LATEST: Investors give green initiative £5.5m to kickstart PRS ‘upgrade revolution’

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Energy technology firm Sero has been given a multi-million-pound cash injection to develop products and services to help landlords and building societies provide low carbon solutions for new-build and existing homes.

Cardiff-based Sero aims to create more net zero homes throughout the UK using a £5.5 million investment from Legal & General Capital and Hodge, a specialist in mortgages, commercial finance and savings.

It currently has links with 30 social landlords but has anambition to work with private landlords – both individuals and institutions – in the near future.

To achieve the UK’s target of net zero by 2050, almost every home will need to be improved or retrofitted with a combination of enhanced energy efficiency and low carbon heating, according to Sero, which has forged relationships within the housing sector, creating tailored net-zero energy retrofit plans for homes.

CEO James Williams (main pic centre, under letter ‘R’) says improving the energy efficiency of the UK’s homes can provide long term economic benefit and comfort to residents, as well as reducing carbon emissions.

Huge milestone

He adds: “This investment is a huge milestone for Sero as we grow and bring new products to market to help the UK in its delivery of net-zero.

“We look forward to now working together to create strategic opportunities for the business, in particular expanding our presence within new and emerging sectors, such as working with banks and building societies to support the development of green finance products.”

Later this spring, Sero will launch its Building Passport, a digital app that gives homeowners a better understanding of the carbon footprint of their home and how they can make it more energy efficient, tracking its progress.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – LATEST: Investors give green initiative £5.5m to kickstart PRS ‘upgrade revolution’ | LandlordZONE.

View Full Article: LATEST: Investors give green initiative £5.5m to kickstart PRS ‘upgrade revolution’

Why tenants prefer wooden flooring

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Laminate flooring or engineered wood flooring is the ideal choice for a rental property.

There are several reasons why this is the case, so if you need persuading then… read on.

Affordability

As well as cost, most landlords want flooring to be a balance between durability, aesthetics and ease of cleaning – because that’s what most tenants want too.

Happily, both engineered wood flooring and laminate flooring achieve this balance.

Aesthetic appeal

Laminate flooring helps to provide the natural look that most people love about wood, but it is considerably cheaper.

Rental properties tend to need a more neutral-looking floor that most people would be happy with.

Vibrant colours and extensive patterns may suit some, but most tenants prefer to have something that looks a lot more neutral.

There are not many people who do not like the natural look of wood either.

Another bonus of laminate flooring is that printing technology has made it very difficult to tell laminate apart from a real wood floor.

And tenants who want to opt for a much more vibrant look can easily place a rug of their choosing to brighten up the space.

Easy to install

Laminate planks are easy to install. The best thing about them is that they essentially click together.

A local floor company will not usually charge a lot for the installation. If you opt for flooring such as tile or even carpet however then you may end up paying more for them to put it down for you, and you will probably need to replace it sooner too. This is the last thing that you want, as it’ll eat into your profits.

The seamless installation process also helps you to get a clean finish, every time.

Long-lasting

If you opt for a good quality laminate, then this can last between 15 and 20 years.

Some laminate floors have been known to last up to 30 years if there are not many tenants and if they treat it very gently.

If you buy a good-quality laminate floor from a trusted company then you may find that they come with a very solid protective coating.

This means that the floor is far more scratch-resistant when compared to other types of flooring and it is also stain-resistant too. If an area does become damaged, then it is very easy to replace it if you buy a few extra planks.

Convenient to clean

Laminate flooring is preferred because it just needs a quick sweep and mopping. If tenants leave and they have not kept the floor clean, it doesn’t take long to rectify the situation. It doesn’t stain easily and, should it get overly wet, it is very easy to dry.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Why tenants prefer wooden flooring | LandlordZONE.

View Full Article: Why tenants prefer wooden flooring

UK’s biggest secret landlord reveals why he’s selling up most of his portfolio

admin    Uncategorized     agents

LandlordZONE sits down with one of London’s most prolific but little-known landlords who has spent 30 years amassing a huge portfolio in the East End and West End areas of the capital.

For reasons of privacy, and a desire to remain ‘behind the scenes’, he doesn’t want to reveal his identity.

But his story – and worries over the future of the private rented sector, will ring bells with many of the other landlords who set out on their buy-to-let journey during the ‘boomtime’ 1990s.

Why did you get into property?

“My brother and I ran a company operating in the house building sector which went bust during the post-1990 recession, so it was time to try something new and we bought our first property using personal credit cards – a one-bedroom flat for £6,500.

“We then bought approximately six properties using this method. In those days that meant assuming low or no capital growth, because we didn’t believe flats in Hackney would ever rise in value so instead, we relied on the rent to provide the profit.”

How did you grow so fast?

“We discovered that the local council was offering landlords £5,000 a year to rent a one-bed apartment to tenants on benefits and on that basis we turned to a major bank, Allied Irish, who appreciated the opportunity and helped us finance further purchases – although we paid 30% annual interest on what were essentially bridging loans. But with figures like that it didn’t matter.

“Not for the first time we then ended up being in the right place at the right time – during the mid-1990s the first buy-to-let mortgages came out, so we transferred the whole portfolio over and, because the properties had shot up in value as the East End became gentrified – or yuppified as we used to say – so the LTV ratios worked. We reduced the interest we paid from 30% to 10%.

“We then carried on, gathering 250 properties.”

What happened next?

“The portfolio became a monster but happily many of the properties had gone from £10,000 to £200,000 in 10/15 years, so we sold a lot of the East End ones and bought more upmarket properties in the West End – so fewer properties but higher value.

“We took advantage of the weak sales market at the time in central London just after the 9/11 event in the US.

“Developers had unsold off-plan units that often came with the deposit paid by investors who had then withdrawn – so in return for taking the deposits we took on the contracts.

“It was a huge gamble, but by the time they were completed, the flats had doubled in value. Again, in the right time and in the right place.

“Then we had 100 properties in the East End, and 50 in central London – the beast had been tamed!”.

What next?

“I went to a meeting just before the Covid pandemic began that revealed how government’s plans to ban Section 21 which scared the hell out of me – our model of finance and operation was based on being able to evict tenants who caused problems or didn’t pay their rent relatively easily.

“If that process is going to become more difficult then our business model doesn’t stack up, so I began selling off some of the portfolio. My aim is to have around 40 mainly in the West End. That way I can keep a more personal tab on the tenants.

“Saying that, over the past 30 years the portfolio has always achieved 99% of its income and we’ve had few problems with bad debt because we’ve stuck to what we know and where we know – as soon as you get out of your comfort zone you are exposed.”

What would you say to the next generation?

“I’m going to be in my mid-sixties soon, so I feel it’s time for the next generation to pick up the reins. I believe that the future of landlording is more corporate and ‘professional’ and the bigger portfolios be increasingly funded via investment finance.

“These days you couldn’t start up as we did – the extra regulations and other responsibilities mean it’s a much more serious commitment now, and self-management on a large scale is much more of a challenge. Instead, I am going to invest in art and continue my philanthropic projects.”

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – UK’s biggest secret landlord reveals why he’s selling up most of his portfolio | LandlordZONE.

View Full Article: UK’s biggest secret landlord reveals why he’s selling up most of his portfolio

Rent being held back by agent after slipping on to periodic tenancy?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

When starting out as a landlord 10+ years ago, I used letting agents to find tenants. One extreme annoyance was having to carefully read through (and often modify) each agent’s own tenancy agreement. After a year, I stopped using agents and worked with my own template agreement that I drew up with the help of a solicitor

Fast-forwarding to late 2020

The post Rent being held back by agent after slipping on to periodic tenancy? appeared first on Property118.

View Full Article: Rent being held back by agent after slipping on to periodic tenancy?

Welsh landlord faces huge fine over multiple HMO regulation breaches

admin    Uncategorized     agents

A landlord and ‘property investor’ has admitted a string of housing offences relating to his Newport HMO after previously denying he had done anything wrong.

Robert Evans, 51, of Cefn Tilla Road, Usk, appeared before Gwent magistrates charged with three offences over the management of the Redland Street property in the Crindau area of the city (pictured).

His fine may be hefty – in 2020 a landlord in Newport was fined £20,000 plus costs for similar offences.

He had been in court last October when he pleaded not guilty but has now admitted controlling or managing an HMO without a licence in January 2020.

Evans was also charged with failure to comply with a housing notice and to produce the necessary documents.

The third charge was of failing to ensure that firefighting equipment and fire alarms were in good working order, it has been reported.

Sentencing

Evans is set to appear before magistrates on 28th January for sentencing and has been ordered to provide the court with the last three years’ worth of his accounts and tax returns.

Company House records show that Evans is a ‘property investor’ and ‘property consultant’ with three different companies registered. Two are involved in lettings and the third is involved in property development.

Newport has both a mandatory and additional licensing scheme that cover all HMOs in the city. Its HMO licensing scheme came into force on 1 July 2019 and expires 30 June 2024.

A property must have a licence if there are three or more unrelated people forming more than two households in the same building.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Welsh landlord faces huge fine over multiple HMO regulation breaches | LandlordZONE.

View Full Article: Welsh landlord faces huge fine over multiple HMO regulation breaches