Campaigners claim new security law will give police ‘free hand to help rogue landlords’

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Many landlords may not be sympathetic, but the London Renters’ Union says the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill making its way through parliament will criminalise its protests.

The pressure group, which regularly pickets landlords and estate agents to fight for tenants’ rights, fears the bill – with its aim of beefing up police powers to crack down on protests – will affect its ability to stage actions when lockdown restrictions ease and encourage what it believes is police bias towards landlords.

The flagship crime legislation, currently being debated in the Commons, would give police forces more powers to tackle significantly disruptive ‘non-violent’ protests and in particular Extinction Rebellion-style civil disobedience.

Stop and search powers could also be expanded if plans for serious violence reduction orders get the go-ahead.

London Renters’ Union says the bill effectively criminalises protest. A spokesman explains: “Our movement has always been based on our ability to use public protest as a way of putting public pressure on landlords and estate agents.

“We also use peaceful protest as a way of stopping evictions and keeping members in their homes. Over the past year, we have seen police intervene on the side of landlords, actively facilitating illegal evictions.

Stop protest

“With increased powers to stop protest, our ability to take action to support our members is under threat.”

Instead, it’s demanding that the National Police Chiefs Council adopts a new Charter for Freedom of Assembly Rights.

This includes an end to treating direct action and civil disobedience as an excuse to shut down protests completely and an end to routine surveillance of protesters and excessive use of force and the targeting of organisers for arrest, surveillance and punishment.

The union is also encouraging supporters to sign an online petition against the new laws, which already has more than 165,000 signatures.

Read more about the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill

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The state of the Landlord Insurance market – March 2021

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The past year has been tough on most due to COVID, however, Landlords can take heart from a very healthy insurance market that continues to compete for their let buildings and contents insurance. The cost of landlord insurance depends largely on the insurer that you speak with.

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TikTok ‘property gurus’ warned by regulator to be clear about sponsorship links

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A TikTok celebrity couple from Rugby have been reminded by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) that their posts must be labelled as sponsored content if they are paid to produce them.

Twenty-somethings Summer Newman and her partner Matt Mellor have attracted a 200,000+ following on the social media platform using a familiar sales patter.

The pair, whose business has received glowing reviews from several UK tabloids including the Daily Mail, describe themselves as property deal sourcers for ‘cash rich, time poor’ investors.

The pair are also landlords, and say they have a portfolio in their home town, Rugby.

Newman has now begun using her sizeable social media following to promote their £797 ‘Mastermind’ property investment club, while also keeping their followers entertained with tours of super-luxe properties for sale including a prime newbuild development in Nottingham called The Knoll.

Her other main social media outlet, an Instagram account, was set up in 2013 when Summer was in her early teens featuring pictures of Lamborghini cars and multiple trips to Asian and other exotic destinations. She and her boyfriend also have a popular joint YouTube channel.

Get rich quick

Their shtick is not a new one, but has a ‘get rich quick’ ring to it that appeals to their Millennial followers and who they say, like them, can enjoy an apparently luxe lifestyle by purchasing under-valued properties off ‘motivated’ vendors and then, on behalf of investors, refurbishing and selling them on for a 20-25% profit.

The couple say they then charge a £2,000 to £10,000 fee depending on the property value.

ASA rules say that if a TikTok creator has been paid to post content, it must be labelled as such. But in the past it has not been clear whether the couple’s property tours have been sponsored or not.

They have told The Times that estate agents and developers are happy to let them film their property tours for free, and only pay the couple expenses such as parking charges. This is somewhat puzzling – very few if any of their young followers on TikTok are likely to be target buyers for such expensive properties. The Knoll is currently for sale at £4.5 million.

Pic credits: GuyPhoenix.com and Summer Newman/TikTok

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – TikTok ‘property gurus’ warned by regulator to be clear about sponsorship links | LandlordZONE.

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Charity asks public to donate £10 to help ‘depressed and anxious’ private tenants

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Housing charity Shelter has launched a fund raising campaign to help it deal with struggling renters as research shows one in four (27%) fear becoming homeless due to the pandemic.

The charity’s latest poll of 551 private renters in England reveals they have fared particularly badly during the last year, with nearly half (47%) reporting that they are more depressed and anxious in light of the pandemic – almost double the rate of the general public.

It points to a quarter of private renters who have seen their income drop in the last six months; 24% of private renters have had to borrow money to pay their rent, while 18% have cut back on food or skipped meals.

The charity reports that two-thirds (63%) of calls answered by its emergency helpline in the last year were from people already homeless or at risk of homelessness.

It has hired 26 new housing advisers, doubled the number of calls answered by its free helpline and has now launched an urgent appeal for public support, Lives on the Line, asking for donations of between £10 and £80.

Chief executive Polly Neate (pictured) says: “Through our helpline we have seen just how scared people are about their homes and their futures. People’s lives are literally on the line. They are desperately struggling and the threat of homelessness is very real.” 

Franz Doerr, CEO at rental tech firm flatfair (pictured, below), believes the ban on bailiff evictions has not properly addressed the crisis engulfing the rental market.

“Mountains of arrears are piling up at the feet of landlords who are effectively being asked to prop up the market, yet the government has offered next to nothing by way of support for them,” he says.

“The government must urgently provide clarity to both landlords and tenants on how it proposes to help struggling renters repay their debt. Failure to do so will ultimately lead to landlords exiting the market, meaning there will be fewer affordable homes for rent.”

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Charity asks public to donate £10 to help ‘depressed and anxious’ private tenants | LandlordZONE.

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SHOCKING PIX: Slum landlord pair fined £300k over squalid and overcrowded HMO

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Two rogue landlords and their companies have been fined more than £300,000 after being found guilty of housing 18 tenants in a squalid Bristol HMO.

Adam Habane, 51, of Dove Street, and Lloyd Beckford, 60, of Lower Ashley Road, split the building in Lower Ashley Road into seven poorly converted flats, where families, including six children, were forced to use cramped filthy bathrooms and inadequate damaged kitchens (pictured).

When Bristol City Council’s private housing team visited in September 2019 there were no operating fire alarm systems; their concern for the residents’ safety was so great that they immediately provided battery operated smoke detectors.

The property also had holes in the ceilings and hallways which meant fire and smoke could easily pass within the flats, as well as obstructed fire escapes, doors that didn’t shut or lock and electrical systems in poor repair.

After the visit, some of the families were moved on or rehoused and the council continued enforcement action, but in March 2020 they returned to the property after tenants complained there was no hot water or heating.

Requests ignored

This time they found similar conditions along with a broken boiler. A request for gas and electricity safety certificates was ignored.

At Bristol Magistrates Court, the pair were convicted of poor management of an HMO and failure to provide information about the property.

The companies managing the property, Ashley Marketing Services and Eunicareltd Ltd, and their directors Habane and Beckford were handed fines and costs of £334,500.

Councillor Helen Godwin (pictured), cabinet member for women, children and homes, says: “We are committed to protecting people in private housing against the risks posed by poor property management and unacceptable conditions.

“This case illustrates clearly that we will use appropriate powers to prosecute those who put tenants in danger through their own neglect or sub-standard practices.”

Read more: Bristol HMO regulation ‘a mess’.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – SHOCKING PIX: Slum landlord pair fined £300k over squalid and overcrowded HMO | LandlordZONE.

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How to find Shops & Tops for commercial to residential conversion

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I take a stroll down the high street and share what to look for when searching for retail property to convert to residential use under Permitted Development Rights.

Watch this video to find out for yourself, and join us this Sunday for a FREE live 90-minute masterclass where you can learn more on the subject!

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