Limited Liability Partnerships “LLP’s” for Landlords Q&A

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Aside from tax, what are the pros and cons of holding UK rental properties in an LLP structure?

ANSWER >>> Holding UK rental properties in a limited liability partnership (LLP) structure can have both advantages and disadvantages. Some of the potential pros and cons of holding rental properties in an LLP structure are outlined below.

View Full Article: Limited Liability Partnerships “LLP’s” for Landlords Q&A

Welsh Landlords – Set Up to Fail?

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Are private landlords in Wales being set up to fail with the new legislation?

The recently implemented Renting Homes (Wales) Act has automatically replaced all existing ASTs with a new “Occupation Contract” from 1 December 2022.

All landlords are now required to issue “Written Statements”

View Full Article: Welsh Landlords – Set Up to Fail?

Merry Xmas and a Happy New Year to all our readers

admin    Uncategorized     agents

2022 has been a rollercoaster ride for landlords and property managers across the private renter sector, and we’d like to wish all of our 1.5 million readers, 50,000 newsletters subscribers and regular LandlordZONE Forum users a very Merry Xmas and a Happy New Year and, Government policy withstanding, a fruitful 2023.

The Landlord team.

View Full Article: Merry Xmas and a Happy New Year to all our readers

Home sellers cut prices to find a sale

admin    Uncategorized     agents

A major house price index says that the UK’s house price inflation is continuing to slow down – leading to property asking prices being slashed.

According to Zoopla, house prices in November rose by 7.2% over 2022 but the slowdown in prices is ‘gaining momentum’.

View Full Article: Home sellers cut prices to find a sale

LATEST:Government to give social tenants right to buy their rented homes

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Tenants in social and affordable housing now have the chance to apply for the government’s Right to Shared Ownership scheme.

The Department for Levelling Up Housing and Communities has published new guidance about the scheme which lets tenants buy a share of their property worth between 10% and 75%, giving them more control and autonomy.

Tenants will be eligible if they have been in social housing for three years, their property was built under the Affordable Homes Programme 2021-26, and they have lived in it for a year.

Shared owners can gradually increase the equity stake in their home, with the option to eventually buy a 100% share, allowing them to reduce the financial impact by accessing a lower mortgage and deposit.

Landlord

Eligible tenants can apply for the Right to Shared Ownership by completing the new application form and returning it to their landlord, who will carry out a series of eligibility checks.

Housing Minister Lucy Frazer (pictured) says: “All hard-working families and young people deserve the chance to live in a home of their own. We are helping tenants to do just that by supporting them with small, manageable steps onto the housing ladder, through the Right to Shared Ownership.”

She adds: “Buying a home is one of the biggest financial decisions people take and this is just one of the ways we are helping more first-time buyers reach their goal.”

The government’s wider Shared Ownership programme has seen thousands of people take their first step on to the housing ladder, with an estimated 136,600 new shared ownership homes built since 2010.

View Full Article: LATEST:Government to give social tenants right to buy their rented homes

LATEST: Manchester kicks off £1.5 million crackdown on bad landlords

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Greater Manchester has set its sights on catching more rogue landlords by implementing its Good Landlord Scheme to train enforcement officers and launch more licensing schemes.

Using £1.5m from the Housing Investment Loans Fund, it has created 10 new trainee roles across the city-region to expand housing enforcement – part of a three-year package of measures that also includes on-the-job training for existing officers.

The scheme, which was announced in April, will also provide funding for local authorities to introduce selective licensing and develop new information and guidance for tenants and landlords.

Trainees will work to support tenants struggling with damp, cold, insecure, or structurally unsound homes, gathering evidence and taking legal action against the worst offending landlords.

It has now started the recruitment process and explains that no previous experience is required.

Decent standard

Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham (main picture), says hundreds of thousands of people living in the private rented sector in Greater Manchester rely on their landlords to uphold a decent standard and look after their homes.

“When those things are done properly, tenants can get on with their lives – but when they’re not, it can take a huge toll on their physical and mental wellbeing,” he adds. “In the very worst cases, it can pose a serious threat to their safety.

“That’s when housing enforcement officers have a vital role to play in supporting tenants and taking enforcement action against unscrupulous landlords.

“The Good Landlord Scheme is one way that we’re responding to this growing issue, by boosting the capacity of our local councils to carry out inspections and intervene.”

The authority also plans to bring forward a Good Landlord Charter next year, to help drive up standards in the sector and deliver on its ambitions for greater control over housing.

View Full Article: LATEST: Manchester kicks off £1.5 million crackdown on bad landlords

Tenant rental dilemma?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

An Agent has forwarded an application to me for consideration:

A 21-year-old to rent a flat. In a job since July so financially on paper can afford the flat. Woking for 4 years before that apparently. Can pay own deposit and RIA.

View Full Article: Tenant rental dilemma?

Hydrogen Ready Stopgap?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Hi everyone, I am looking to replace a central heating boiler in a property with a new one and considering the new future-proofed options may be viable.

I note that most central heating manufacturers are now supplying hydrogen-ready boilers to the market.

View Full Article: Hydrogen Ready Stopgap?

Judge slams ‘arrogant’ landlord after illegal eviction of tenant during Covid

admin    Uncategorized     agents

An NHS doctor has been ordered to pay nearly £9,000 for illegally evicting her tenant at the height of the pandemic after he challenged a rent increase.

Wolverhampton Crown Court heard that Amy Eskander rented a bedroom out in her two-bedroom flat on Station Road (pictured) in Kenilworth between February 2019 and September 2020 and kept the other locked.

She tried to argue that she shared this flat as her principal or only home, which would not have afforded him legal protection from eviction.

But Eskander had signed an assured shorthold tenancy at a property in London and provided evidence in official documents that this was her home.

Text message

When the tenant said he was unable to afford a rent increase in June 2020, Eskander sent him a text message telling him to leave by 12th August.

He continued to pay rent but on 18th September he received a text saying she had changed the locks and removed his possessions.

The court heard that Warwick District Council had previously advised her to serve a legal notice, but instead Recorder Brand KC told Eskander she had “displayed an arrogance which was unattractive”.

He added: “In his last few weeks he had no heating or hot water, and while you did not cause this you did little to help it.”

Advance rent

The landlord had also kept the tenant’s deposit and advance rent and insisted that the case be held at crown court, where the Recorder said the tenant’s credibility had been challenged.

“During that trial you repeatedly lied and made false accusations that (the tenant) had been threatening towards you. I have seen little or no sign of genuine remorse from you.”

Eskander was fined £2,000, ordered to pay £3,600 compensation to the tenant and pay costs of £3,000 to Warwick District Council plus a victim surcharge of £190.

She got off relatively lightly – previous landlords found to have evicted tenants without following due process have been given a suspended jail sentence as well as fines.

View Full Article: Judge slams ‘arrogant’ landlord after illegal eviction of tenant during Covid

Landlords join push to halt Government ‘squeeze’ on private rented sector

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Nearly 80 landlords have signed an open letter to housing secretary Michael Gove warning that his Government’s policy in the rental sector is stoking housing inflation.

The landlords include Ben Beadle, chief executive of the NRLA as well as Guy Piggott, chairman of the Humber Landlords Association, as well as some 250 other business leaders and figures from the world of property including leading letting agents.

Four of these delivered a copy of the letter to Gove yesterday at the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities in London, namely (LtoR) Kristjan Byfield, Co-Founder of The Depositary, William Reeve, CEO of Goodlord, Marco Sun, Director of Marc & Partners and Elise Monkhouse, Operations Team Lead at Reposit.

Exasperation

They are hoping the letter, which was launched last week, will alert Gove to the growing exasperation among agents, landlords and tenants over Government policy within the rental sector, which is curtailing supply, pushing up rents and making finding a property to rent nightmarish in many urban areas.

Signatories say Ministers must address the “unsustainable pressures on the private rented sector”.

The letter goes on to say: “As set out in the recent Renters’ Reform Bill White Paper, current policy objectives include improving the quality of housing and giving tenants greater peace of mind about being evicted.

“These are worthy objectives which we, and most tenants, support. But tenants – whether professionals or students – also want their housing to be affordable, and current policy appears to ignore this point.”

See all the signatories and read the letter. 

View Full Article: Landlords join push to halt Government ‘squeeze’ on private rented sector