The mortgage consent mistake that put a landlord at risk

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The mortgage consent mistake that put a landlord at risk

The landlord had a standard residential mortgage but decided to let out their property when work took them abroad. They assumed the lender wouldn’t notice and went ahead without seeking consent. When the lender carried out a routine check, they discovered the property was tenanted. The landlord was in breach of their mortgage terms, exposing themselves to the risk of repossession and immediate demand for repayment. The tenants, meanwhile, were left anxious about their security of tenure.

Lenders treat letting without consent as a serious breach. Some allow temporary “consent to let” arrangements for a fee, while others insist on switching to a formal buy-to-let mortgage. Ignoring this step places landlords in jeopardy, as insurers may also refuse claims if the property is being used contrary to mortgage terms. In this case, a simple phone call to the lender could have prevented a high-stakes compliance risk.

The lesson is clear: landlords must align lending arrangements with letting intentions. Mortgage conditions are not optional, and assuming no one will notice is a gamble that risks both property and financial stability.

What do you think?

Have you ever had to seek consent to let from your lender? Did you find the process straightforward or restrictive?

Source: MoneyHelper: Consent to Let explained

Previous articles in this series

Landlord Lessons: The AST date mistake

Landlord Lessons: The missing inventory

Landlord Lessons: The verbal agreement trap

Landlord Lessons: The gas safety lapse

Landlord Lessons: The unprotected deposit

Landlord Lessons: The unlicensed HMO

Landlord Lessons: The electrical safety lapse

Landlord Lessons: The Right to Rent slip

Landlord Lessons: The ignored repair

Landlord Lessons: The insurance blindspot

Landlord Lessons: The rent-to-rent risk

Landlord Lessons: The Section 21 error

Landlord Lessons: The Section 8 misstep

Landlord Lessons: The selective licensing oversight

Landlord Lessons: The EPC blindspot

Landlord Lessons: The rent increase mistake

Landlord Lessons: The service charge shock

Landlord Lessons: The tax record slip

Landlord Lessons: The guarantor gap

Landlord Lessons: The referencing shortcut

Landlord Lessons: The pet clause oversight

Landlord Lessons: The fire safety lapse

Landlord Lessons: The legionella neglect

Landlord Lessons: The asbestos surprise

Landlord Lessons: The DIY eviction disaster

Landlord Lessons: The rent collection chaos

Landlord Lessons: The repair retention row

Landlord Lessons: The unserved notice oversight

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I think my Airbnb guests were strippers and now I have a glitter problem

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I think my Airbnb guests were strippers and now I have a glitter problem

I have been an Airbnb host for about six years, and I thought I had seen everything. I was wrong.

I recently accepted a three-night booking from three young women. They looked perfectly normal on their profile. Nothing unusual. The messages were polite, check-in was smooth, and I did not give them a second thought.

The first sign that something odd was happening came from the neighbour. She asked me, in that half-concerned and half-nosy tone that older neighbours do so well, whether I knew the guests were “working nights”. I asked what she meant. She said she had seen them leaving the property at around eleven o’clock, wearing full evening wear. Not the sort of outfits anyone wears to go to Tesco.

I brushed it off at the time. Some people go out clubbing midweek. It is not my business.

The second sign came from my cleaner. She sent me a voice note the following morning, saying she could not get inside because “they are still getting ready for work”. At that point, I thought my neighbour must have misinterpreted something, because who gets ready for work at half eleven in the morning after coming home at four?

Then the third sign arrived, and this is the one that made everything click. One of the guests messaged me asking if I had any spare full-length mirrors because they “needed them for rehearsals”. I told them I did not. They said not to worry, they would improvise.

By now, I had built a fairly accurate picture of what they were doing, but they were tidy, polite and not causing damage, so I convinced myself to leave it alone. If they chose to live that way, that was their business.

The real problem happened after they checked out.

My cleaner rang me, sounding exasperated. She said the place was spotless except for one thing. She said the carpet looked like someone had exploded a craft shop inside the living room. I went over to see it myself. She was not exaggerating. There was glitter everywhere. Embedded in the carpet, stuck to the curtains, wedged in the skirting boards.

I vacuumed, she vacuumed, we tried sticky rollers, we tried a carpet brush, we tried duct tape. It barely made a dent. Every time we thought we had cleared it, we walked across the carpet and our shoes lit up like disco balls.

I cannot list the property again until it is resolved.

My question: Is there any vacuum cleaner on earth that actually removes glitter from carpet, or am I looking at a full replacement?

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Landlords blast selective licensing scheme as anger grows after first year

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Landlords blast selective licensing scheme as anger grows after first year

Angry landlords have hit out at their town’s selective licensing scheme, a year after it was introduced.

They accuse the council of creating higher rents, driving evictions and worsening local housing pressures, Teesside Live reports.

The five-year scheme, covering central Stockton, north Thornaby and Newtown, has issued more than 1,400 licences since its launch.

Landlord opposition was clear long before the rollout, with only 3% backing the plans in the council’s 2024 consultation.

Now, a one-year update on the scheme at a Safer Stockton Partnership meeting led councillors to praise the scheme’s impact.

Dick Turpin wore a mask

One landlord argued the policy completely misunderstands the realities of the sector, saying “we are not babysitters and cannot control how tenants conduct their lives”.

Another warned they would “just sell my properties” in response.

Several landlords say the scheme has backfired, with one calling it an “own goal” and an “exercise in futility”.

Others were even more blunt with a landlord saying: “Selective licensing is just a cash cow for the council. At least Dick Turpin had the decency to wear a mask.”

Stockton’s licensing scheme criticised

Other landlords have highlighted how the scheme has caused “real and lasting harm to the community”.

One said: “Lots of tenants have been evicted because of the new schemes. Well done Stockton Council! Another self-induced own goal.”

Some argue tenants are the ones paying the price with rents going up to pay the license fee.

Another landlord said: “The licensing scheme is a joke. Total waste of time. The scheme is a disgrace. Four years to go, then it will end, thank God.”

Landlords are selling up

Frustrated landlords also highlighted the scheme’s impact with one stating: “Landlords are selling up and evicting tenants. We now have more ‘low housing demand’ in the area than before, but that was why the council brought the scheme out, saying they would solve it.”

However, it’s not just landlords who are unimpressed; tenants aren’t too.

One reportedly said he is “fed up of getting knocks at the door” from officers.

He added: “They think they are helping us tenants. Well, I have a message to them, ‘no you aren’t, leave me in peace, I don’t want you round and you’re not coming in.’”

He also criticised the language used around inspections, saying officials should “show greater respect.”

Council praises licensing

The council insists the licensing scheme is delivering what it set out to do.

Councillor Richard Eglington, cabinet member for regeneration and housing, told the news site: “Before the implementation of selective licensing in central Stockton, north Thornaby and Newtown, the council consulted extensively with landlords, managing agents and those living in the proposed selective licensing areas to seek views on the proposals.”

He added that ‘all feedback’ was considered before its introduction and he insists that the scheme is working by improving the condition and management of private sector housing, with ‘positive outcomes’ for landlords and tenants.

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