Free webinar: Join rental market experts to get your questions answered

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Four experts from the private rental market are gathering tomorrow online to host a LandlordZONE webinar that will explore all of the key issues facing landlords and letting agents in the private rental market.

All are welcome to the event which is free to attend and will feature Theresa Wallace, Head of Compliance and Customer Relations for Savills’ Residential Lettings Division and Paul Shamplina of Landlord Action and regular on Channel 5 show Nightmare Tenants, Slum Landlords.

The other experts are Tim Frome, Head of Legal at Landlord Action and leading mortgage broker Daniel Lee.

All four will give their views and advice on the leading issues facing the sector at the moment including the tenant fees ban, the government’s decision to extend the suspension of evcitions and the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic on the rental market.

The four are also likely to discuss the implications of the looming Section 21 bar, how mortgage holidays may affect creditworthiness and staying safe when renting properties.

The Ask The Experts webinar will start at 11am tomorrow and last for an hour. To reserve your seat at the ringside, register online here.
  

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Free webinar: Join rental market experts to get your questions answered | LandlordZONE.

View Full Article: Free webinar: Join rental market experts to get your questions answered

Rent Family Home and Move it into Ltd Company?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

I’m currently in the process of purchasing a new family home. The plan is to keep our current family home and rent it out, the mortgage is low on the property (7% LTV to be precise). I currently also have a LTD company which holds 2 rental properties.

The post Rent Family Home and Move it into Ltd Company? appeared first on Property118.

View Full Article: Rent Family Home and Move it into Ltd Company?

Tenant groups begin campaign to extend evictions ban

admin    Uncategorized     agents

A leading London tenants’ group has called for the eviction ban to be extended beyond the summer to give renters even more breathing space, echoing similar arguments by other local and national groups.

The Camden Federation of Private Tenants is urging the Government to take the temporary ban past 23^rd August and into the autumn.

Organiser Robert Taylor says: “The Government recently extended the ban by a further two months, but this is simply not enough, as we believe that the ban should continue until it has introduced legislation to permanently abolish Section 21 and ‘no fault’ evictions.”

According to the group, Camden’s renters pay an average of 59% of their income on rent.

Taylor tells LandlordZONE: “If the Government really wants to ensure fairness in the rental market, then it needs to give serious consideration to what we and others believe to be are very practical, sensible and reasonable demands.”

Other tenants’ groups such as Generation Rent haven’t publicly called for a further extension, but while they welcome the suspension of evictions over the summer, they still have concerns.

Director Dan Wilson says: “With holes in the housing safety net and much of the economy still in lockdown, millions of renters will get further behind on rent. The Government must use the time it has bought itself to develop a long-term solution to provide rent relief and end unfair evictions for good.”

Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, adds that the Government’s announcement is just a stop-gap. She says: “It’s critical that Robert Jenrick uses this extension wisely to change the law and properly protect renters.”  

The Government has yet to confirm whether it’s going to follow the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee recommendation that once the courts re-open, they should be given discretion to dismiss Section 21 notices until 31^st December.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – Tenant groups begin campaign to extend evictions ban | LandlordZONE.

View Full Article: Tenant groups begin campaign to extend evictions ban

LATEST: Councils reject landlord criticisms of evictions ban extension

admin    Uncategorized     agents

The Local Government Association (LGA) has rejected claims by the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) that the evictions ban exposes victims of domestic violence and anti-social behaviour to more risk.

Since the NRLA story broke this morning, the LGA has issued a statement insisting that its members back the ban because police powers can still be used to evict perpetrators of domestic violence despite the evictions ban.

The NRLA claimed that landlords were ‘powerless to take action against tenants committing domestic abuse or making the lives of fellow tenants or neighbours a misery’ during the ban.

Ben Beadle, Chief executive of the NRLA, said earlier today that extending the evictions ban is not without victims and that it “leaves landlords powerless to tackle the kind of behaviour that causes untold suffering and hardship for many communities and tenants alike,” he said.

But Councillor David Renard, the LGA’s housing spokesperson, says he is pleased that the government is banning evictions until the end of August because it will “help to mitigate against the rising homelessness pressures that councils are under as a result of the pandemic”, he said.

“For victims of domestic abuse, other options including police powers, enable perpetrators to be removed from the home while the victims remains living there.”

A Domestic Abuse Bill is currently going through parliament which seeks to create a statutory definition of domestic abuse and establish a Domestic Abuse Commissioner.

The will stand up for victims and survivors, raise public awareness, monitor the response of local authorities, the justice system and other statutory agencies and hold them to account in tackling domestic abuse.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – LATEST: Councils reject landlord criticisms of evictions ban extension | LandlordZONE.

View Full Article: LATEST: Councils reject landlord criticisms of evictions ban extension

One-beds for city rental yields

admin    Uncategorized     agents

The latest research by, Howsy, has found that one-bed properties are now proving the best financial investment when it comes to buy to let rental yields across the UK’s major cities. Previous research from Howsy found that three was the magic number for rental yields

The post One-beds for city rental yields appeared first on Property118.

View Full Article: One-beds for city rental yields

New Build Contracts?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

I recently agreed to purchase a new property with Miller homes and part of the agreed purchase price was some additional work. The contracts were signed on that basis.

5 days later the sales agent reverted to say this work was not possible and that I would have to buy the property as is or the contract would be cancelled.

The post New Build Contracts? appeared first on Property118.

View Full Article: New Build Contracts?

BREAKING: Rental market returns to pre-Covid activity levels after June ‘surge’

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Agents, landlords and tenants across the UK have responded to months of pent-up demand since restrictions were lifted on 13^th May, helping the private rental market achieve levels of activity not seen since pre-pandemic days.

This surge reached a peak on 2nd June, which was the busiest day for new tenancy applications, hitting 112% of the volumes recorded on the same day in 2019. Tenancy application are counted as renters who have offers accepted by landlords and then proceed to contracts and referencing.

Agents had their busiest day for completed lets on 10th June, when activity levels reached 124% of those recorded on the same day a year ago.

According to data from online lettings platform Goodlord, new applications now appear to have flattened out, averaging 97% of 2019 levels over the last fortnight.

Its Lettings Activity Tracker reveals that since 1st June, completed lets have been running at an average of 94% of 2019 levels, with numbers increasing significantly since 7th June.

On each day between 7th June and 13th June, completed lets were higher than the 2019 average. 

Tom Mundy, COO at Goodlord, says it’s been an incredibly busy few weeks for letting agents, landlords and tenants.

He adds: “They’ve risen admirably to the dual challenges of a surge in demand coupled with a totally new way of working and doing business.

“We are starting to see some much-needed stability and consistency in the market. Alongside this, we’re seeing agents embrace new tools, processes and strategies to ensure lettings can continue safely across the UK.”

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – BREAKING: Rental market returns to pre-Covid activity levels after June ‘surge’ | LandlordZONE.

View Full Article: BREAKING: Rental market returns to pre-Covid activity levels after June ‘surge’

TECH: Landlord app is now free (but only if you’ve got a big portfolio)

admin    Uncategorized     agents

An app-based property management service backed by £7 million in investor funding and launched three years ago by a rising star of the tech world has begun offering itself for free to larger landlords.

Smaller landlords with a few properties are not included in the deal and will continue to pay a percentage-based property management fee. But larger landlords including build-to-rent firms can now use the service for free and Residently tells LandlordZONE that it will make money from referral fees it will earn from tenants who order broadband, removals and lifestyle services through its app.

Like many apps in this field Residently has digitised the rental process and offers landlords of all portfolio sizes a way to rent their homes out without face-to-face contact.

The app’s founder and CEO Tom Allason (pictured), who claims landlords can use it to rent out a property from virtual viewing to signed contracts within five minutes, now believes his tech’s time has come given the social distancing restrictions of Covid.

“In the last few months, we’ve watched the contactless rental process that we’ve built go from a ‘nice to have’ to an absolute necessity,” says Allason.

“Not to mention, it’s never been more important for renters to feel ‘at home’ and cared for. We hope that by making our platform free, we can partner with companies across the industry to support their residents during this time.”

Larger portfolio

Although the app is useful for landlords of all sizes, the company’s main focus is on larger portfolio and build-to-rent operators, letting agents and property managers.

Residently’s biggest customer is property management and rental giant Touchstone which manages over 20,000 properties withing the UK.

“Technology is crucial in creating the very best experience for customers, and we’ll help support this ground-breaking approach, ensuring a smooth, frictionless experience when renting a home,” says Helen Kings, Touchstone Managing Director.

Read more about proptech.

©1999 – Present | Parkmatic Publications Ltd. All rights reserved | LandlordZONE® – TECH: Landlord app is now free (but only if you’ve got a big portfolio) | LandlordZONE.

View Full Article: TECH: Landlord app is now free (but only if you’ve got a big portfolio)

Rental premium for outdoor space post lockdown

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Research from Belvoir, including the Q1 rental index, and a lockdown survey of franchisees, provides an insight into the changing world of tenant demands, with demand for outdoor space becoming more of a priority.

“The Belvoir Q1 rental index was prepared for us by industry expert Kate Faulkner

The post Rental premium for outdoor space post lockdown appeared first on Property118.

View Full Article: Rental premium for outdoor space post lockdown

Compounding the suffering of victims of domestic violence and anti-social behaviour

admin    Uncategorized     agents

The decision to extend the ban on evictions in rented housing will compound the suffering of victims of domestic violence and anti-social behaviour says the NRLA

As a result of the decision by the Government to prevent any evictions taking place until the end of August

The post Compounding the suffering of victims of domestic violence and anti-social behaviour appeared first on Property118.

View Full Article: Compounding the suffering of victims of domestic violence and anti-social behaviour