Buildings insurance increases 70% since last year?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Hi all, I have a 2 bed maisonette in blocks of 4, there are 5 blocks in total.

The Managing Agents have sent the invoices for the ground rent/buildings Insurance to each leaseholder in the blocks (20 in total) which represents 1:20th of the alleged policy premium.

View Full Article: Buildings insurance increases 70% since last year?

BREAKING: Gove green lights expensive new licencing scheme in Nottingham

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Michael Gove has given Nottingham city council the green light to proceed with one of the UK’s most expensive and controversial selective licensing schemes.

Due to start on December 1^st, it will require all rented properties within 20 of its wards to be licenced and has been voted through despite vociferous opposition from local landlords, as LandlordZONE has reported in recent months, including how both the NRLA and EMPO have slammed the scheme.

Some 30,000 properties will be covered by the new rules which, although it is slightly smaller than the previous one that expires today, remains large enough to need Secretary of State approval.

The council has justified the move by claiming it will give private tenants “better quality accommodation and management as well as protection from bad landlords”, a council statement says.

“Tenants will also know what is expected of their landlord in terms of the maintenance, safety and management of their home.

“It will be introduced into areas of the city where the council has gathered evidence of poorer property conditions.

“Landlords of private rented properties in certain parts of the city will soon have to meet a set of conditions and ensure good management of their properties.”

Bad form

The council appears to have listened to some landlords concerns, saying it is simplifying the labyrinthine form landlords and agents were forced to use when applying for the previous scheme, which ran from 2018 until now.

Landlords with licences under that scheme will not need to apply for a new one until their existing one runs out, while those with properties covered by the scheme for the first time will need to apply after September 1^st.

Its higher fees, which have been described by the NRLA as a ‘tax on landlords’ will be £1,118 over five years for non-accredited’ landlords – with accredited ones paying a lower fee.

‘Accredited’ means  landlords who have Nottingham Rental Standard Accreditation via DASH or Unipol.

Councillor Jay Hayes (pictured), the City Council’s Portfolio Holder for Housing, says: “Having a licence will allow landlords to demonstrate that they provide decent quality accommodation for tenants, and we will work with landlords to support them to achieve the licence conditions.

“We believe the scheme will improve the reputation of private landlords, as well as Nottingham’s reputation for providing quality housing.”

Read a full list of the wards covered or partly covered by the scheme.

View Full Article: BREAKING: Gove green lights expensive new licencing scheme in Nottingham

Government is afraid EPC upgrades will be final straw for landlords, says big bank

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A leading lender believes the government’s likely decision to row back on EPCs is linked to fears that it will hit an already struggling PRS.

Earlier this week, Housing Secretary Michael Gove suggested a delay in bringing in energy efficiency plans – for rental properties to gain an EPC grade C by 2028 – citing financial pressures on landlords.

Shawbrook Bank’s MD of real estate, Emma Cox (main picture), says the rumoured plans to push back this deadline are reflective of the wider economic challenges facing the rented sector, with the government needing to balance the transition to a low carbon economy with protecting socio-economic groups most directly impacted.

“Tenants are facing rising rents and landlords themselves are adapting to a series of tax and regulatory changes over the last few years alongside rising mortgage rates,” says Cox.

Great strides

“While the property sector has been making great strides towards EPC requirements, our research shows that only a quarter of landlords’ portfolios contain properties that all meet the EPC C target.”

Nearly four-in-ten (38%) have properties that are all rated D or below, rising to 58% of investors in London. Some 71% of all landlords still own at least one property in this category, says Shawbrook.

While the proposed timeline could be pushed back, these changes are still coming, adds Cox.

“Acting sooner rather than later can ensure that landlords make the necessary investments to their portfolio and could help to spread that cost over a longer period.

“The lending industry will need to continue to step up with innovative solutions to fund EPC improvements. Landlords themselves could create competitive advantage as energy bills continue to add significant pressure on incomes.”

View Full Article: Government is afraid EPC upgrades will be final straw for landlords, says big bank

Landlords face hefty bill for EPC upgrades

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Landlords face a £30 billion bill to upgrade their properties to an EPC rating of C, according to new research.

Letting agents Savills reveal 2.9 million homes in the PRS need upgrading to meet proposed regulations to bring all properties to EPC C.

View Full Article: Landlords face hefty bill for EPC upgrades

Property firm reports more landlords selling up as ‘red tape’ burden rises

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Home buying company the Open Property Group (OPG) has reported a 56% jump in PRS property purchases during the past year, with landlords blaming red tape for their decision to sell up.

It bought nearly £6 million worth of property from homeowners and landlords looking for a fast and hassle-free sale in the first half of 2023 and saw a 21% rise in sales between Q1 and Q2.

Nearly 90% of these were houses with an average purchase price of £132,789, typically taking 29 days for completion.

OPG reports that despite fewer transactions taking place across the property sector, about two in five sales are falling through. As a result, more people are turning to cash buyers like OPG as the market continues to feel economic and social pressures, says MD Jason Harris-Cohen (pictured).

“We have seen a record number of completions in the first half of 2023 and unsurprisingly, we’ve also increased our rental purchase activities as landlords continue to face higher finance, management and tax bills.

“But it’s actually increasing legislation that seems to be the most common motivation for investors.”

Tenure

OPG can buy any type of property, regardless of tenure, and have bought many buy-to-let properties without the landlord needing to evict tenants.

The company works with a network of investors, auction houses and estate agents to sell some of the properties on, mostly after some light refurbishment and/or asset management.

Adds Harris-Cohen: “With no end to the cost-of-living crisis on the horizon, I expect enquires to increase for the remainder of the year. But we predict a quieter period for onward sales as we have had slightly below expected results and will be more cautiously trading to retain more capital.”

View Full Article: Property firm reports more landlords selling up as ‘red tape’ burden rises

Payday! Three tenants to share £20,000 after landlord fails to licence property

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Three tenants have won a £20,160 rent repayment order from their landlord who failed to licence his HMO.

A First Tier Property Tribunal found that Simon Freed let out the three-bedroom flat in Frognal Court, Camden (main picture), after the council had introduced an additional licensing scheme.

The tenants signed a tenancy agreement with him, trading as F&M Investments Ltd, for 12 months in September 2021, paying their £2,400-a-month rent first to the landlord and then to Vita Properties, which the court ruled was evidence that Freed was within the definition of a person managing the premises.

However, he was debarred from proceedings as he had only responded to court directions on the morning of the hearing after claiming emails had gone into his junk mail folder.

Reasonable excuse

The tribunal judge ruled that not checking his email folders was not a reasonable excuse for not complying with the directions. He also ruled that there was insufficient evidence to raise a defence of reasonable excuse.

Freed’s tenants claimed that their landlord didn’t provide a gas safety certificate, electrical installation condition report and How to Rent guide, or display his details.

They had applied for a rent repayment order of £28,800, however, as the house didn’t have any major structural or safety defects, the court made a total reduction of 30%.

The judge said: “There was some indication that Mr Freed rented other properties elsewhere, as correspondence from his former managing agents refers to them managing ‘properties’. This would suggest a slightly higher level of culpability.”

Pic: Chancellors/Rightmove

Read the decision in full.

View Full Article: Payday! Three tenants to share £20,000 after landlord fails to licence property

Your invitation to the biggest virtual property event

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On Wednesday 2nd August, 6pm to 9pm, there is a fantastic opportunity for you to connect with investors from all around the UK and overseas who you might otherwise never get to meet, as a participant in the property investors network

View Full Article: Your invitation to the biggest virtual property event

Landlord’s EPC deadline: Does anyone else feel conned?

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Have you invested thousands of pounds to upgrade your rental property to meet the proposed EPC rating of C? Or have you decided it’s too expensive to do the work and sold up? Then this week’s news from Michael Gove probably made you very angry.

View Full Article: Landlord’s EPC deadline: Does anyone else feel conned?

Council’s desperate measures to stop landlords evicting tenants revealed

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Brent Council is paying a landlord to house the tenant he was trying to evict after failing to come up with any alternative accommodation.

The authority paid the legal fees and took over responsibility for paying the rent as long as the landlord continued to let his tenant stay on in the property.

LegalforLandlords made the Section 21 application in February and possession was granted in April. Two months’ later, the letting agent which had started proceedings on behalf of its landlord client was told that, providing he was willing to halt proceedings, the council would step in to cover his costs.

LegalforLandlords MD Sim Sekhon (pictured) believes that with many small landlords leaving the sector – fearing changes in the Renters Reform Bill – Brent Council’s actions might make them pause for thought.

It could be a rare, isolated case of a council unable to prevent a homelessness case but might also be a practical solution that could work for both private landlords and tenants, he says.

No alternative

“It’s worth remembering that the private landlord in this situation agreed to the deal, but it could be that he or she had no real alternative.

“They were already out of pocket and facing a wait of many months for a bailiff. Suddenly there’s an offer made that seems to bring immediate relief and recompense. Is that a real choice?”

With a shortage of social housing, landlords could find themselves effectively forced to provide the housing that councils can’t, adds Sekhon who asks: “Will the combination of a clogged court system and the bailiff backlog drive force private landlords to retain unsuitable tenants?”

Read more about evictions.

View Full Article: Council’s desperate measures to stop landlords evicting tenants revealed

Brum landlords slam selective licencing as council prepares to enforce rules

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Landlords in Birmingham have slammed the city’s new selective licensing scheme which some claim is unfairly targeting ethnic communities.

The scheme, which took effect at the beginning of June, affects all landlords in 25 of the city’s wards which have more than 20% of rented properties and high levels of deprivation. The council will begin enforcement work at more than 40,000 properties from September.

Liz Murphy, who lets several flats in the city centre, told the BBC she was shocked to learn of the £700-per-property fee. “At a time when margins are small and ever decreasing, many landlords may just sell up and leave the market, which is not good for the community. I would love to hold the council to account and ask where my £700 will go. We can’t see any value to this.”

Faulty logic

She added it felt “very likely” that costs would be passed on to tenants, something she described as “faulty logic” on the local authority’s part.

“I think the problem the council and the government need to understand is that if they make it more expensive and more complicated for landlords, a lot of us will just sell up and stop being landlords.”

Letting agent and landlord Mohammed Hamed also criticised the council’s approach, which he said was unfairly targeting predominantly black and ethnic minority areas.

“If it was across the board and all over Birmingham then I could understand,” said Hamed. “But if you look at the percentage of people who live in these 25 wards, it is all ethnic minority.”

LandlordZONE forum members have been equally scathing, one calling the scheme an ‘unfair tax on the PRS’.

The council has explained that it wants to ensure private properties in the poorest wards are providing fit and proper accommodation and that landlords are meeting their legal responsibilities. 

View Full Article: Brum landlords slam selective licencing as council prepares to enforce rules