Veteran Landlords Decimated by University Crisis

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In a shock move, the University of Warwick has pulled the rug out from under more than 500 Coventry and Warwickshire landlords.

After guaranteeing some 3,000 plus students for over 500 properties they are now saying to ALL those landlords “So long

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MARKET WATCH: Rents for new tenancies increase as demand booms across the UK despite Covid

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Rents on new tenancies went up for the third successive month in September across the UK, boosted by strong tenant demand.

Rental values in seven of the 12 regions monitored by HomeLet have risen by an average of 0.2% since August, with the average rent now £987 a month – up by 4% since June – according to its latest Rental Index.

The North East saw the biggest jump (2.2%) followed by Wales and the East of England (both 1.4%). Northern Ireland and the North West experienced the largest dips with -1.6% and -1.4% respectively.

Over the last year, HomeLet reports that the South West has seen the biggest increase in agreed rents at 6.6%, while rents in London have slumped -2.8% and there’s been a -2.4% drop in Northern Ireland year-on-year.

Chief executive Martin Totty (left) says landlords will be encouraged to see rents continuing to hold up, which he attributes to strong tenant demand with a slightly constrained supply and stronger sales market – possibly a short-term phenomenon.

Adds Totty: “Those landlords committed to the sector for the long term and having shown their willingness to confront the multiple headwinds of taxation change, new regulatory requirements and, in certain circumstances, longer notice periods to gain possession of their properties, may still be rewarded for their flexibility and their perseverance with reasonable returns on their investment risk.”

Visit Homelet

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – MARKET WATCH: Rents for new tenancies increase as demand booms across the UK despite Covid | LandlordZONE.

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Landlords pay for Council incompetence

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Yes, their incompetence is blatant to those who have to challenge them on a daily basis. The arrogance and aggressive methods are leaving landlords terrified and they produce no evidence because they claim they don’t have to.

You may not want to believe this

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Unexplained insurance premium hike?

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Underwriter is Allianz. Previous annual increases, with no changes to the portfolio, have been 7.6%, 7.5, 4.6, 4.5. This time its 17.7%.

The broker is discussing it with the insurer and I am looking at going elsewhere of course.

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BREAKING: Lettings agents must soon tell landlords if their ‘recommended supplier’ earns them a fee

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Landlords who buy or let properties through an estate agent will soon have to be told if a recommended third-party supplier such as an inventory firm or builder has paid a referral fee to the agent.

This follows an announcement by Trading Standards that, following a long investigation, it found that many agents continue to hide referral fees from their customers.

A critical report has now been published by the Trading Standards Estate and Lettings Agency Team after being passed to ministers in February.

It says: “In some situations, customers may be pressurised to use a referred provider despite the fact it does not meet the needs of the customer or provide best value.”

The report recommends that the government should:

• Make transparency of referral fees mandatory.
• Require a warning to be given to customers that they should consider shopping around.
• A public awareness campaign to warn consumers about hidden referral fees.
• Further industry guidance, and work with the professional bodies and redress schemes to encourage compliance in the property sector.

Ministers have backed the report’s findings although it is now up to them whether new legislation is introduced or existing consumer protection legislation is more strictly enforced, including a ban for errant agents.

“It is unacceptable that unscrupulous practices are still taking place where consumers are not being made aware of referral fees when buying or selling a property,” says housing minister Christopher Pincher (left).

Sean Hooker (left), Head of Redress at the Property Redress Scheme, says: “I was on the working group with the MHCLG and NTSELAT along with TPO, Propertymark, RICS and the Guild that helped draw up guidance for agents as part of a voluntary trial of disclosure and transparency.

“Whilst the guidance was followed by many businesses, the NTSELAT report shows that more is needed to be done and whilst they have fallen short of recommending a full ban, the introduction of mandatory disclosure is required.

“This is the correct and proportionate response to protect the consumer and reduce the complaints against agents.”

Mark Hayward (left), Chief Executive of NAEA Propertymark:“New legislation which will require agents to display referral fees is a step forward, providing clarity to agents that they mustn’t fall foul of the law but importantly ensuring greater transparency for consumers to avoid any confusion about what agents are charging for.”

Read the report.

Find out more about redress when things go wrong with your agent.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – BREAKING: Lettings agents must soon tell landlords if their ‘recommended supplier’ earns them a fee | LandlordZONE.

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CAN YOU HELP? UK’s first ever high street lettings agency for the homeless needs more landlords

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A lettings agency for homeless people in Walton-on-Thames wants more landlords on its books to keep up with rising demand.

Surrey-based RentStart is in the borough of Elmbridge, an area boasting some of the highest property prices in the UK but which has seen a five-fold increase in rough sleeping since 2015 when just two people were recorded on the streets.

About 450homelesspeople contact it – directly or through the council – each year and it manages to find 150 of them accommodation with its 30 private landlords.

But about a quarter of the 300 who aren’t successful could find a home if more landlords were willing to work with the charity, according to chief executive Helen Watson.

Guarantees

She explains that RentStart, which has been in the town since 2001, provides landlords with written guarantees that their scheme will cover unpaid rent in the rare case of the tenant defaulting and also pays one month’s rent upfront.

Its deposit guarantee scheme claim rate last year was 6%.

Watson and her team of 13 staff and volunteers are gearing up for a surge in demand, with the chancellor’s job support scheme replacing the furlough scheme next month as well as the end of the evictions ban – and it’s hoping to get more landlords on board as well as inspiring others to open similar organisations around the country.

She says: “Bad things happen to good people and you just need someone to give you a chance. That’s the kind of thing we do. Yes, we’ve got to look after the property and get the rent paid, but we can still treat the client with dignity and help them get back on track.”

Visit the Rentstart website.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – CAN YOU HELP? UK’s first ever high street lettings agency for the homeless needs more landlords | LandlordZONE.

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Rent Freeze in London says Mayor Khan…

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Mayor Khan has drafted a letter to the Housing Minister, Robert Jenrick, urging the Government to give him the necessary powers to put a freeze on private rents in London for the next two years.

Since his election Sadiq Khan has repeatedly called for powers to impose a regime of rent controls in London, but this time he is arguing that it is necessary to have a freeze to tackle the economic fallout from the Coronavirus pandemic, This crisis he says would include a ‘tsunami of evictions’ unless there is further Government support for private tenants.

The new emergency powers should allow a freeze on rent increases “both between and within tenancies”, and would be effective immediately the Mayor has said. He has also asked for an option to extend the two-year freeze if the economic outlook for renters does not improve.

Mr Khan says:

“More than ever, COVID-19 means that many of London’s private renters are facing a really uncertain future. More likely to be in lower-paid and insecure work, the end of the furlough scheme means even more renters in the capital are now at risk of pay cuts or losing their jobs. Yet at every stage of this pandemic, renters have been treated as an afterthought by the Government, with protection measures only ever rushed out at the last minute.

“This uncertainty is causing unnecessary anxiety and stress. I’m today calling on ministers to give me the powers to stop rents rising in the capital for as long as this virus is with us, to give London’s 2.2m renters more financial security. If Berlin can freeze rents for five years, there’s no reason London shouldn’t be able to freeze rents for two years in these extraordinary times,” Khan says.

The National Residential Landlord’s Association has been quick to respond to the suggestions, branding the Mayor’s proposal ‘a disaster’ for tenants.

NRLA policy director Chris Norris has said:

“Rent controls would drive landlords out of the market, exacerbating an already serious shortage of homes available.

‘Rather than driving a wedge between landlords and tenants, the Mayor should focus on using the powers he already has to boost the supply of available housing, including for private rent. Only then will he make any discernible impact on improving the affordability of housing across the capital,’ he said.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Rent Freeze in London says Mayor Khan… | LandlordZONE.

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LATEST: Scots landlords must now clear ‘pre-action hurdles’ before rent arrears evictions can begin

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Scottish landlords now need to prove they’ve followed Rent Arrears Pre-Action Requirements if they want to evict tenants.

New regulations announced by the Scottish government cover applications made to the First-Tier Tribunal for Scotland from 6th October for an eviction order on the grounds of rent arrears during the COVID-19 period. These changes apply to any tenancy where a notice to quit or leave was served after 6^th April.

The government wants landlords to be flexible with any tenants facing financial hardship and aims to make sure they make reasonable efforts to work with tenants before seeking repossession.

Landlords need to show that they’ve given tenants information on the terms of the tenancy agreement, as well as the amount of rent arrears, the tenant’s rights in relation to possession proceedings and how they can find information and advice on financial support and debt management.

Reasonable efforts

They’ll also need to have made “reasonable efforts to agree on a reasonable plan with the tenant” to make future payments of rent.

The rules also mean that landlords will have to consider any steps being taken by their tenant which might affect their ability to pay on time, the extent to which they have complied with the terms of any plan agreed and any changes to their circumstances which are likely to impact on a payment plan.

“We know that many landlords are already being flexible and accommodating to their tenants who have suffered financial hardship during this pandemic,” says Daryl McIntosh, ARLA Propertymark’s strategic development manager for Scotland (pictured, top).

“The introduction of these regulations will go a long way to in helping to sustain tenancies with agents, landlords and tenants working together and utilising the available financial support to create affordable and reasonable payment plans to prevent homelessness.”

Pre-action requirements for the UK were mooted over the summer but are yet to be fully clarified.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – LATEST: Scots landlords must now clear ‘pre-action hurdles’ before rent arrears evictions can begin | LandlordZONE.

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LATEST: Landlords to face £30,000 fines in radical shake-up for energy efficiency regulations

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Radical new proposals for energy efficiency in the private rented sector could see landlords fined up to £30,000 for not improving their properties and tenants given the ability to claim compensation.

The Government’s consultation on its energy efficiency regulations sets out its aim to upgrade as many private rented homes as possible to Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) band C by 2030.

It says the sector has some of the coldest homes – about 67% are rated at less than EPC band C – posing a risk to tenant health and leading to higher bills.

Ministers hope to introduce the changes for new tenancies from 2025 and all tenancies from 2028, and to increase the maximum investment amount, resulting in an average per-property spend of £4,700 under a £10,000 cap.

This ultimately aims to benefit landlords, tenants and the environment by creating lower energy bills, warmer homes, potential property value gains and greater carbon emission savings.

Dual targets

But an alternative proposal in its consultation would see landlords required to reach a dual metric target of both Energy Efficiency Rating (cost) band C and an Environmental Impact Rating (carbon emissions) band C, with an increased cost cap of £15,000.

The Government is also considering requiring letting agents and online property platforms to only advertise and let properties that comply with the regulations, as well as requiring them to provide an EPC before advertising a property, increasing the fixed civil penalty fine for offences to £30,000 – per property and per breach – and introducing a property compliance and exemptions database.

It suggests that local authorities could inspect properties and use EPC open data for enforcement, and to give tenants power to request that energy performance improvements are carried out when a landlord is non-compliant. It’s also proposing that tenants should be able to request redress from the landlord if they fail to comply.

Read the consultation document in full. Landlords and other interested groups have until 30th December 2020 to respond.

Read more latest news about EPCs.

Read a guide to keeping EPC compliant.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – LATEST: Landlords to face £30,000 fines in radical shake-up for energy efficiency regulations | LandlordZONE.

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Agency request ICO registration for copy of tenancy?

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I have several properties although only one is managed by an agency. The existing tenant has requested to renew their tenancy for a further 12 months, no problem with that.

The agency has informed me that they have now signed

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