BREAKING: Judge’s ruling ‘sets precedent’ for agents and landlords over tenancy fees

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A loophole in the Tenant Fees Act has been tightly closed after a letting agent was ordered to pay back £343 to a tenant because it could not prove the charge for moving in his replacement was out of the ordinary.

The First Tier Property Tribunal heard that Ludlow Thompson had taken £393 from Mr Brennan, the tenant of a shared house in Leighfield House, Hackney, after he left the property, to provide a new tenancy agreement naming the new tenant.

Mr Brennan claimed it was a prohibited payment under the Act – and the court agreed.

The agent told Mr Brennan that the costs included issuing replacement guidelines to the landlord and tenants, negotiating certain matters with the landlord, collecting rent and the deposit from the new tenant and providing advice and assistance on the return of the tenant’s deposit.

Run of the mill

The court ruled: “At no point has it made a case for this transaction being anything other than an ordinary, run of the mill example of tenant churn in shared rented housing.”

It said that to exceed the £50 upper limit under the Tenant Fees Act, “a landlord or letting must be able to point to something that makes the charge at least somewhat out of the ordinary run of similar transactions”.

Sean Hooker, head of redress at the Property Redress Scheme, says the case will set a precedent and help to clarify the situation for redress schemes in future disputes.

He tells LandlordZONE: “How can you demonstrate time and effort if it’s a fairly straightforward change of details? Everything has a cost but how much cost is involved in changing a name on a tenancy agreement and issuing paperwork?”

Read more about the tenant fees ban rules.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – BREAKING: Judge’s ruling ‘sets precedent’ for agents and landlords over tenancy fees | LandlordZONE.

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Top six secrets of attracting more tenants to your listing

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Landlords with attractive homes to rent often overlook the importance of putting up a well-presented and written listing.

No matter how great your place is or how superior your brick and mortar are, people usually see your online listing before viewing the house in the flesh or talking to you.

Here are six ways to make your residential rental property listings stand out.

1. The ‘Rule Of Five’

In most cases, tenants looking for a house or flat will search the internet which means that they only have the photographs on your listing to ensure if the house is what they are looking for.

But taking good photographs has science. Here are some points to keep in mind when taking your snaps.

Since there are usually one, two or three rooms in a house, flat or studio apartment, it would be good to take at least one high-definition picture of every room, including the kitchen and the bathroom(s). All in all, there should be at least five pictures uploaded on your listing that do not show the same space.

• Corner angles

Taking pictures from the corners of the room makes the room look more spacious and shows the entrance to other rooms.

• Blurred pictures

The best angles are not worth it if your pictures are a bit shaky. People skip the listings that show a blurred picture as the display picture.

• Clean And bright

Make sure your room is cleaned before you take the pictures. Also, if the lighting is too bad or there is too much sunlight, the images will not come out clear.

• Curb appeal

Take at least one picture from at a distance overlooking the driveway, the entrance to the house, or the side of the building to your flat. Even the trees and shops outside your property add value to your listing.

2. Share everything

When writing the description of your real estate rental property, don’t stop yourself from mentioning everything. It shows the tenant that you are genuine and have shared any problems or inconveniences that might occur during the period of stay.

An excellent way to write the description would be to map out the whole place from the entrance to the last room, giving a walkthrough to the tenant referring to the relevant pictures every step of the way. It will provide them with a clear view of how the place would really look.

3. Target tenants

Before putting up your listing, you should ask yourself: To whom should I be listing my house for rent?

Do you have a specific target market in mind? Like students who will have their classes in a college near your flat, or a family who is looking to move to your village, town or city because of a new job or tourists who would only rent out your house for a few days.

Once you have decided, you should write your description catered to the needs of your specified target market. You can mention how far public transportation is, how long you need to walk to your nearest supermarket, or how close you are to dining and entertainment facilities in your area. This information might attract your prospects and push them to browse all your pictures, making it easy for them to decide.

4. Update your property availability

It is one of the neglected tasks that bring down the searchability of your listing. You want to get rental listings displayed when the tenant is searching with filters on looking for available properties only. You will need to regularly update when someone moves in or out to make sure your listing is visible to people actively searching for a home.

5. Give answers to FAQs

Answer frequently asked questions (FAQs) in advance so that the tenant is well informed as it will save time for both of you.

Some FAQs include whether the property is furnished. If it is, specify what ‘furnished’ includes and excludes. Students may be concerned whether the property is student-friendly. Some families are worried about other people living on the same floor, how quiet or noisy the area is, or if it has a garden. Also, indicate clearly if smokers are allowed to rent the place or not. Some families may want to bring their pets along, so be sure to have a clear policy about that.

At ePropertys, you have the option of adding such specifications that can make it convenient for anyone to search for your house with the relevant filters.

6. Reviews and ratings

If possible, include the opinions and reviews of the people who have stayed with you in the past. It gives people a lot of confidence to go ahead and book their house in advance.

Using the tips above, ePropertys’ platform makes it convenient for you to put up a winning listing that would catch the eye of the right tenant. You have the freedom to use our facilities to fit your need and attract the right tenant for you!

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Top six secrets of attracting more tenants to your listing | LandlordZONE.

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INTERVIEW: The young graduate building a student lettings market ‘disruptor’ city by city

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A young entrepreneur and recent graduate who recently launched a new kind of student lettings platform tells LandlordZONE that her business already has a presence in eight key UK cities and has plans to expand into another ten by the end of year.

Called HYBR – short for hibernate – it is the brainchild of 24-year-old former Bristol student Hannah Chappatte (pictured) who says she observed the ‘toxic’ relationship between letting agents, landlords and students and, during her final year, began building its platform and pitching to Bristol landlords.

“I noticed that students hated renting and they distrusted landlords, while landlords distrusted students, so I wanted to create something that would raise the standards of student renting by creating a win-win for all involved,” she says.

HYBR asks landlords to be involved in the running of their rented properties, although it does offer a full management service, but also hand-holds students who use its service with advice and support as they move into, and live within, their rented home.

“HYBR offers [tenants] around-the-clock customer support from former students who understand what they are going through,” she says.

“We offer a broad range of properties and prices that are tailored to the student market, so students only see properties relevant to them.” 

120 properties

The business already has 120 properties on its books in eight cities and, once it gains more investment, hopes to add another ten to the list by the end of the year, aided by 40 ‘ambassadors’ on the ground.

“So far the business has been bootstrapped with our profits and from winning several business competitions,” she says. “But we’re now talking to outside investors to help it expand.”

Chappatte says she launched HYBR because she noticed how landlords had only two options – pay very little to a self-management platform but do a lot of the work themselves, or pay a hefty commission to a letting agency to manage their property – with nothing in the middle.

“For landlords, we offer affordable, flexible packages with all the one-off services they could need at a fraction of the cost of agents, and we source tenants fast. We beat advertising portals through leveraging the use of social media and utilising our ambassador teams,” she adds.

It is currently operational in Bristol, Exeter, Cardiff, Gloucester, Lancaster, Lincoln, Liverpool and Sheffield.

Read more: The ultimate guide to student properties for landlords.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – INTERVIEW: The young graduate building a student lettings market ‘disruptor’ city by city | LandlordZONE.

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While city centre offices remain in the doldrums, other sectors hold out more promise

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According to RetailSector.co.uk a return to offices is seeing a boost in activity with footfall in central London and other UK large city centres outside rising by around 6.5 per cent. In some parts of central London dominated by offices this figure has reached almost 9 per cent.

However, in contrast to the London experience, many provincial and market towns across the UK, footfall has increased much more moderately at around 1.5 per cent as more workers remain home-working in the regions.

Voucher scheme

In Northern Ireland the Economy Minister, Gordon Lyons, has announced the launch of a High Street Voucher Scheme to boost local high street businesses. It means that everyone aged 18 and over can apply for a £100 “spend local” card to use in shops before the end of November. Not surprisingly nearly 500,000 requests have been made for the scheme and the website used of applications was overloaded in the process.

Accordingly, it is easy to see why we welcome the High Street Voucher Scheme, which announced recently, with the objective of boosting local businesses. The £100 per head for the over 18s will be a welcome shot in the arm for the high street.

With the level of demand for commercial property generally reflecting the health of different sections in the economy, it is not difficult to see that prime city centre retailing is in the doldrums, with footfall in Belfast City centre down 19.1 per cent in August, which is ahead of the decline in the rest of the UK where falls were on average at 18 per cent.

The NI voucher scheme which will cost £145m and is designed to boost activity in businesses hit hardest by the coronavirus pandemic, like non-essential retail and hospitality. High streets and town centres in NI were already facing a tough time before the pandemic began with the rise in online shopping. It is hoped the voucher scheme will encourage more people to go out to shops, which could help the economic recovery.

Drive-thru thriving

It’s an ill wind that blows no good, so while the high street has been suffering through the pandemic other sectors have gained traffic. One such is the drive-thru sector, offering convenient and fast way of picking up mainly food. Demand has increased considerably for these relatively safe car-based quick service solutions. You may have noticed the car queues at local Costas and McDonalds or you may even have joined them!

Other businesses in this sector have experienced the increase in business and many are now on the look-out for suitable sites for more outlets. It’s not only McDonalds and Costa, KFC, Greggs, Starbucks, and Tim Hortons are all now in competition for the best locations in this sector.

According to reports in the Irish News from Northern Ireland,

“There is considerable room for continued growth in this sector of the market, however, with many of the sites now occupied it will take innovative thinking on behalf of operators, developers and planners to keep the supply of opportunities going.”

Logistics and warehousing demand

It has been well known in the industry for some time that the warehousing sector has enjoyed a tremendous boost through throughout the Covid pandemic as the surge on online delivers means that warehousing space is essential for many retailers. Demand for these industrial style sheds in the right locations continues apace throughout the UK and in most cases outstrips supply.

An expert’s view

“With this traditional supply diminishing and rents rising, we will start to see some speculative warehousing being built with the emphasis on height and therefore volume for storage and distribution,” says Declan Flynn writing for the Irish News.

“We anticipate rents achievable in this sector to far exceed those for the traditional warehouse market. A notable entrant in this market is Amazon who having only just taken occupation of their 400,000 sq ft distribution centre in Belfast last year and have now revealed plans for a new 70,000 sq ft facility in Mahon Industrial Estate in Portadown, with a further requirement on the cards for the north west.

“Our general outlook for the commercial property market going forward is much more positive than it was this time last year when we were in the middle of lockdown. Transactions had ground to a halt and there was complete uncertainty over the job market, combined with Brexit,” says Mr Flynn.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – While city centre offices remain in the doldrums, other sectors hold out more promise | LandlordZONE.

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That Cockroach time of year!

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Heating ducts and pipes can be prime spots for cockroaches as the heating goes on in the autumn the British Pest Control Association (BPCA) has warned and issued a guide with advice on preventing the warmth-loving insects getting into premises to help private landlords prevent an infestation.

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Setting up a Mixed Partnership Structure?

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My wife and I are both higher rate taxpayers and currently hold a portfolio of 9 BTL properties in joint names. We are familiar with the four structures that we could use to hold & manage the portfolio:
1.

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