‘Rent-to-Rent’ agency goes quiet leaving tenant without hot water or power

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The staff of a rent-to-rent operator in Birmingham appear to have gone to ground, leaving one tenant forced to wash with a bucket in his garden after his power was cut off in an energy bills dispute.

Nick, 36, tells StokeonTrentLive that he’s living off cold and pre-prepared food and has no access to hot water. He has been paying agent Virtual Rooms £500-a-month rent – including bills – for a room in the shared house, but now can’t contact the company, which is not answering the phone or emails.

Letting agency Virtual Rooms’ website has no properties for rent and seems to be completely non-compliant, without details of fees or membership of any redress, CMP or deposit protection organisation. Neighbouring companies who shared the city-centre address had never heard of the firm.

The case is unlikely to be the last of its kind this winter – many marginal rent-to-rent operators who offer tenants ‘all inclusive’ deals will now be struggling to make any profit as energy prices soar.

Showering

In this case, the unfortunate tenant is showering in the late afternoon once a bucket of water has been warmed by the sun, and is relying on an extension lead running from a neighbour’s home to keep his fridge and fish tank filter running.

He tells the website: “It started when the energy company knocked on the door one day to check the meter. Then all of a sudden the power got switched off and we had a letter saying £12,000 was owed on the gas and more than £5,000 on the electric. We’ve had no gas or electric since. We can’t live like this anymore.”

Councillor Marcus Bernasconi (pictured) labels it the latest in a long line of examples of absentee landlords causing misery for private renters in north Edgbaston, although the doesn’t make the important distinction between the landlord and the rent-to-rent operator involved.

He adds: “Virtual Rooms has questions to answer about how it has allowed this to happen. We need to clean this sector up for good. I’d urge those appalled by this story to submit to Birmingham City Council’s consultation on additional licensing for shared housing.”

View Full Article: ‘Rent-to-Rent’ agency goes quiet leaving tenant without hot water or power

Last chance to join the HMO event of the year on 30th September

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HMOs face an unprecedented clamp-down as many local authorities seek to regulate the sector more closely through additional licensing schemes or limit their numbers through Article 4 direction legislation.

But one organisation is seeking to change how houses in multiple occupation or HMOs are viewed by all stakeholders, be they agents, landlords, tenants or regulators.

That organisation is the HMO Awards, an event being held at the National Trust-run Stowe House in Buckingham throughout the afternoon and evening of 30^th September.

If you have an interest in HMOs for whatever reason then LandlordZONE would urge you to attend – tickets cost £200 ex VAT and cover both the conference and discussion forums taking place during the day, and the evening award event.

LandlordZONE has a vested interest in the awards, which have picked us as a finalist in the category of ‘Best HMO Content or Media’ within its Services section.

But the many other awards are really for those working at the coalface and include HMO Manager of the Year, Best HMO Agency, Best Professional HMO Manager and Best Student HMO Manager.

Vibe

“This isn’t a “black tie in a hotel” dinner, but a relaxing vibe where you can meet like-minded people in a beautiful location,” says Helen Turner (pictured) co-founder of HMO management platform COHO, which is organising the event.

During the day there will be eight ‘TedTalk’ style presentations by a raft of experts including portfolio landlord and former Rugby star Jordi Pasqualin.

These will take place between 2pm and 5pm. The awards will start at 5pm and go on until 7pm and then be followed by a celebratory drink and live band.

View Full Article: Last chance to join the HMO event of the year on 30th September

Property insurance costs

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Hi, I made a claim after my tenants ruined the property, stole the bathroom, kitchen, radiators.

The place has been empty since March so large loss of rent.

The insurers would only pay for the boiler to be replaced as this had been hit with a hammer many times.

View Full Article: Property insurance costs

Chronic shortage of rental homes pushes rents up 12%

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Fast-rising rent across the country is seeing a trend for tenants to move into smaller properties to reduce their bills – as rents rocket by 12%.

That’s according to the latest report from Zoopla which highlights there has been a jump in demand for one and 2-bed flats as renters feel the cost-of-living squeeze.

View Full Article: Chronic shortage of rental homes pushes rents up 12%

Government’s rent reforms concern landlords and agents

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A major survey has revealed that the government’s rental reform White Paper is causing growing concern for landlords and letting agents.

Published by Goodlord and Vouch, the survey saw thousands of industry stakeholders take part in largest ever state of the industry research.

View Full Article: Government’s rent reforms concern landlords and agents

Landlords have been treated unfairly, Truss tells Beadle

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The newly published Decent Homes Standard is yet another example of lawmakers laying down rules without any understanding of the rental market – but the new prime minister has promised a sea change.

New prime minister Liz Truss says she feels landlords have been treated unfairly by previous governments and wants to create a less hostile environment.

View Full Article: Landlords have been treated unfairly, Truss tells Beadle

SHOCK: Homeowners and landlords replacing heat pumps with boilers – claim

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According to many companies, heat pumps are our salvation. To homeowners and landlords, they are expensive to buy. That’s okay, right?

Not quite. Home boiler installation experts at Boiler Central have recently seen homeowners return to their natural gas boilers due to heat pumps just not cutting it.

The fact that landlords and homeowners are willing to pay more to remove a heat pump and go back to something they initially thought was ‘too costly’ speaks volumes.

What are homeowners and landlords choosing to heat homes?

Evidently, rising gas prices don’t stop people from changing their gas boilers.

The UK is experiencing rising gas prices and many people are looking for alternatives to the traditional natural gas boiler to heat homes and properties.

People are being offered a mixture of thousands of pounds for switching to an air source heat pump, and standard headlines proclaiming that these are the future. The question is now: Are proprietors making costly and big mistakes?

Are cold tenants going to demand landlords invest back into boilers?

Nationwide boiler installation experts at Boiler Central are experiencing an increase in boiler-to-heat pump conversion requests. 

The latest example is from a cold homeowner in Scotland. A resident wanted his Daikin heat pump removed and replaced by a hydrogen mix-ready gas boiler. 

It was difficult because of the high cost involved but it was necessary as sufficient heat was not produced by the air source heat pumps that were required to successfully heat the property effectively. 

If you are a landlord who has tenants who are a young family or elderly it may be something to consider. 

As a landlord do you choose a heat pump or boiler?

A boiler and heat pump are the equivalents of hot or lukewarm, but as a landlord costs will make likely make the choice for you. 

Experts at Boiler Central recommend that you consider the pros and cons of heat pumps if you aren’t sure whether you want a boiler or heat pump. This is because it can end up costing twice as much, and you end up buying a new boiler replacement.

There are downsides to heat pumps

Heat pumps are the most efficient heating option. Heat pumps can be expensive at first. These are the disadvantages of heat pumps.

High upfront costs to homeowners and landlords

Heat pumps can be expensive upfront, but they offer long-term energy savings. This can reduce carbon emissions. Because of the research required to determine the heat movement, local geology, and heating and cooling requirements for your home, it is difficult to install heat pumps.

Questionable sustainability for homeowners & tenants

Some fluids used in heat transfer may not be sustainable, which could raise environmental concerns. Use biodegradable fluids instead. It is difficult to make heat pumps carbon neutral because they are powered by electricity. 

Problems with Cold Weather

In cold weather, heat pumps are unable to work at their full potential. This problem can be solved by upgrading your heat pump system. The Seasonal Product Factor (SPF) of your heat pump is important.

Future boilers & heat pumps

As you can see, heat pumps are not capable of heating water as well as boilers. If the Government decides to add 20% hydrogen to the gas supply, which is highly likely, it will dramatically reduce carbon emissions. Hydrogen is still very expensive to produce so don’t expect prices to drop.

If you are a landlord looking for a boiler replacement or conversion then don’t hesitate to contact the experts at Boiler Central.

View Full Article: SHOCK: Homeowners and landlords replacing heat pumps with boilers – claim

The Unintended Consequences Of Incorporation

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When Property Investors incorporate their Buy To Let Property Portfolio, there can be unintended consequences if not done correctly.

To avoid these consequences, stay tuned to this final part of our incorporation mini-series with Alex Norian, the property tax specialist

View Full Article: The Unintended Consequences Of Incorporation

Is this legal? Bank wants to amend tenancies

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Hi, We are in the process of remortgaging a block of 9 flats and have had a mortgage offer.

But prior to completion, the bank are insisting that we write an amendment to the existing tenants that if I don’t pay the mortgage they will vacate the flat if instructed by the bank.

View Full Article: Is this legal? Bank wants to amend tenancies

SAFETY CHECKS: 46% of landlords report problems gaining access to properties

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Nearly half of landlords have experienced problems gaining access to their properties to complete mandatory checks including gas safety, it has been revealed.

Leading evictions specialist Landlord Action polled some 1,200 landlords and found that 46% had access problems when carrying out routine checks or gas safety inspections, making compliance extremely difficult.

The research, which was carried out last month, has been released to coincide with the start of Gas Safety Week today.

All landlords renting properties with gas appliances have a legal duty to have a gas safety inspection carried out each year by a Gas Safe registered engineer.

A copy of the gas safety certificate must then be issued to the tenants and, if it is not, evictions can be very difficult to enact.

Paul Shamplina, founder of Landlord Action, says: “Gas safety checks are not only a landlord’s legal obligation, but they are also imperative to ensuring the safety of the property and the tenants living there.

“Of course, sometimes it comes down to when is convenient, but when tenants continually deny access, it becomes a real problem.”

Ground for repossession

Shamplina’s firm is currently putting together a proposal to Ministers that would make a tenant refusing access to a property a discretionary ground for repossession.

“As the market evolves and the balance of power shifts towards the tenant, landlords are contacting us with increasingly complex legal challenges, which are likely to broaden in the future as the sector reforms.

“We already offer access injunctions to complete gas safety checks and are currently looking at what other support landlords may need” adds Paul.

Read a complete guide to gas safety and landlord gas safety certificates.

View Full Article: SAFETY CHECKS: 46% of landlords report problems gaining access to properties