Adapt and survive? No adapt and Thrive!

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We’re about to enter our sixth week of lockdown in the UK. Don’t worry this is not a blog about the trials and tribulations of having to deal with everyone working from home. I’m not going to give anyone any tips about how to make the most of the situation as that really is not my speciality. I struggled like most others to begin with but after getting used to the situation I’ve been pleasantly surprised at how adaptable everyone has been. On a personal note I’ve really enjoyed being able to spend quality time with my six year old boy. For the sanity of my wife who isn’t working at the moment I’ve taken on the responsibility for teaching geography and history so she gets a break.

What this blog is about is how I see the legal landscape in the property industry when things return to normal. For those who do not know I am a qualified solicitor, legal associate director for Hamilton Fraser and have responsibility for the delivery of dispute resolution for mydeposits, the Property Redress Scheme and I am compliance officer for legal practice at Landlord Action. These responsibilities give me a direct insight into the delivery of different legal services to the property industry.

mydeposits is one of three government authorised tenancy deposit schemes across the UK (and Jersey for just mydeposits). Operating since 2007, we deal now with over 10,000 tenancy deposit disputes a year and around 7,000 adjudications. The Property Redress Scheme is one of two government authorised consumer redress schemes for the property industry. We now have 14,000 offices registered with us and deal with around 150 escalated complaints against our members a month. Landlord Action was purchased by Hamilton Fraser in June 2017 with me taking over the operations and Paul Shamplina taking a role as group brand ambassador. We have a rolling live case load of around 700 possession and debt recovery matters at any one time. These cases are for clients based all over England and Wales so over a year we will issue at least one claim in every county court in the country.

We have been heavily involved in all government consultations related to legal matters affecting the property industry. The most recent involvement we’ve had is advising the government on the implications of the removal of s.21 as an option for repossession of tenanted property. Directly linked to this is the potential for dedicated housing courts.

We had three members of the government visit our offices last year to see first had the challenges that landlords face dealing with the current court system. We also provided them with evidence to show why landlords use the s.21 process. Often there will be rent arrears, anti-social behaviour or the tenant simply wants to be rehoused by the council. This is not the kind of information that is ever seen in the mainstream press who prefer to criticise landlords rather than appreciate the challenges they can face.

From this meeting and also from seeing where the mood appeared to be heading we started looking at how we provide legal services to our clients. With the recent decision to stop all current possession matters until late June at the earliest we realised we had to do something quickly.

When we started the Property Redress Scheme we had already decided we were going to focus on achieving negotiated settlements with consumers and our agent members. As our 2019 annual report will show we now resolve just over 40% of all escalated complaints this way. With mydeposits the thinking had always been it was more efficient to push the matter through to adjudication. That traditional model has now changed and we’ve retrained our case assessors to now attempt what we call ‘early resolution’ in any cases they can. The early results have been very promising.

This leads me to the next natural step for both Hamilton Fraser and the property industry. That is the introduction of a dedicated tenancy mediation service. I am delighted to say that with a lot of drive, determination and a great team effort across the Hamilton Fraser family we have been able to launch the Property Redress Scheme Tenancy Mediation Service.

This service is designed to assist landlords and tenants come to agreements about any disputes that have occurred during a tenancy. We have trained and experienced professionals who will help both parties understand their positions and try to agree a sensible resolution to those issues. We have tried to use the best of both worlds so it is a Property Redress Scheme service but we have borrowed the Landlord Action three step, fixed fee approach.

There is going to be a huge backlog in the courts when they reopen. There are also going to be many tenants who find themselves in rent arrears through no real fault of their own. Landlords and tenants talking to each other and finding a flexible approach is going to be more important than ever before. The pending introduction of a pre action protocol for possession claims is also going to mean parties should discuss matters and attempt alternative methods before issuing a court claim.

Through Landlord Action we have also introduced a commercial lease mediation service following a similar process but as that is more legal we will use experienced Landlord Action solicitors.

We are here to help our current and hopefully new clients navigate these choppy waters.

While I’m discussing the changing face of dispute resolution in the property industry I would also like to mention that having initially sat back and observed the situation, Hamilton Fraser have launched a fantastic, new deposit alternative scheme. It is called Ome, benefits from our latest technology and I believe deals with concerns previously raised about deposit alternative schemes. It is based on a Netflix style subscription for tenants paying a very low monthly amount at the same time giving the landlord the same five weeks of rent security of a deposit.

It may not feel like it but this is an exciting time for the private rented sector. Demand is likely to be higher than ever once lockdown ends. Those who innovate and look to the future are likely to be those who benefit the most. In the meantime please follow the latest guidance, stay in and stay safe. I’ve got learning about hot and cold climates and Roman Emperors on the timetable today.

Veni Vide Vici!

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Adapt and survive? No adapt and Thrive! | LandlordZONE.

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Here’s why nurses need free accommodation near hospitals during (and after!) Coronavirus

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Have you ever wandered why there is so much fuss made about providing free accommodation for NHS staff near hospitals? Here’s the rental data to show why landlords should help.

The answer is highlighted by research
published today that shows how nurses in London must fork out 87% of their
monthly net salary on rent and more than a month’s wages on a deposit.

Rental deposit scheme Ome set out to
highlight the problem faced by hard-working frontline staff in the capital and found
that the average rent of £1,905 around London hospitals is 124% higher than the
national average.

It
looked at the average house price for each hospital postcode, the average cost
of renting each month, the rental deposit required and how much of their salary
an average nurse needs to pay out.

When
it comes to renting, the average monthly cost around hospital sites in England
comes in at £891 – 5% higher than the average across England and accounts for
47% of the average nurse’s salary. 

It suggests
that the average nurse needs to find £1,114 upfront for a rental deposit,
compared to an average of £1,065 across England as a whole. This deposit cost
alone accounts for 59% of the average nurse’s monthly wage.  

Ome co-founder Matthew Hooker says: “We wanted to highlight the high cost of securing a place to live close to their place of work and the importance of providing temporary accommodation while they fight to keep the nation safe.

“This
opens a wider conversation surrounding the affordability of housing throughout
the UK and the current impact this is having on key workers during the COVID-19
pandemic.

“The heroic efforts made by the nation’s nurses to keep us safe must be matched by the nation’s efforts to keep an affordable roof over their heads and mitigate any worries they may have surrounding housing costs.” 

Read one one landlord who recently offered NHS staff free accommodation.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Here’s why nurses need free accommodation near hospitals during (and after!) Coronavirus | LandlordZONE.

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Call of the Week: Tenant Fees Ban and deposits

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This week our advice team were able to help one of our members with a question relating to tenancy deposits and the end of the transitional period of the Tenant Fees Act 2019 in England. The Tenant Fees Act, which came into force on June 1st 2019, introduced a deposit cap of 5 weeks’ rent […]

The post Call of the Week: Tenant Fees Ban and deposits appeared first on RLA Campaigns and News Centre.

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‘Coronavirus evictions ban has given my fraudulent tenant another four months rent free’

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Thousands of landlords have been left in limbo by the evictions ban including Cheryl Jervis who was due to evict her tenant on the evening the ban was announced, and has been taunted by him since over his ‘rent free’ gift from the government.

LandlordZONE last week highlighted the plight of the estimated 5,000 landlords who are in limbo following the government’s decision to suspend evictions in late March.

While the policy was heralded as a much-needed protection for tenants against losing their homes during the crisis, what’s less publicised is that a small but significant minority of deliberately fraudulent tenants are delighted to be given extra time to enjoy their homes rent free.

We talked to one landlord duo, Cherly Jervis and her husband John, who have found out the hard way how the legal system turns a blind eye to tenants keen to game the evictions process in their favour.

Several years ago the pair emigrated to New Zealand before moving to Australia and, because they had originally sold their UK home, later on decided to buy an apartment (pictured) in their old home town of Grayshott as both a UK bolthole but also as an asset from which to generate an income.

When Cheryl visited the UK last year she interviewed a 50-something prospective tenant and his wife multiple times, gained exemplary references from the husband’s employer and solicitor, took a deposit and then signed a tenancy agreement.

Happy to rent

She then returned to Australia, happy that she had a tenant for the apartment after the renters, who are of Dutch origin, said they had to stay in the UK while the wife underwent treatment for cancer before moving back to Holland.

And then it began to unravel. The couple didn’t pay any rent from the outset and did not respond to any messages for months. The tenant did eventually make contact via email to say he was unhappy with the flat because the area was too noisy, revealing that he was to leave the property and did not intend to pay the outstanding rent.

It was then that the couple probed his references more deeply, and discovered that he had left his job and that the solicitor’s reference was a forgery.

Forged reference

After being challenged about his references, the tenant then threatened the couple with violence, after which Cheryl reported his threats and forgery to local police who said they were aware of his activities, that he had staged the same tenancy fraud before but that there was little they could do about it.

Cheryl then contacted Landlord Action to arrange for his eviction via a Section 8 notice and, after two court appearances during which he claimed incorrectly that the wrong paperwork was served on him, was on the verge of being evicted.

“Finally, with bailiffs booked in, we thought we could rid of this nasty specimen and get our flat back,” says Cheryl.

Evictions announcement

But, on the 24^th March, the day set for the tenants to move out and after a two-month delay imposed by the court, the government announced that it was effectively shutting down the evictions system that evening.

The Jervises were already facing an eight month period without rent but now face waiting until at least July and, given the court delays likely after the Coronavirus crisis over, September before they can regain possession.

“I get that the government don’t want anyone turfed out of their home onto the street during the crisis but our tenant was a known criminal whose clear intent was to defraud and the process of eviction had come to end,” says Cheryl.

“The law is an travesty because it’s totally on my tenant’s side even though he forged his way in our flat and has not paid a penny in rent for months on end.

“My tenant knew that it would take at least six months to get him out and played the system accordingly, and yet the courts and judges aren’t able to tell the difference between tenants in need of help, and fraudsters like our tenant, who has since sent me emails pointing out the happy news that he will be staying for longer rent free.”

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – ‘Coronavirus evictions ban has given my fraudulent tenant another four months rent free’ | LandlordZONE.

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Meet the landlord going the extra mile for his tenants and key workers during Covid-19 pandemic

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We are living in unprecedented and unpredictable times. For the last few months, the NRLA has been contacted by many members, letting us know what they are doing to support both their tenants and local communities at this time. —– The country has been in lockdown now for just over five weeks, in order to […]

The post Meet the landlord going the extra mile for his tenants and key workers during Covid-19 pandemic appeared first on RLA Campaigns and News Centre.

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Blog: University body shares NRLA calls on student rents

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Student landlords are facing a unique set of challenges during the coronavirus pandemic. NRLA Chief Executive Ben Beadle has written to Universities UK to ask for their support in ensuring students honour rental contracts.  These are difficult times. The country remains in lockdown, with communities across the country –indeed the globe – reeling from the […]

The post Blog: University body shares NRLA calls on student rents appeared first on RLA Campaigns and News Centre.

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Avoid the courts! Mediation service launches to help landlords and tenants resolve arguments

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A tenancy mediation service has been launched today that aims to help landlords, letting agents and tenants sort out problems more cheaply and speedily than going through the courts.

Property Redress Scheme has launched PRS Mediation earlier than planned to support landlords and tenants struggling with the impact of the pandemic.

It says the Government is likely to continue urging them to negotiate and reach an agreement, rather than go to court in the future, as the confidential process allows disputes to be resolved much quicker and with less cost. ]

And there will be an even
greater need for end-of-tenancy mediation when the Section 21 possession
process is removed.

After a landlord calls PRS mediation, an independent mediator contacts the tenant to see whether they’re happy to liaise with the mediator, before discussing the issues raised, with a view to coming to an agreement on either paying a reduced rent, deferred rent or settlement amount, with agreed ending of the tenancy.

Struggling to pay

Sean Hooker, head of redress
for the Property Redress Scheme, says:
“As a landlord, it also enables you to
demonstrate to the court that you have attempted to resolve your issues before
coming to them.”  

Paul Shamplina,
founder of Landlord Action, adds: “Our
recent survey found that 74% of landlords have already been contacted by
tenants who are struggling to pay rent due to reduced or terminated employment
resulting from the pandemic.

“With the reality that life will not return to ‘normal’ for some time,
the most sensible solution is mediation, particularly as landlords will be
unlikely to be able to gain possession of their properties for six to nine
months or more.”

Property Redress
Scheme believes if landlords have problems with future possession claims, using
the mediation service will demonstrate their readiness to engage with tenants
through alternative dispute resolution.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Avoid the courts! Mediation service launches to help landlords and tenants resolve arguments | LandlordZONE.

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Post Covid-19 Property Opportinities – Baker Street 29th April

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Join me, Shaf Rasul from Dragons Den, Simon Zutshi and Ranjan Bhattacharya live for an online Baker Street Property Meet at 7pm on 29th April 2020. 1000+ property investors will be attending, so secure your spot now.

REGISTER HERE IT’S FREE!

The post Post Covid-19 Property Opportinities – Baker Street 29th April appeared first on Property118.

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LATEST: Tenants negotiating lower rents with landlords as they stay put

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Latest research from leading lettings agency reveals record number of renters staying put and renegotiating lower rents during March, a trend that is likely to accelerating this month.

Over two thirds of tenants renewed their rental agreements during March and many negotiated lower rents as they stayed put to weather the Coronavirus crisis, a leading lettings index has revealed.

Estate agency Hamptons International says 70% of tenancies that were due to renew last month re-signed their contracts, the second highest proportion to do so since the company’s index began six years ago.

Tenants, aware of the economic problems the Coronavirus crisis was likely to create, have clearly been negotiating with existing and prospective landlords to reduce their outgoings during the year ahead.

Rent renewals

Renewed rents fell across three regions – the South East (-1.4%), the East (-0.4%) and Greater London which recorded the biggest year-on-year fall (-2.2%).

Also, although the average rent of a newly let property increased to £980 pcm in March, up 1.2% year-on-year, the rate of rental growth more than halved since February, when rents rose 3.3% year-on-year.

And as lockdown measures were enforced during
March the number of new applicants registering to rent a home fell by a third compared
with the same period in 2019.

“Once lockdown restrictions ease, we expect activity levels to rise. Renting offers more flexibility than buying a home, so as uncertainty rises, so too does the demand for rental homes,” says Aneisha Beveridge, Head of Research at Hamptons International.

“But although demand for rental accommodation is set to increase, and there are already signs of it picking back up again, the longer-term economic damage to people’s jobs and incomes means that rents on newly let properties are likely to fall between 2% and 5% this year.”

Read advice about tenancy agreements.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – LATEST: Tenants negotiating lower rents with landlords as they stay put | LandlordZONE.

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