LATEST: Official ‘property portal’ being tested by landlords prior to launch

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Private landlords and agents have started helping the government to test its impending property portal.

In answer to a written question about its progress since the announcement as part of the Renters Reform Act white paper last June, DLUHC minister Dehenna Davison (pictured) said it was busy doing research.

“We are conducting ongoing policy and digital development which has included user research with potential users of the portal, such as private landlords, property agents, local authorities and private renters,” said Davison.

“We will continue to conduct testing of potential solutions for the property portal to make sure the system works for different users. Announcements will be made in the usual way.”

The government announced the portal, explaining that it would provide, “a single front door to help landlords to understand, and comply with, their responsibilities as well as giving councils and tenants the information they need to tackle rogue operators”.

Database

It is expected to be similar to, but more comprehensive than, those in Wales and Scotland, using the address of each private rented property in England to create a database of homes and their landlords/agents.

This is likely to include the owner of the property, the company managing it if applicable and a contact address for the owner/management.

This portal could then be linked to any redress cases linked to the property and its landlord and will include any information on outstanding enforcement orders and other breaches of the Decent Homes Standard.

It is still unclear whether it will include regulatory information such as additional or selective licencing, gas safety, MEES and electrical checks.

If you’ve been approached by DLUHC to test out the portal get in touch with LandlordZONE via email.

View Full Article: LATEST: Official ‘property portal’ being tested by landlords prior to launch

Tenants face ‘bleak future’ unless landlords are helped to offset rising mortgage costs

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Ballooning mortgage costs will make an already tight rental market even harder for tenants seeking affordable homes to let, landlords have warned.

Their representative body the NRLA has published research that shows nearly two-thirds of landlords, based on a survey of nearly 800, have at least one buy-to-let mortgage and that among these a third must remortgage over the next 12 months.

Based on Bank of England (BoE) predictions that higher intertest rates will see their BTL mortgage costs climb by an eye-popping £175 a month, something the NRLA says will make an already serious supply problem in the rental market worse.

The BoE also recently said this mismatch between the demand for, and supply of rented housing, is in part a consequence of higher borrowing costs. This is already pushing up prices. The Office for National Statistics today revealed that rents continue to rise significantly across the UK.

Chris Jenkins, its Assistant Deputy Director, says: “Rental prices continue to increase at pace with the largest annual percentage change since UK records began in 2016.

“London’s rental growth continues to pick up with the strongest growth for over seven years.” 

Portfolio shrinkage

Despite the strong demand, 30 per cent of landlords told the NRLA that they plan to cut the size of their portfolio this year, the highest level of planned disinvestment seen in more than six years.

Read more: How to cope with losing mortgage interest relief on your mortgage.

Ben Beadle, Chief Executive of the NRLA, says: “It is time the Government stepped in and accepted calls by the NRLA, the [recent DLUHC] Select Committee and others for tax measures to encourage the supply of homes to rent.

“Without this, renters face a bleak future as finding somewhere to live becomes increasingly harder.”

Read more stories about landlord mortgages.

View Full Article: Tenants face ‘bleak future’ unless landlords are helped to offset rising mortgage costs

Where is the Landlord registered?

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I hold the registered title of Absolute Guarantee to long residential Under Lease to flat and parking space. The residue of the Superior Lease transferred by the Developer to the Right to Manage Company (RMC) a registered limited company subject to a trust in which Leaseholders are Unitholders each hold a £1 paid-up share and was served Notice by the Transferors the RMC is the Landlord.

View Full Article: Where is the Landlord registered?

NRLA call for tax regime change as landlords face higher mortgage costs

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A third of private landlords with a buy-to-let mortgage face the prospect of higher costs this year, according to the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA). 

The Bank of England has warned that by the end of the year

View Full Article: NRLA call for tax regime change as landlords face higher mortgage costs

Positive start to 2023 for property market?

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The housing market has seen a positive start to 2023 according to recent research from Rightmove and TwentyCi.

Rightmove’s latest price index showed the average asking price for a property jumped 0.9% in January, up £3,301 from the month before.

View Full Article: Positive start to 2023 for property market?

54% of tenancy fraud involves fake payslips

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Over half of fraudulent rental applications in 2022 involved fake or doctored pay slips, according to new research. 

The findings from Goodlord analysed 300,000 tenancy applications submitted by people looking to rent homes in 2022. Whilst only a tiny fraction –

View Full Article: 54% of tenancy fraud involves fake payslips

Revealed: Largest number of house price reductions are in this area

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The South-East is home to the highest proportion of asking price reduced properties, according to new research. 

Quick-buy firm House Buyer Bureau, says 21% of properties in the South-East are being reduced in price by almost 20%.

The firm analysed the latest statistics on asking price reductions across the market in Britain using figures from PropertyData.

View Full Article: Revealed: Largest number of house price reductions are in this area

LATEST: Trading Standards issues new guidance for landlords on ground rents

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Trading Standards has released new guidance to help landlords and leaseholders get to grips with the Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act.

The law – published last June – effectively put an end to ground rents for most new long residential leasehold properties in England and Wales.

National Trading Standards Estate and Letting Agency Team (NTSELAT) has now created free resources in a dedicated area on its website.

As well as providing an overview and links to statutory guidance published by the government, stage one and two complaint letter templates can be downloaded when demanding a refund of any prohibited rent payment. These letters are available in both English and Welsh.

The website signposts users to The Leasehold Advisory Service (LEASE) and Citizens Advice Consumer Service (CACS) if they need more advice or to make a complaint about a landlord who has demanded a prohibited rent. 

Missing forms

Investigator Cara McParland says it identified early in the project that the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) and Welsh Leasehold Valuation Tribunal had not published application forms for leaseholders to apply for a recovery order under section 13 of the Act.

She adds: “We are continuing to liaise with both governments and will update the consumer area of our website as soon as the forms are published.”

Trading Standards has also published new information for enforcement officers to make sure the Act is consistently enforced, including a one-minute guide to the new law and a model enforcement policy they can use and adapt.

View Full Article: LATEST: Trading Standards issues new guidance for landlords on ground rents

Tenant claims deposit was given in cash?

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We are in dispute with a tenant that upped and left over a mouse in the house. That’s another story. However, they failed to read the meter on leaving and the electrical company have refused to refund them. They demanded we pay their electric bill and return their deposit.

View Full Article: Tenant claims deposit was given in cash?

Concern over plan for single ombudsman covering whole of housing market

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Estate agents have criticised the Government’s plans to usher in a single ombudsman for the property industry, claiming it will have unintended consequences.

Under the plans, the existing redress schemes for estate agents and their customers will be replaced by an overarching ombudsman organisations that will also cover landlords and their tenants.

This proposal is part of the looming Renters Reform Bill due to be introduced during the current parliament, although plans to introduce redress for landlords has been in the pipeline since Theresa May’s time in office.

Timothy Douglas (main image), Head of Policy at Campaigns at Propertymark, which is the main trade association for agents in the UK, says he is concerned that the Committee has recommended that the UK Government introduce a single ombudsman for the whole of the private rented sector without considering its impact.

Significant change

“Such a significant change needs thorough consideration of the implications on the system as a whole,” he says.

“Alongside letting agents, sales and managing agents are also currently legally required to belong to one of the existing redress schemes, therefore removing these schemes and replacing with one for letting agents and landlords will have knock on effects for the housing sector which the Committee has failed to realise.”

Concerns

Sean Hooker, Head of Redress at the Property Redress Scheme, one of the UK’s two main ombudsman organisations, also reveals his concerns about the proposals.

“Whilst we agree with the principle of a single route for tenants to access effective and affordable complaint resolution the calls for a single body to achieve this are, as Propertymark point out are problematic,” he says.

“Nearly half of landlords use agents in some capacity, many because of their expertise or because the landlord does not live locally, so requiring them to engage with a redress scheme will be challenging. 

“It also does not make sense to reinvent the wheel for agent redress, which works well with two highly experienced and expert redress schemes having successfully operated for years now. 

“I cannot see how either trying to solve the issue of consumer confusion, by introducing yet another ombudsman or trying to start from scratch with a one size fits all body is practical or will benefit anyone. 

“Instead, integrating landlord redress and plugging the gaps such as rent to rent, into the existing process, incorporate mediation but having a single, accessible entry point, with assistance guidance and signposting is the way forward.”

View Full Article: Concern over plan for single ombudsman covering whole of housing market