Why did Nightmare Tenants, Slum Landlords become Channel 5’s surprise hit?

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Five years and six series on from its first episode, the long-running TV series is now an international hit. We quiz one of its stars about why the show has an enduring appeal.

Nightmare Tenants, Slum Tenants regularly pulls in a million viewers on Channel 5, and it appears on the box across the world including on Netflix.

One of its stars, Paul Shamplina of Landlord Action, consequently receives letters from viewers in the USA, Germany, Holland, Poland, Spain, Belgium, Australia, New Zealand and even Hawaii.

“The show highlights the pitfalls of renting if you have a really troublesome tenant and most of the time it’s when landlords are self-managing their property and make classic mistakes,” he says.

“Of course, many cases are where tenants fall on hard times, but the stories featured on the programme are normally the extreme ones.

“The programme also shows the other side of the coin when councils are enforcing against criminal landlords who often are exploiting tenants for a financial gain, so there is a good balance of stories to tell.”

It’s not all evictions, though. One viewer called Mark asked Paul to help him propose to his fiancée by writing ‘Will you marry Mark’ inside one of his buy-to-let advice books, which was then given to the fiancée as a gift. Happily, she said yes.

What’s been your toughest eviction?

“During Series Four,
we exposed a Rogue Agent who was part of a subletting scam at a property in
Ilford, Essex. The eviction of the ten sub-letters became very hostile; we had
to call police to assist us to remove the occupants. The landlord did not get
the rent for 10 months. It was very fractious, with a lot of intimidation.”

How many episodes
have you appeared in?

“Approximately fifty.”

What is the most
common reason for evictions on the show?

“The most common
reason is non-payment of rent. But we do feature a lot of subletting scams.”

How did you get the
opportunity to appear on the show?

“Because I had
featured on other shows and Landlord action was known to the media, I was
contacted by the production company, Britesparks.”

Are you recognised in
the street?

“I get randomly
recognised, sometimes people stare at me and you know there are thinking ‘where
have I seen him before’?  The weirdest place I got asked for a selfie was
taking my daughter on a camel ride in the desert in Marrakech.”

Does it make it
more difficult having the cameras there when you’re evicting someone?

“Evicting a tenant
is a last resort for a landlord and although I have to keep the peace between
the landlord and tenant, tempers can flare.  
“I’m aware it’s not nice for a tenant to leave their home, but the cases we
feature gone on for the best part of five months, so they know they do have to
leave eventually.  

“Some tenants react
to the cameras and it can be more difficult.  I’ve had many a time where
the landlords have broken down, as a lot have faced financial ruin and end up
having to sell the property to pay the debts off. But these cases are
relatively rare.

Why do you think
it’s so popular?

“The show is real,
you see emotions, frustrations and it exposes some people who just don’t care
about their actions, including both tenants and landlords. There is no acting
and it shows both sides to renting. The programme gets a lot of engagement from
viewers.”

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Why did Nightmare Tenants, Slum Landlords become Channel 5’s surprise hit? | LandlordZONE.

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Covid-19 Bounce Back loans for property businesses

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The Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS) applies to buy to let landlords! In this video Andrew Roberts and I take a look at the eligibility criteria and how you can apply for up to £50,000 as an interest free loan for your buy to let property rental business.

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BREAKING: Scots launch £5m aid fund for private landlords if they help tenants

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Aim of fund is to ensure that no tenant loses their home during the pandemic and is being offered to landlords with smaller property portfolios who’ve lost rental income.

The Scottish Government is to help hard-pushed landlords by
offering them interest-free loans from a new £5 million fund.

Eligible private sector landlords can get up to 100% of
lost rental income for a single property from the Private Rent Sector
Landlord COVID-19 Loan Scheme if their tenants are having difficulty
paying rent during the crisis.

Those who aren’t classified as businesses, have five or fewer
properties to rent and have lost rental income can apply once they’ve reached an
agreement with their tenant on managing arrears.

Housing Minister Kevin Stewart (pictured) says it wants to ensure no-one loses their home during the pandemic, which is why it passed legislation to protect tenants against eviction for six months.

“This new £5 million loan fund builds on that action and offers landlords the same security as tenants, ensuring they have financial support if tenants struggle to pay rent because of coronavirus,” he says.

Financial pressure

“While all tenants should pay their rent if they can, we
recognise the financial pressure people are facing.

“The Scottish Government encourages landlords to talk to
their tenants about rent payment issues. We also expect landlords to be as
flexible as possible with their tenants, discuss managing rental payments and
help them find sources of financial support and advice.” 

Chief executive of the Scottish Association of Landlords,
John Blackwood, adds: “Collectively the housing sector needs an approach that
protects all parts of housing in Scotland to guarantee we can provide the
different types of quality housing we need. 

“We want to continue to work with the government, as well
as other public bodies, trade bodies and charities to ensure we achieve that
and hope there will be further steps taken soon.”

Landlords facing difficulties with repayments on a mortgage are expected to ask for a mortgage repayment holiday from their lender before they apply for one of the loans.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – BREAKING: Scots launch £5m aid fund for private landlords if they help tenants | LandlordZONE.

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42% of landlords to take up BTL mortgage holiday offer during crisis, survey reveals

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Research was conducted among 1,000 landlords in Scotland where landlords are able to access a much wider range of support measures than in England and Wales.

Scottish landlords fear taking a mortgage holiday will affect their ability to get lending for future buy-to-lets but nevertheless 42% will eventually sign up to one, according to new findings from property firm Portolio.

Its survey of more than 1,000 landlords found that 58% haven’t asked for a mortgage holiday, as many are worried about their credit history, and others fear they could trip up by finding out they don’t have the correct BTL mortgage.

But tenanted property agent Portolio believes as many as 40% will take the step before the COVID-19 pandemic is over.

“We’ve also spoken to three or four mortgage brokers now who have advised their investor clients not to take holidays as they are fairly sure it will have a negative impact on re-mortgage applications with some – maybe not all – lenders for the next 12 months,” says MD and founder Chris Wood.

While almost a third (60%) would struggle to pay the mortgage on their tenanted property if a tenant didn’t pay the rent, 52% have no intention of applying for an interest-free loan offered by the Scottish government and just under 30% are undecided, indicating that most aren’t keen on getting into any further debt, says Wood. 

Rent payment troubles

The survey – to discover the impact of COVID-19 on the private rented sector – also found that a staggering 50% of landlords’ tenants have trouble paying rent, with some believing this was likely to increase the longer the lockdown continues. 

Just over a quarter have experienced tenancies being unexpectedly terminated, possibly due to student tenants quitting, with almost 13% having tenants vacating properties and ditching belongings. Meanwhile, 21% of landlords report new tenancies starting during the lockdown, helped by the popularity of virtual viewings.

Adds Wood: “We found 92% feeling happy with their
letting agent during the COVID-19 lockdown. This is a testament to all those
hard-working letter agents out there who are doing a stellar job.” 

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – 42% of landlords to take up BTL mortgage holiday offer during crisis, survey reveals | LandlordZONE.

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Should I find a new tenant now?

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My tenants have now moved on. I have had the flat refurbished and I am wondering whether to try and find a new tenant now, or leave it until the Covid-19 Lockdown measures are eased.

What should I do?

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Today in politics: Universal Credit, protection for renters and safety certificates

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We look at the increasing number of Universal Credit claims, calls for extra protection for renters and claims plans to extend the deadlines on safety certificates ‘could be dangerous’. 1.8m Universal Credit claims The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Dr Thérèse Coffey MP, yesterday gave an oral statement to the House of Commons on the […]

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BREAKING: Rental property viewing rules revealed for when lockdown loosens

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A taste of how different the world of renting is going to be when the Coronavirus pandemic subsides enough to allow home moves has been revealed following talks between government and the property industry.

Details of how landlords and letting agents will have to change the way they operate rental property viewings have been revealed today.

During a webinar hosted by property portal Rightmove, industry association chief Mark Hayward revealed that following talks with ministers, many of the proposed rules around how property viewings are conducted are being hammered out.

Once these are finalised, it is expected that the private rental sector will be one of the first to be released from lockdown, along with estate agents.

The new rules will include limiting viewings to 15 minutes, stipulating that landlords and existing tenants step out of the property during viewings and that no more than two adults can view a property at any one time.

This means that, for shared properties, the ‘open house’ viewing favoured by many landlords will not be possible.

Surfaces disinfected

Unless a property is empty/vacant, then landlords will have to work with existing tenants to ensure that all surfaces are disinfected and doors left open throughout a property before a viewing starts.

Removals are also likely to be an area where practices change. Removals firms are unlikely to offer packing services after lockdown ends, and there may have to be a 72 hour gap between one set of tenants moving out and another moving in, which is the maximum length of time the virus can survive on a surface.

This will mean properties will stand empty for three days, and Hayward says both government and industry bodies are exploring who would finance this enforced void period.

Read more about lockdown landlords.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – BREAKING: Rental property viewing rules revealed for when lockdown loosens | LandlordZONE.

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Land boundary ownership issues in Scotland?

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I rent my home to my daughter and live elsewhere. The house has been in my family’s ownership since around 2003.  On purchasing the property we had a survey completed and witnessed our deeds along with land Registered details so we knew what we were buying.

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Durham landlords propose alternative licensing scheme

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A group of landlords in Durham are urging other private landlords with properties in the county to sign up to an alternative to the council’s proposed selective licensing Scheme. Durham County Council is proposing to introduce a large selective licensing scheme, covering approximately 51,000 private rented properties. If the plans are approved, landlords with rental […]

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Possible extension to ban on evictions

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Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick faced questions from the housing select committee today on how the government will continue to support tenants after the three-month moratorium on evictions is lifted on June 25. He said a decision will be made next month on whether to extend the ban

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