory may produce better days for the housing market, just like the stock market, which has seen a terrific bounce, but there are doubts this can be sustained.

Reports in the press
encouraged by estate agents are lauding the idea of another property
boom in the wake of this remarkable election result, but some market
analysts are urging caution.

According the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) a so-called “Boris bounce” will likely produce a short term improvement in sentiment and thinks Simon Rubinsohn, its chief economist, “But I don’t think it will amount to a great deal,” he has said.

The Brexit trade
negotiations, far from being over, are just about to begin in
earnest, which could mean continuing uncertainty and a bumpy ride
throughout 2020. Affordability remains a big issue, which RICS says
“means the likelihood of a material pick-up in activity during2020
seems unlikely.”

RICS and Knight
Frank are predicting a modest growth of 2% over 2020, with sales
volumes “broadly flat”, whereas the Halifax and Zoopla are
predicting between l$ and 3% growth. Savills is more cautious at just
l% growth.

There is likely to
be a boost in purchases by overseas buyers ahead of the introduction
of a 3% surcharge on foreign purchases, expected to be announced in
the Spring Budget, however, London growth is expected to trail that
of the rest of the country. There, property prices are still high,
but cheap money is maintaining the capacity to buy.

The rental market
should fair better: growth here is expected to outstrip housing price
growth throughout 20220. RICS sees around 2.5% rental growth being
achieved nationally, with perhaps around 3% in London.

Longer term, Knight
Frank sees increases of 1O% over the next 4 years nationally, and
15% in the Capital. Landlords selling following a period of tax
increases, mortgage lending restrictions on buy-to-let portfolios,
and more onerous letting regulations means that supply is
diminishing.

Some experts are
prediction “runaway rents”, increases because of this reduction
in supply which would put increasing burdens on the young, unless the
new government can introduce reforms quickly.

Longer term Knight
Frank makes bold predictions, with national prices rising by 15% to
2024, and by 18% in prime central London.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Experts predict modest price rises through 2020… | LandlordZONE.

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Mayoral elections, deposits and student lets

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The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, is to put calls for rent controls in the capital at the heart of his campaign for re-election. Speaking to Politico he has said that: “Fundamental change in the private rented sector in London is long overdue. More and more Londoners are renting long-term, including families and older people, and the law […]

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Online self assessment tax return deadline-help for landlords

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The self-assessment tax return deadline is fast approaching, and landlords have until 31st January 2020 to file their self-assessment tax return online. Here, we have put together some useful resources for landlords, including where to find help completing an online self assessment tax return, and we take a look ahead to upcoming tax changes. Self-assessment […]

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£4m to crack down on criminal landlords and agents

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New government press release today: More than 100 councils across England have been awarded a share of over £4 million to crack down on criminal landlords and letting agents, Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick MP has announced.  The majority of landlords provide decent homes for their tenants

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Real cost of borrowing for a deposit

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Research by Hamilton Fraser’s deposit alternative scheme Ome, has looked at the real cost of a tenancy deposit for those that have to borrow the money in order to overcome the initial financial hurdle of renting.

For many

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Funding to tackle criminal landlords is not enough

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Government funding to root out criminal landlords is welcome, but not enough to tackle the scale of the problem. Ministers have today confirmed details of more than 100 local authorities in England which will share £4 million in new funding, as part of what it describes as a “crackdown on criminal landlords”. Whilst the RLA […]

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Court delays are causing misery for landlords

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Leading tenant eviction law firm, Landlord Action, says they have numerous cases where court delays and administrative errors mean evictions are taking longer than ever, pushing landlords into further debt. One case has taken nearly a year and the landlord is still no closer to gaining possession. 

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“Court delays causing misery for landlords” says Landlord Action

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County Courts:

Leading Tenant
Eviction Law Firm, Landlord Action, says they have numerous cases
where court delays and administrative errors mean evictions are
taking longer than ever, pushing landlords into further debt. One
case has taken nearly a year and the landlord is still no closer to
gaining possession. Founder, Paul Shamplina, says investment in the
court system is imperative before the government scraps Section 21.

In a recent Section 21 case handled by Landlord Action, a tenant claimed she did not receive the ‘How to Rent Guide’ so the court set a hearing date of 27th June. The day before, the court cancelled the hearing because the Judge was no longer available. A new hearing date was set for 8th July.  At the hearing, the court listed the matter for a trial with a time estimate of two hours to decide the validity of the Section 21 notice.

Having not received any form of written confirmation from the court, Landlord Action repeatedly chased the court which finally confirmed the trial had been listed for 26th September. At the hearing, the court adjourned the matter again because the tenant said she needed more time to seek legal advice.

The court then relisted the hearing for 12th November, which was once again cancelled the day before as a result of not having any judges available to hear the matter. Landlord Action are now chasing for a new date but the original Section 21 Notice was served back in January 2019 and yet the landlord is no closer to gaining possession.

“We are experiencing cases like this time and time again” says Paul Shamplina. “It’s not only causing extra work for us at Landlord Action, meaning we now have a full-time member of staff whose main responsibility is chasing courts for updates on possession orders, Notice of Issues and bailiff appointments, it is also causing extreme stress for the landlords who are already facing financial hardship as a result of rent arrears.”

In another example, Landlord Action sent a Section 21 N5B claim to court and on 31st July, the court issued the claim and Landlord Action applied for the Possession Order. The Section 21 notice at this point was three and half months into its six-month lifespan.  After constant emails and calls, but no response, a court clerk confirmed a backlog of two to three months’ work.

However, on 18th October an order was eventually received from court saying that the claim had been struck out as the notice was over six months old and invalid. After a lengthy witness statement to court requesting the matter to be restored, the Possession Order was granted – almost 5 months on from sending the Section 21 claim to court.

“The situation is the worst I have experienced in my 28 years in this industry. Cases are being overlooked, delayed or thrown out due to administrative errors and there is little we can do to improve matters for landlords when we are at the mercy of the courts. Remember, many courts were closed due to cost saving by the Ministry of Justice (MOJ).

The number of court cases will double once Section 21 is abolished as landlords will be forced to use Section 8, which require a court hearing. I do not believe the government have a thorough understanding of the implication that scrapping Section 21 will have on the courts, with all the extra administration, recruitment of more judges (which is extremely difficult) and more bailiffs required.

As I have said many
times before, if we do not have a clear message from the MOJ that
there will be sufficient investment in the court system, then
landlords will lose confidence. Combined with all the other changes,
some landlords will feel that the length of time to gain possession
of their property is too great a risk, so may decide to sell up – we
have already seen this at Landlord Action. There must be a call for
evidence on the implementation of a Housing Court” says Paul
Shamplina.

www.LandlordAction.co.uk

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – “Court delays causing misery for landlords” says Landlord Action | LandlordZONE.

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