Solicitor to launch class action lawsuit against investment guru Samuel Leeds and others

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Disgruntled property training course attendees
are gearing up to bring a group action against ‘investment guru’ Samuel Leeds –
and there’s still time for others to join them.

Jarmans Solicitors is set to pursue the action
on behalf of dozens of former trainees of the evangelical-style
guru, who claims that his investor clients can make their fortunes, after
attending pricey ‘crash courses’.

It says of property courses: “The so-called
sacred lessons can be easily researched online. There is no guarantee. Most
victims – sorry, devotees – make no money at all and indeed lose money as they
are often sued for the remaining fees once they are locked into the system.”

The solicitor put out the call for possible claimants earlier this year and is encouraging others to contact it to discuss their case. Last month, solicitors at the firm had spoken to 70 people about their dealings with Samuel Leeds and reported that more calls were coming in daily.

Strength in numbers

It believes there’s strength
in numbers, as legal costs can be shared with other claimants and are initially
fixed fee. It’s not yet clear whether the litigation would
be against both his company as well as his personal name, and other companies.

In recent months, Leeds has hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons; a video was posted online of him verbally abusing and publicly shaming a keyworker on one of his courses while Lord Sugar has snubbed Leeds in a video message denying all links with the self-styled guru after he claimed to have been mentored by him.

In January, the BBC’s Inside Out investigation team broadcast
a programme highlighting the tragic case of Danny Butcher, a former soldier who
killed himself after trying to clear his debts by enrolling on a £13,000 course
run by Property Investors.

To help bring higher standards and greater transparency to the sector the Property Investors Bureau recently launched the Property Educators Accreditation Scheme.

Visit Jarmans Solicitors.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Solicitor to launch class action lawsuit against investment guru Samuel Leeds and others | LandlordZONE.

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Free mentoring service launches to support letting agents during the Coronavirus crisis

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A foundation has been launched this morning that is to begin offering business owners working in the letting industry both mental health and business advice mentoring to help them through the Coronavirus crisis.

This is no back-room, home-spun charity. The former CEO of hybrid lettings agency Purplebricks, Michael Bruce, who has amassed a £35 million fortune after the company floated in 2015, is backing Agents Together with £1 million of his own cash.

Landlords may run a sceptical eye over the organisation at www.agentstogether.co.uk but it has laudable aims – to help the owners of Britain’s SME letting agencies navigate a path through both the pandemic and the looming economic downturn.

Bruce is calling on anyone with experience of the property industry to sign up to be mentors for lettings agency owners, and the foundation hopes to set up a permanent network of these mentors across the UK.

Agents Together will also be buying in clinical expertise to help agents who are experiencing mental health issues such as depression and anxiety, and has also signed up several famous business gurus to lend a hand too.

Bruce has told LandlordZONE that although the foundation’s free services are for estate agents, this includes people who have hybrid roles – for example many landlords are also letting agents and vice versa.

Hope

“Agents Together is a Foundation born out of hope that the impact of Covid 19 has presented a collective opportunity to come together to change the narrative for estate agency,” he says.

“Our mission is to ensure we do not miss this once in a lifetime opportunity to support each other through the difficult times ahead, embracing the power and energy of the industry to build towards a better future raise professional standards and change perceptions to unlock a greater understanding of the role and worth of a professional agent”.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Free mentoring service launches to support letting agents during the Coronavirus crisis | LandlordZONE.

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Even more worrying requests by the Select Committee

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At the beginning of May we responded to a Call for Evidence to an Inquiry by MHCLG. Our ‘evidence’ and criticism of the governments treatment of the PRS in general and more specifically during the Suspension of Possession proceedings was brutal.

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Adding partner to a Tenancy Agreement?

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Do I have to issue a completely new Tenancy Agreement (TA) if the only thing that is changing is adding a tenant’s partner to the contract?

The initial TA was set up and agreed – a single mum and two kids.

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Time to recognise landlords are suffering too during Coronavirus crisis, solicitors tell MPs

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The government should support landlords to help them keep their tenants rather than leaving them no choice but to issue possession proceedings against those not paying rent, the Law Society has told the government.

The solicitors’ body has also questioned how effective the Government’s advice to landlords about having ‘open and honest conversations’ on rent will be long-term, and believes that while an eviction ban was needed at the start of lockdown, there now needs to be a recognition that landlords are losing income.

In its evidence for the Housing, Communities and Local Government Select Committee on the impact of Covid-19 on homelessness, rough sleeping and the private rented sector, The Law Society flags up the current availability of contractors, landlords’ limited ability to carry out regular inspections of properties and their reduction in income.

It says: “Questions
also arise as to how quickly landlords will be required to make non-urgent
repairs brought to their attention during the lockdown.

“Once the lockdown is lifted, landlords may be overwhelmed with disrepair issues, and may have limited time and funds to carry them out.”

Rent arrears

It also voices
concerns that the extension to the evictions ban could defer issues and cause
tenants to accumulate rent arrears, while courts will struggle with a surge in
applications.

The Law
Society suggests making Section 21 applications discretionary, with strict
guidance issued for judges about considering special circumstances such as the
likelihood of an agreement being reached between landlord and tenant over
repayment of arrears.

It adds: “The
renting of properties must not become untenable for landlords during this
period and tenancies must remain available to support the wider renting market.

Both landlords
and tenants have a part to play in this and more support should be offered to
landlords to keep renting a viable prospect as the country moves out of
lockdown.”

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Time to recognise landlords are suffering too during Coronavirus crisis, solicitors tell MPs | LandlordZONE.

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Early signs BTL mortgage market recovery

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Moneyfacts UK Mortgage Trends Treasury Report data, not yet published, reveals that there are glimmers of hope emerging for the Buy to Lat mortgage market, following the significant initial impact of the Coronavirus pandemic. In welcome news to many landlords

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Can Deeds of Grant of Estate Rentcharge be amended?

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I would like to ask whether a signed and witnessed completed Deeds of Grant of Estate Rent, can be changed at a later date by the Residents Association?

I am a freeholder on a mixed tenancy development and as the grantor wish to secure the proper maintenance of the works listed with the deeds.

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Refund deposit after tenant fee ban transition period ends 1st June?

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The tenant fee ban transition period ended on the 1st of June 2020 in England.

I have ASTs that started before 1st June 2019 and have transitioned into statutory and contractual periodic tenancies started before 1st June 2019.

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Will Ministers resist calls for mandatory registration of short-lets landlords?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

The Government is set to make an announcement
on short-lets regulations – just as the sector prepares to re-open its doors after
the lockdown.

MPs are studying a new House of Commons Library briefing document discussing calls for greater regulation and will soon scrutinise a ‘white paper’ of recommendations from Airbnb when it publishes its UK roadshow findings later this month.

The platform has talked to hosts, communities and politicians across the UK about its proposals for a simple statutory registration system for short-term rentals.

Automated lettings payment platform PayProp believes that
the results of Airbnb’s consultations – as well as their planned white paper –
could be crucial to the future of the industry. Group chief sales officer, Neil
Cobbold, says: “Implemented effectively, a short-term lets registration system
could help the sector to professionalise without introducing too much red tape.”

He adds that reports of the 90-day rule in London being
flouted regularly, means its effectiveness needs to be reviewed. “What’s more,
as the popularity of short-term lets grows in other cities across the country,
similar limits may need to be considered elsewhere,” Cobbold says.

The Commons document highlights a lack of taxation
compliance by short-term landlords, the impact on local housing markets, and
health and safety issues. However, the Government has no plans to ban the use
of residential property for short-term lets and has been reluctant to pass further
legislation.

The document also points to Office of National Statistics
which estimates that 20% of adults used sites or apps such as Airbnb last year.
It reports: “In 2017, Airbnb altered its booking system to automatically limit
entire home listings in London to 90 nights per calendar year. However, there
are various ways for short-term accommodation providers to circumvent these
automatic restrictions.”

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LATEST: Every rented property to soon have a ‘property passport’ number

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A property passport system for rented properties took a step closer this morning after it was announced that the government is to open up its previously secret Unique Property Reference Numbers (UPRNs) system.

This will be available to home owners and non-commercial organisations from July 1^st and will be used to pull together all the regulatory and other information about a property into one number, creating a passport for every rented home.

The announcement has been made by The Lettings Industry Council (TLIC) whose chair Theresa Wallace says the announcement follows significant lobbying over the past two years to persuade the government to open up its data.

“The next phase of the TLIC vision is to engage with stakeholders in the industry, such as GasSafe, CRM system providers, deposit schemes and electrical safety certificate suppliers to adopt the UPRN as their property reference number on all certification and documentation,” says Wallace.

“Then, with the development of the Property Passport, the UPRN can be used much like a car number plate, to check safety requirements on privately rented properties have been completed.

“This will give tenants the peace of mind that their property has passed all of its checks and the Local Authorities the transparency they need for improved enforcement.”

The TLIC has told LandlordZONE that the Energy Performance of Buildings (EPC) register is already using the UPRN as their address identifier within their new website and The Property Ombudsman has also started collecting the data on a voluntary basis with a view of integrating this into their complaints process.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – LATEST: Every rented property to soon have a ‘property passport’ number | LandlordZONE.

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