Interest rates have gone up but Landlords don’t need to panic

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Landlords have been under a lot of pressure recently, with interest rates going up, house prices dropping, and changes in government, anxiety levels have been at an all-time high. However, despite the current state of affairs, we still have options to help us get through this patch without panicking.

View Full Article: Interest rates have gone up but Landlords don’t need to panic

NEW: Brighton squeezes HMO sector even harder with new policies and guidance

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Brighton & Hove Council is squeezing its HMO sector even harder by introducing a tough new set of policies designed to reduce their impact on local communities.

Its City Plan Part 2 includes new guidance for those applying for planning permission as well as rules covering buying and selling HMOs.

An Article 4 direction already means that landlords need planning permission to change a house to an HMO everywhere within the city, where there are about 5,000 licensed HMOs.

The new guidance relates to both new-build HMO planning applications and changes of use to or from a single-family home to an HMO.

Applications will now only be considered where all the following criteria are met:

• fewer than 20% of dwellings in the wider neighbourhood area are already in use as HMOs;
• the proposal does not lead to three or more HMOs immediately next to each other or in a non-HMO house being sandwiched between two HMOs;
• space standards and cooking and bathroom facilities are appropriate in size to the expected number of occupants.

In future, landlords will be able to buy an existing small HMO and use it as a single-family dwelling without planning permission for a change of use, however if they buy a larger HMO that has housed six or more people to use as a single-family dwelling, they or the vendor will need to apply to the council for change of use.

Read more: Complete guide to renting an HMO property.

Councillor David Gibson (pictured), co-chair of the housing committee, says: “City Plan Part 2 sets out better management of the supply of Houses in Multiple Occupation. I am pleased to say that City Plan Part 1 and its restrictions on HMOs have had a very noticeable impact, and this will be strengthened by the newly introduced policies in City Plan Part 2.”

Read the new Brighton guidance in full.

View Full Article: NEW: Brighton squeezes HMO sector even harder with new policies and guidance

LATEST: Government has ‘broken the PRS’ during its war on landlords

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Landlords have accused the Government of “breaking the private rented sector” with its relentless regulatory and tax policies.

The comments have been made by the NRLA, which says that while demand for rented homes is rising as home ownership becomes less affordable, the number of properties in the market continues to dwindle.

Successive Conservative governments have set out on a “deliberate effort to discourage investment in the private rented housing” for over seven years now, it claims.

This includes measures to restrict mortgage interest relief and imposing a three per cent stamp duty levy on the purchase of homes to rent out, and a looming Capital Gains Tax expected in Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s Autumn Statement tomorrow.

“The Government’s strategy for the private rented sector lies in tatters,” says Ben Beadle, Chief Executive of the NRLA.

“The fact that the supply of homes to rent is falling despite an increase in demand is a damning indictment of tax decisions which serve only to increase rents and make home ownership more difficult to achieve.

“Further tax hikes on the sector risk making an already bad situation worse. Ministers need to recognise that a healthy and vibrant private rental market needs to sit alongside, rather than be in competition with, efforts to support homeownership.”

250k drop

Official ONS figures show that the number of households in the private rented sector has fallen by over a quarter of a million over the past five years while demand from prospective tenants has soared – up by 142 per cent now compared to the five-year average, according to Zoopla.

And the demand for rental housing is set to grow further as mortgages become more expensive, the NRLA is warning that further tax hikes will serve only to “exacerbate the crisis facing many tenants trying to find housing”. 

Read more: What the renting reforms mean for landlords.

View Full Article: LATEST: Government has ‘broken the PRS’ during its war on landlords

Inventories ‘key tool’ for landlords seeking to comply with looming rent reforms

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Inventories will be key to easing the sector’s fears when England’s rent reform proposals become law, says No Letting Go CEO, Nick Lyons (pictured).

He believes that everyone wants decent homes in the PRS as well as a level playing field for letting agents and tenants.

“This is best achieved through transparency at the outset of a tenancy agreement, regular monitoring throughout its duration and a thorough, detailed inspection when the term comes to an end,” explains Lyons.

He says the Renters’ Reform Bill proposals take what is already best practice and make it a legal requirement.

“Reputable letting agents already operate at a level which is not threatened by these measures, but as an industry, letting agents and those servicing the sector must make sure that they are meticulous in all aspects of their operations”, he says.

Spot on?

Lyons adds that 80% private rented homes already achieve or surpass the Decent Homes Standard and while there are adequate protections in existence, it is important to ensure that protocols and compliance are spot on.

“This is the last line of defence,” he says. “Critical to that is the preparation of a professionally prepared inventory – agreed and signed off by both parties – to underpin every tenancy agreement and reassure agents and landlords that their properties are valued as homes and treated with due care and respect for the duration of the letting term.”

View Full Article: Inventories ‘key tool’ for landlords seeking to comply with looming rent reforms

NRLA proposal on anti-social behaviour accepted by the Government

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The Government has accepted a proposal from the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) to tackle anti-social tenants who cause misery for neighbours and fellow tenants alike.

Felicity Buchan, the minister for the Private Rented Sector, says that the Government’s ambition is to strengthen the grounds enabling landlords to tackle anti-social behaviour when Section 21 repossessions are scrapped.

View Full Article: NRLA proposal on anti-social behaviour accepted by the Government

The UK’s house prices stall – but rents rise

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The UK’s average house price increased by 9.5% over the year to September, down from 13.1% in August, data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveals.

The latest house price index shows the annual percentage change slowed because house prices rose sharply in September 2021

View Full Article: The UK’s house prices stall – but rents rise

BREAKING: Minister says Government will ‘never allow rent controls in England’

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Newly-installed PRS housing minister Felicity Buchan has told a meeting of landlords that her Government would never bring in rent controls.

Her comments came during the NRLA’s annual conference in Coventry during which she also committed to ‘stick around’ and made several comical allusions to the short tenures of previous housing ministers.

Buchan also said the Government accepted the NRLA’s proposal to tackle anti-social behaviour by tenants.

This includes convening a meeting of key stakeholders representing landlords, tenants, the police, local authorities and others to develop plans to ensure swift and effective action can be taken against tenants who behave badly.

But the Minister confirmed that Section 21 would be going and counselled the sector to get ready for the eventuality, outlined the Government’s commitment to ensure its plans to reform the private rented sector work for responsible landlords as well as tenants and said she understood concerns about the impact its plans could have on the student housing market.

Likewise, she made clear the importance of the court system working “properly and efficiently” when Section 21 is abolished.

Confidence

Ben Beadle (pictured), Chief Executive of the NRLA, says: “We welcome the Minister’s comments and agree that the Government’s rental reform plans need to enjoy the confidence of both responsible landlords and tenants.

“The NRLA has made clear that more needs to be done to ensure the behaviour of anti-social tenants can be tackled effectively when Section 21 goes.

“We therefore welcome the Minister’s acceptance of our proposal for a roundtable on the issue.

“It is vital that all key stakeholders representing landlords, tenants, the police and others can develop clear and workable plans to ensure neighbours and fellow tenants alike are not left at the mercy of nightmare tenants.”

Pic credit: NRLA

Read more: What will happen after section 21 goes? 

View Full Article: BREAKING: Minister says Government will ‘never allow rent controls in England’

London’s rental prices reach record high weekly price

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New figures show that London’s rent prices have reached record highs, as rising interest rates and lack of supply put pressure on rents, Foxtons reports.

In October, rents reached a new record high of £571 per week, exceeding the previous high of £553 per week in September 2022.

View Full Article: London’s rental prices reach record high weekly price

LATEST: Landlords raise rents and sell properties as costs rise

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Almost three in five (60%) small portfolio landlords are preparing to increase rents to compensate for higher costs, while a fifth plan to sell some of their properties to directly combat the cost-of-living crisis.

A third of these landlords are looking for ways to make their properties more energy-efficient to address rising fuel bills, finds new research from Handelsbanken, which believes tenants could be impacted by any belt-tightening as a quarter of landlords say the economic climate will affect their maintenance and refurb programmes.

More than a fifth of portfolio landlords have had at least one mortgage deal fall through, with 40% reporting that their lender has increased the loan rate on one or more properties.

Stamp duty

As a result, 45% are planning to buy lower-value properties to remain under the stamp duty land tax threshold.

The study also shows that more than a third (34%) are cutting back on buying properties in cities as the market adjusts to more people working from home.

James Sproule (pictured), UK chief economist at Handelsbanken, says falling house prices in some areas and a rising regulatory burden are being viewed by some landlords as a reason to reduce their exposure to the market.

“While the ongoing cost-of-living crisis might be seen as the driving factor in the buy-to-let market, equally important are the post-pandemic movement back into cities, potential buyers delaying purchases and thus looking to rent, and fewer properties, meaning those who do persevere, are likely to see higher yields,” he adds.

Read the report in full.

View Full Article: LATEST: Landlords raise rents and sell properties as costs rise