A national system of rent controls is a key aim of consultation

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The Scottish Government is consulting on the draft ‘A New Deal for Tenants’  to propose a rented sector strategy looking to improve accessibility, affordability choices and standards across the whole rented sector in Scotland. Click here

It is looking at a phased implementation over the next five years.

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Management Agent Overcharging from 2019?

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Dear All, I own a flat in a block of 6 flats and have been up-to-date with my service charge. Every so often, I get an extra fee called “balancing service charge” after which I had made payment for the annual service charge

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LATEST: Tory tax raid on landlords hitting investment levels hard

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The Government’s raft of tax changes has hit landlords’ investment plans, with 52% deterred from buying more properties, finds a new survey.

An LSE study for the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) found that despite the seismic impact of Covid, tax changes had affected their plans more than the pandemic.

Its survey of more than 1,400 private landlords across England discovered increasing regulation and bureaucracy along with the government’s negative messaging about private landlords and their role in the housing market had also played a part.

Landlords felt vilified and under attack from the Government and, the report said, “the emotive tenor of many comments and the near unanimity of views were striking”.

Recent changes have included restricting mortgage interest relief to the basic rate of income tax, a 3% stamp duty levy on the purchase of additional homes and a decision to cut Capital Gains Tax to 18% for everything other than on gains from the sale of residential property.

Greatest effect

Overall, a third of respondents said the reform to mortgage interest relief was the tax change having the greatest effect on their rental business. Of this group, 39% said the change meant that they were not going ahead with planned future purchases while 31% had put plans on hold and 28% were taking steps to leave the sector altogether.

Another 60 former landlords said their main reasons for leaving the sector were rising costs, tax changes and potential regulatory change.

The study’s authors said individually and cumulatively, the recent changes had reduced the incentive to be a landlord in England.

The add: “These indications may herald the start of a contraction of the sector, unless the economic environment changes. Disinvestment will probably be led by those economically motivated landlords most affected by the recent changes.

“This includes highly leveraged individual investors who are higher- and additional-rate taxpayers as they can no longer deduct mortgage interest at their marginal tax rates.”

Read more about stamp duty.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – LATEST: Tory tax raid on landlords hitting investment levels hard | LandlordZONE.

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SO much for a low-tax economy! Poll shows tax rises hitting landlord activity hard

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The Government’s raft of tax changes has hit landlords’ investment plans, with 52% deterred from buying more properties, finds a new survey.

An LSE study for the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) found that despite the seismic impact of Covid, tax changes had affected their plans more than the pandemic.

Its survey of more than 1,400 private landlords across England discovered increasing regulation and bureaucracy along with the government’s negative messaging about private landlords and their role in the housing market had also played a part.

Landlords felt vilified and under attack from the Government and, the report said, “the emotive tenor of many comments and the near unanimity of views were striking”.

Recent changes have included restricting mortgage interest relief to the basic rate of income tax, a 3% stamp duty levy on the purchase of additional homes and a decision to cut Capital Gains Tax to 18% for everything other than on gains from the sale of residential property.

Greatest effect

Overall, a third of respondents said the reform to mortgage interest relief was the tax change having the greatest effect on their rental business. Of this group, 39% said the change meant that they were not going ahead with planned future purchases while 31% had put plans on hold and 28% were taking steps to leave the sector altogether.

Another 60 former landlords said their main reasons for leaving the sector were rising costs, tax changes and potential regulatory change.

The study’s authors said individually and cumulatively, the recent changes had reduced the incentive to be a landlord in England.

The add: “These indications may herald the start of a contraction of the sector, unless the economic environment changes. Disinvestment will probably be led by those economically motivated landlords most affected by the recent changes.

“This includes highly leveraged individual investors who are higher- and additional-rate taxpayers as they can no longer deduct mortgage interest at their marginal tax rates.”

Read more about stamp duty.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – SO much for a low-tax economy! Poll shows tax rises hitting landlord activity hard | LandlordZONE.

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NRLA commission London School of Economics survey on Landlord tax

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Unsurprisingly, over half of private landlords responding to a new survey say recent tax changes in the rental market have had a negative impact on their investment plans. That’s the finding from a new study by the London School of Economics (LSE) for the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA).

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Bristol significantly expands HMO and selective licensing schemes

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Bristol has approved plans to extend landlord licensing in Brislington West, Bedminster and Horfield wards in a bid to raise PRS standards.

The scheme includes additional licensing – HMOs with three or more unrelated people sharing facilities – and selective licensing – private rented properties occupied by one or two tenants, or a family, that are not HMOs.

Councillor Tom Renhard (pictured) cabinet member for housing delivery and homes, says it has evidence to prove that licensing schemes are proving successful across the city.

During the five-year scheme in Eastville and St Goerge wards, which ended on 30th June, 3,616 licences were issued and 3,409 inspections carried out, with 88% of properties subsequently improved. 

A 10-week public consultation found that 58% of respondents either agreed or strongly agreed with extending the scheme.

He adds: “We are aware that a significant number of HMOs not covered by mandatory licensing are being poorly managed and maintained in these areas.

“We now have extra powers to take action, and we would encourage all landlords to work with us to help protect vulnerable tenants and make people across the city more comfortable in their homes.”

Bristol City Council charges £1,420 for an HMO licence and £1,000 for an additional licence. All 12 wards in the central area of Bristol (pictured) are covered by an additional licensing scheme.

Despite Bristol council’s commentary earlier this year Clear It Waste named the city as having the second-best landlords in the UK, after Sheffield.

Its points-based index found Bristol had high levels of tenant satisfaction and fewer tenants with landlord issues. However, Verve Research reported that lockdown had seen an abnormally high amount of complaints being made about illegal eviction or complaints relating to evictions during the pandemic, with Bristol’s 135 complaints putting it in second highest place out of 20 cities.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Bristol significantly expands HMO and selective licensing schemes | LandlordZONE.

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Agent admits illegally subletting THREE houses but dodges £136k fine

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A sub-letting HMO managing agent has had a whopping £136,000 fine reduced to £31,500 after a judge ruled Epping Forest District Council had come down on him too harshly.

The First Tier Property Tribunal agreed that Darius Endriukaitis was guilty of failure to licence, failure to comply with HMO management regulations and failure to provide information on fire safety measures to tenants.

But it said the council hadn’t taken any personal factors into account and had calculated each penalty in excess of the statutory maximum.

It heard that Endriukaitis worked with fellow Lithuanian Ceslovas Sasnauskas, the sole director of property management company New Property Move.

In September 2019, Endriukaitis signed an assured shorthold tenancy agreement for 7 Hainault Road, Chigwell, that contained a rule against sub-letting.

A month later he started renting rooms out, with rent paid to New Property Move, and up to nine people later lived in the three-bedroom property.

He did the same at 105 Queens Road, where the four-bedroom property was sublet to about nine people and at 17 Palmerston Road, both in Buckhurst Hill, where the six-bedroom house was sublet to a number of people shortly after the tenancy was signed.

‘Not liable’

Although Endriukaitis admitted he rented out all three properties, intending to use them as HMOs, he said that as an employee of New Property Move he could not be liable for the penalties.

The council argued that the arrangement was a joint business venture between Endriukaitis and his friend Sasnauskas.

The tribunal ruled that Endriukaitis could easily have done some research about HMO regulation and should have known that sub-letting the properties without notifying the agent or owner was dubious conduct.

It was satisfied that his involvement with the tenants was on the basis of a joint business enterprise, however, it challenged the council’s penalty of £136,232, and added that it should also have served notice on Sasnauskas personally rather than just the company, which is being dissolved.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Agent admits illegally subletting THREE houses but dodges £136k fine | LandlordZONE.

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Home Office Right to Rent update

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The way in which Biometric Residence Card (BRC), Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) and Frontier Worker Permit (FWP) holders evidence their right to rent is changing. From 6 April 2022, BRC, BRP and FWP holders will evidence their right to rent using the Home Office online service only

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BREAKING: Welsh landlords must give six months’ eviction notice until 24th March

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The Welsh government has taken the unexpected decision to extend the period during which landlords must give tenants six months’ notice prior to an eviction until 24^th March 2022.

The current period had been due to run out on 31^st December but, with time running out, housing and climate minister Julie James has now moved to use her powers under the country’s Covid legislation to extend the eviction regulations.

She has extended the extended-notice eviction rules on several occasions during the pandemic, and the only good news for landlords is that this is the last time the Welsh government can do this without new Covid legislation being passed.

“The purpose of this alteration is to ensure that, at a time when there remains a serious threat to public health, both as a result of Covid-19 case rates remaining high overall and concern regarding the emergence of the new Omicron variant, landlords will continue to be required to provide an increased notice period to tenants before they can issue proceedings for possession,” James told the Welsh Senedd today.

Another blow

Ben Beadle, Chief Executive of the National Residential Landlords Association, says: “The Welsh Government’s decision today to further extend notice periods will come as yet another blow to landlords in the sector.

“It will cause hardship to landlords suffering at the hands of deliberate rent dodgers, as well as those with tenants causing nuisance to neighbours and house mates through anti-social behaviour.

“The decision to ask landlords to carry the Covid can once again, reinforces the need for the Welsh Government to work harder at distributing the tenancy hardship grant to those in greatest need, so that rent debt can be paid down and tenancies sustained in the interest of both parties.”

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – BREAKING: Welsh landlords must give six months’ eviction notice until 24th March | LandlordZONE.

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Contractor sentenced after mishandling asbestos…

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One contractor received a criminal record, being handed out a 100 hours community service sentence, with a further ten days Rehabilitation Activity after he employed untrained labourers to work on a building. They inadvertently disturbed asbestos and were seen by a member of the public working dangerously at height and spreading asbestos debris around the site.

Builder, Fahadh Rasheed was sentenced at Southwark Crown Court after he was employed by the council to convert a toilet block in Valentines Park, Ilford, into a community meeting centre. Unfortunately for Rasheed the building contained asbestos and his unskilled and untrained workers disturbed a significant amount of the dangerous asbestos insulation board present in the structure.

A member of the public reported this to the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) after observing the workers on the roof, without scaffolding or any other safety measures, and asbestos fragments visible across the site.

What should have happened was the builder would have carried out a refurbishment and demolition asbestos survey before he began work and when the asbestos was found, before it was disturbed, a licensed asbestos removal company should have removed it.

Furthermore the workers should have been trained to spot the hazards. The building should have been scaffolded and when he engaged the workers the builder should have made sure they had the necessary skills, knowledge and experience, including working at heights and had asbestos awareness training.

After the court hearing HSE inspector David King said:

“This was a case of a contractor completely failing to grasp the importance of planning, managing and monitoring construction work to ensure the health and safety of construction workers.

Companies and their Directors should be aware that HSE will not hesitate to take appropriate enforcement action against those that fall below the required standards.”

Duty to manage asbestos

Builders and contractors have a statutory duty to manage asbestos, included in the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012. The duty requires them to manage the risk from asbestos by:

– finding out if there is asbestos in the premises (or assessing if asbestos containing materials (ACMs) are liable to be present and making a presumption that materials contain asbestos,

unless there is strong evidence that they do not), its location and what condition it is in;

– making and keeping an up-to-date record of the location and condition of the ACMs or presumed ACMs in the premises;

– assessing the risk from the material;

– preparing a plan that sets out in detail how it is going to be managed as a risk from this material;

– taking the steps needed to put the plan into action;

– reviewing and monitoring the plan and the arrangements made to put it in place; and

– setting up a system for providing information on the location and condition of the material to anyone who is liable to work on or disturb it.

The dutyholder

All non-domestic buildings, whatever the type of business, are affected by the regulations on asbestos. They also include the common areas of domestic buildings, eg HMO’s halls, stairwells, lift shafts, roof spaces, All other domestic properties are not affected by the duty to manage.

Anyone who has information on the whereabouts of asbestos in premises is required to make this available to the dutyholder, but those undertaking work will need to assess its reliability. Those who are not dutyholders, but control access to the premises, have to co-operate with contractors in managing the asbestos.

You are a ‘dutyholder’ if you own the building; you are responsible through a contract or tenancy agreement; you have control of the building but no formal contract or agreement; or in a multi-occupancy building, you are the owner and have taken responsibility for maintenance and repairs for the whole building.

A refurbishment/demolition survey – HSE

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