Snow storms and severe weather warnings spell trouble for unprepared landlords

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The Met Office has issued a swathe of national severe weather warnings, stretching into the weekend and beyond with up to 15 inches of snow expected in some regions.

The disruptive weather is set to continue this week across Scotland and northern England, becoming much colder and extending further south to include a combined snow and ice warning.

As winter tightens its grip across the UK, Steve Barnes, Associate Director at Hamilton Fraser Total Landlord Insurance, highlights the importance of protecting your property and tenants: “February is the peak month for claims caused by severe weather, with many landlords suffering uninsured losses.

“Our average claim for flash floods is £17,708, so it pays to be protected. Widespread flooding and heavy snow have already battered much of the UK this year, but forewarned is forearmed.

“Landlords should pay close attention to weather warnings so that they can prepare. If you take the right preventative measures and have comprehensive landlord insurance in place, then you’re doing all you can for your tenants, your property and your business.”

The quantities of rainfall predicted in parts of the UK over the next few days are expected to bring some localised flooding and damage to properties. Landlords with high risk properties should take steps to prevent flooding in their rental properties, urges Steve, including preparing tenants by supplying them with sandbags.

Strong winds

Snow depths, which with strong winds could be twice as deep as anticipated, will bring problems such as frozen pipes and snow loading. This can put added strain on the roof of your home if left unchecked, as snow builds up, leading to sagging or structural damage to the roof.

Steve suggests that landlords in areas where snow is forecast should pay particular attention to the roof and gutters, make sure pipes are insulated and stock up on sand or salt for use on paths to prevent tenants from falling and injuring themselves.

Hamilton Fraser Total Landlord Insurance has created detailed guidance to help you protect your rental property against severe winter weather, including how to protect your property against snow.

“As a landlord, there is much you can do to protect your rental property and tenants against snow and severe weather. Prevention is always preferable to cure but with severe weather on the rise, landlords with high-risk properties should increase their insurance protection as well as investing in home improvements,” advises Steve.

As a valued LandlordZONE reader you’re entitled to 20% off Hamilton Fraser Total Landlord Insurance’s policies, call the team today on 0800 63 43 880 quoting code LZ2021 or get a quote online in under 4 minutes.

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Lack of access to APAs forcing UC landlords to serve notice

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Caridon Landlord Solutions, which provides specialist advice on Universal Credit and Housing Benefit to private landlords, letting agencies and housing associations, says that landlords with tenants in receipt of Universal Credit are struggling to set up Alternative Payment Arrangements because the online Universal Credit landlord portal is closed to new claimants. 

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An Incredible 43% Yield Property!

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This is a property auction review video of some of the best property investment deals coming at property auctions Allsop & Auction House London reviewed by myself, Rod Turner, Jay Howard and Piotr Rusinek.

In the 6th episode of the series

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Mortgage Express Receivership?

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I had my portfolio decimated in 2015 by Mortgage Express taking four properties with £300k combined equity into Receivership. I have spent the last 5 years and £7k on a local firm of property lawyers trying to recover them….unsuccessfully. I have made complaints to the Ombudsman and the FCA and I am trying to refinance which is not easy after MX totally destroyed my credit history in the process.

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Scots short lets landlords to face £377 licence fee, minister reveals

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Scottish Housing minister Kevin Stewart has refused to back down on the issue of regulating short-term lets, insisting that local authorities need powers to strike a balance between the economic and tourism benefits, and community concerns.

Stewart has written to the Scottish Parliament’s local government and communities committee – currently considering the short-term lets Licensing Order and Control Area Regulations – insisting that the plans achieve national consistency on safety standards, while giving councils flexibility to tailor the scheme to local needs.

“Numbers of short-term lets are significant and concentrations of these can pose problems for communities across Scotland,” says Stewart. “Pre-pandemic (May 2019), there were 32,000 short-term lets on Airbnb, of which over 22,000 were active listings for whole property lets.

“The licensing scheme will improve the data about short-term let activity in future.”

He adds: “During the consultations, we have heard from residents in a range of locations who have highlighted a range of concerns about short-term lets including the impact on local housing supply, and noise and anti-social behaviours.”

Mandatory licensing

Holyrood is currently consulting on the plans which include a mandatory licensing scheme to ensure all short-term lets are safe and address issues faced by neighbours.

Airbnb is one of many groups and companies among Scotland’s tourism sector who have urged the government to rethink its hard-line plans, warning that they could jeopardise 17,000 jobs in the region and take almost £1 million a day out of the Scottish economy.

However, Stewart outlined average indicative fees in the letter, estimated to be between £223 and £377 for a three-year licence, and stresses that the regulation standards, “aren’t onerous”.

He adds that the government has listened to concerns raised by business and tourism representatives who called for a delay, which means existing hosts and operators have until 1st April 2023 to apply for a licence.

A new working group will meet to discuss registration issues later this month.

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It’s no all doom and gloom! Landlord tracker points to rising confidence

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Despite Covid, tenant demand reached a five-year high during the last quarter of 2020 research by Paragon Bank has revealed, predicting that the trend will continue.

It found that despite volatile economic conditions and rising unemployment hitting tenants’ income, demand had also helped to boost landlords’ confidence.

Nearly a third (32%) reported increasing levels of demand during the final three months of the year, the highest level since Q1 2016 and up from 25% in the same period in 2019.

Regional differences

Paragon quizzed 800 landlords to discover that there were clear regional differences: 58% in the South West reported growth in tenant demand compared to just 10% in central London.

It found that despite this, most landlords planned to keep rents at the same level over the next six months.

Nearly two thirds (64%) had no plans to alter them, while 15% planned to increase rents and 9% aimed to lower rent levels.

Landlords also felt more confident about rental yields, their capital gain, the UK private rented sector and their own letting business than they did during the same period in 2019, says Paragon.

Overall, 35% of landlords rated the prospects for their own lettings business as good or very good during Q4 2020, compared to 31% during the same period in 2019.

Richard Rowntree, MD of mortgages, says: “The housing market is also reporting high levels of tenancy renewals, so good quality rental property is at a premium in desirable markets. I would expect that to continue into the new year and throughout 2021.”

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How house prices are affected with tenants in situ?

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On Facebook this week, a tenant said that her private landlord wanted to sell the house she is renting. Someone else then said had the tenant asked if their landlord would be willing to sell to another landlord so that the tenant could remain in situ.

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LATEST: Government agrees ‘in principle’ with another evictions ban after 21st

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A government spokesperson has said that a further extension to the current ban on bailiff evictions is likely and that next time it may be for longer than a few months.

The current ban on bailiff evictions was announced on 8^th January and is due to expire on 21^st February.

Speaking during a debate in the Lords yesterday (pictured), Conservative justice minister Lord Wolfson of Tredegar hinted heavily that evictions were unlikely to ahead while the pandemic continues to rage in the UK, although no decision had been taken yet.

“I accept in principle that we want to look at a longer period and… if we can we certainly will,” he said.

Proportionate

“It is important that our approach remains proportionate and strikes the right balance between continuing to protect tenants and ensuring that landlords can access justice,” he said.

Despite saying this, Wolfson admitted that most tenants served notice now will not face eviction until at least June this year due to the government’s various changes to the possession, bailiff and court rules.

Wolfson (pictured, below), who is a banking lawyer by trade, also defended the government’s decision to adjust the latest eviction rules to allow repossessions when rent arrears were greater than six rather than nine months, and to include those built up during Covid, which previously wasn’t the case.

He told the Lords that the change was a reasonable balance between the needs of landlords and tenants given the financial problem both sides of the PRS are experiencing at the moment.

Woolfson also said the government all the possession claims covered by amended exemptions within the updates rules would be tenants who had stopped paying rent before the pandemic began.

Watch the debate in full.

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Free Lockdown Learning webinars for landlords – ‘Breathing space’ regulations

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The lockdown confines us all to our homes so is a very good time to catch up on your training.

To help with this, Landlord Law are running a series of free webinars during February and March 2021. 

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Give landlords interest-free rent arrears loans, letting agents tell Chancellor

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Letting agents are the latest group to call for English landlords to be given direct financial help as the repercussions of the Covid pandemic continue to spill out into the private rental market.

This should take the form of interest-free hardship loans to help tenants pay off their Covid-related rent arrears, paid directly to landlords.

ARLA Propertymark has told Ministers within its 2021 Budget manifesto published today that landlords’ costs have increased significantly and that many can no longer make ends meet.

“The best way to ensure this happens is to make sure that tenants can pay their rent, which is why the UK Government must introduce a financial support package to reduce COVID-related rent arrears.”

These comments echo a call yesterday by Generation Rent, which is not normally a supporter of landlords, to set up a £288m fund to help both tenants and landlords clear rent arrears.

ARLA also says that although it accepts public funds have been used to support tenants indirectly through Universal Credit and other ways, “to date there has been no direct financial support for the rental market, with individual landlords unable to access small business grants or bounce back loans”.

Mark Hayward, Propertymark’s Chief Policy Advisor (pictured), says : “The property market has remained remarkably resilient during the lockdown periods so far and the government has prioritised a functioning property market.

“However, there is still progress to be made and we’re calling upon the government to make these recommended changes in order to continue to support agents, landlords, consumers and the wider housing market.”
Other budget must-haves in the manifesto include improving Universal Credit, more support for investment in the PRS and an extension to the stamp duty holiday

Rishi Sunak’s next budget is due to take place on March 3^rd.

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