Coronavirus: Newcastle extends time frame for landlords to comply with licensing scheme

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Newcastle City Council says it will extend the period of time for landlords to both apply and comply with a new licensing scheme which starts next week, due to the coronavirus pandemic. A selective licensing scheme and an additional licensing scheme will commence on 6th April, but the council has confirmed that no enforcement action […]

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Government backs tenants on University Credit with extra £800m to help them pay the rent

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Extraordinary challenges of the Coronavirus crisis lead government to sign off significant increases to its Local Housing Allowance rates.

A 500,000-strong surge in the number of
Universal Credit applications last week from tenants to pay their rent during
the crisis has persuaded the government to raise its Local Housing Allowance
(LHA) rates by up to 20% in some areas, it has been claimed.
The raise is good news for landlords, who will be able to raise their rents to catch
up with the new higher LHA rates.
But it’s also good news for tenants, who have been funding an increasing rent gap
over the past four years, during which LHA rates have been frozen despite rents
rising.
Bill Irvine of consultancy UCAdvice.co.uk says the government’s decision, which
on average will see LHA rates increase by between eight and ten percent across
the UK, will inject some £800 million into the system this year.
The extra money, which is a direct response to the coronavirus crisis, cannot
come soon enough for some tenants.
London, in particular, has seen the gap between Universal Credit payments and
local rents widen as the government’s controversial ‘benefits cap’ has been
applied.
LHA rates are based on looking at the cheapest 30% of an area’s private rented
market and then using that to set the local rate, even if tenants are forced by
a lack of affordable stock to rent more expensive homes.
“When we last had a huge economic shock back in 2008 a very similar thing
happened,” says Bill. “The government increased the LHA rates to help tenants
and landlords survive the economic downturn.”

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Final Section 24 relief reductions ‘must be delayed for landlords during crisis’

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Landlords are being asked to help the government offset the social consequences of Coronavirus and should be cut some financial slack, a leading property firm has claimed.

Landlords are facing significant financial
losses as the coronavirus pandemic continues and therefore the government should
delay the imminent loss of tax relief on their mortgage payments.

That’s the claim of property management firm Apropos by DJ Alexander, which
says postponing the final part of the loss of tax relief on buy-to-let mortgage
interest, along with a Capital Gains Tax cut in lettings relief, would give
landlords a financial boost at a time when many are concerned about their
property investments.

Both moves are due to come into force on 6^th
April. However, joint MD David Alexander believes that while a delay wouldn’t have
an impact until landlords complete their tax returns or sell their properties,
it would be a positive sign for the sector.

“Landlords, whose immediate thoughts are the
safety of their tenants, will be concerned about their future in the sector
once this crisis is over,” he says.

“Some may even be considering exiting the
market so any sign that their investment will be made more viable would be
welcome during these difficult times.”

Alexander says he’s been approached by
hundreds of property owners in the last fortnight who are desperate to move
their properties from short term to long term letting.

“The result of this over supply means we may
experience an excess of properties available, resulting in lower rents and
smaller yields.”

He adds: “It is
likely that property values will be hit in the short to medium term, so many
landlords and investors will be unwilling or unable to exit at that point, so
encouragement to remain in the sector remains paramount if we are not to
experience a potential shortage in the private rented sector in the future.”

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Banks have not been pressurising government to freeze the housing market

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Contrary to the FT front-page headline “Banks seek to freeze property market as credit and virus fears hinder moves” (March 27), banks have not been pressurising the government to freeze the housing market. However there is no doubt that with the land registries in Scotland and Northern Ireland currently closed and valuations and viewings unable to take place

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Delay to Energy Efficiency regulations in Scotland

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The Scottish Government has announced that they have taken the decision not to introduce the Energy Efficiency (Domestic Private Rented Property) (Scotland) Regulations 2020, which had been due to come into force on 1 April 2020.

SLE wrote an open letter to Kevin Stewart

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Lodger rights at the current time?

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What are lodgers’ rights at the moment?

Can their landlords give them a weeks notice as usual, and throw them out onto the streets with nowhere to go? The council isn’t even open!

Can someone who knows please clarify this?

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Scots Parliament to pass law preventing evictions

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Eviction Ban:

The Scottish
Parliament is to pass a law that will prevent landlords evicting
tenants for the duration of the coronavirus outbreak.

First Minister
Nicola Sturgeon says that no one will be evicted from their homes
during the coronavirus pandemic as she announces plans for emergency
legislation.

The Scottish
Government is to bring forward a Bill this week which will address
the issue of residential tenant evictions during the crisis. The Bill
when passed into law will increase the period of notice which
landlords must give their tenants up to six months, depending on the
individual circumstances.

Currently, under the Housing (Tenancies) (Scotland) Act 2016 private sector landlords must give between 28-84 day’s notice. Measures brought in under the Coronavirus (Scotland) Bill will be for six months expiring automatically, but with an option for the Scottish Parliament to extend for two further periods of six months.

Ms Sturgeon
indicated that the legislation will be put before the Scottish
Parliament on Tuesday with the intention of passing into law by
Wednesday. It will make “adjustments to criminal procedure and to
other aspects of the justice system”.

Nicola Sturgeon
said:

“Among a number of
other things, that legislation will ensure that no-one can be evicted
from their home during this crisis.

“It will increase
to six months in most cases the minimum period of notice a landlord
must give to a tenant before eviction.

“The legislation
will apply to tenants in both the private sector and the social
housing sector and will provide all tenants with additional security
at what is an immensely difficult time.

Michael Russell the
Scottish Government’s Constitution Secretary says:

“While all tenants
experiencing issues with rent arrears should firstly explain their
circumstances to their landlords, this new emergency legislation will
provide an important backstop to prevent evictions and relieve the
financial pressure people may be facing.

“We are also
encouraging all landlords to be as flexible as possible during this
unprecedented time and would urge them to also seek assistance if
necessary by speaking to their lenders about mortgage breaks.”

The Government is
encouraging all residential landlords in Scotland “to be as
flexible as possible during this unprecedented time and would urge
them to also seek assistance if necessary by speaking to their
lenders about mortgage breaks.”

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Put ourselves in the shoes of these kids?

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Hi. I’m sure this is a problem faced by many student let landlords, caused by the current climate. Many universities with on campus accommodation have released students from their contracts 3 months early as Unis are closed, so a lot of the students moved back home to study online.

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Landlords should get same crisis deal as self-employed

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Leading property firm says landlords have fallen between the cracks as the government has moved to protect both employed and self-employed workers.

Small private landlords should get the same 80% salary guarantee as other workers to help make up for lengthy reductions in rental income, according to a leading asset management firm.

The call follows the recent announcements that employees and the self-employed are to access a scheme that pays 80% of their income up to £2,500 a month for three months, but which misses out landlords who do not fall into either camp.

Spicerhaart
Corporate Sales believes mortgage holidays may not go far enough and is calling
on the Government to extend its salary guarantee to landlords’ rental income
following the news that all evictions will be frozen for at least three months.

“While a blanket freeze on all possessions activity will protect tenants in the short term, it’s bound to lead to an accumulation of arrears that will be all the harder to deal with once the freeze is lifted,” says Managing Director Mark Pilling.

“If there seem to be no consequences to non-payment, some struggling tenants will naturally prioritise other bills, and will be more likely to ignore attempts to communicate with them to manage the situation.

“A three-month ban on possessions activity will result in even longer spells without rental income – possibly six months or more of state-enforced void periods.”

Landlords relying on income from
only a small number of properties will find payment holidays on buy-to-let
mortgages of limited help, says Pilling, and if one or more of these isn’t generating
an income for a long time, it could cause families real financial difficulty.

He adds: “Rental income is subject to income tax – to say nothing of the Stamp Duty premium paid by buy-to-let landlords. It seems only fair that it should be subject to the same Government guarantees as other income affected by the restrictions currently in place.”

Read more about the mortgage holiday.

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Most tenants will pay their rent during crisis, govt advises

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The Ministry of Housing has published new guidance to landlords and tenants contradicting lurid claims last week by lobbying groups that ‘millions’ of tenants will struggle during the crisis.

The Ministry of Housing has played down the likelihood of tenants defaulting on their rent ‘in the millions’ within its latest advice to the private rented sector

It says that ‘in many if not most cases’ the Coronavirus crisis will not affect tenants’ ability to pay rent and that if they do get into trouble, they should reach out as soon as possible to have a conversation with their landlord.

“Landlords are not required to [stop charging tenants rent]. Most tenants will be able to pay rent as normal and should continue to do so, as they will remain liable for the rent during this period.”

The guidance also reminds tenants that rent levels agreed in their tenancy agreements remain legally due and that they should discuss with their landlord if they are in difficulty.

“Tenants should continue to pay rent and abide by all other terms of their tenancy agreement to the best of their ability,” the guidance says.

“As part of our national effort to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak it’s important that landlords offer support and understanding to tenants who may start to see their income fluctuate.”

Payment plans

The Ministry of Housing has also once again underlined its belief that landlords and tenants should discuss payment plans that offer temporary agreement for tenants to pay a lower rent or agree to pay off arrears at a later date.

It has also urged landlords not to launch eviction proceedings without a very good reason, and offered guidance on how to approach the management of properties in which tenants are self-isolating or fighting off the virus.

“If you are not able to gain access to the property due to restrictions in place to tackle COVID-19, or are not able to engage a contractor to carry out the necessary work, we recommend you document your attempts to do so and all correspondence with your tenants,” the ministry says.

We strongly advise landlords not to commence or continue eviction proceedings during this challenging time without a very good reason to do so.

Read the guidance in full.

Read the latest LandlordZONE forum thread about this subject.

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