The ability to adapt is the ability to succeed: landlording the smarter way

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Property118

The ability to adapt is the ability to succeed: landlording the smarter way

One month after the Renters’ Rights Act came into force, the landlord exodus has not materialised in quite the way many expected.

For many landlords, it’s not a simple stay-or-go decision. It’s about reviewing their portfolio, identifying higher-risk properties or tenancies, and planning ahead, selling those exposed to rent repayment orders, fines or licensing issues, while retaining stronger-performing assets.

Timing is everything, and landlords who have decided that now is the right time to scale down or retire are cashing in on their investments while they still can, and this is where Landlord Sales Agency comes in.

Whether you decide to sell all of your portfolio in one go or retain your best-performing properties while you see how the legislation plays out, we are entirely flexible to your needs.

At Landlord Sales Agency, like all the smartest landlords, we adapt our strategy according to the properties, the tenants and the owners’ priorities but as landlords, rather than property developers, our starting point is always to sell the properties as they stand for a fair market price unless it makes more sense to chase a better sales price.

And crucially, landlords can still get a great price close to vacant possession value without emptying the property first. 

We would only consider evicting tenants, refurbishing the properties and chasing full vacant possession prices if the extra money achieved was genuinely worth the additional time, cost, stress and risk involved.

Most landlords who contact us don’t want to gamble on spending thousands improving the properties only to find the market has shifted or the sale price doesn’t justify the upfront cost or ongoing risk.

Sellers come to us looking for a realistic balance between achieving a strong sale price and securing a fast, reliable sale that avoids months of uncertainty and potentially thousands of pounds in upfront costs paying mortgage interest, council tax, utilities and other costs associated with running vacant property for months, if not years.

One landlord that came to us for help in deciding strategy had a freehold property split into 4 flats in East Dulwich. Every flat was tenanted and the sale was further complicated by missing planning and tenancy documents. The gains from developing the property for maximum value was not worth the cost or risk to the owner. By winning the tenants’ cooperation, we were able to rectify the complications and market the flats to our network of over 30,000 private buyers and investors.

The vacant possession value of the 4 flats was £1.3M – we sold the entire block with tenants in situ as a turnkey investment in just 4 weeks for £1.15M and the owner collected rent right up to completion.

Another landlord had two properties – both with vacant possession but in poor condition and valued at £125K and £160K. With a potential value of £210K and £300K respectively, the potential gains worth clearly worth £40K investment but with the seller’s wealth tied into the properties, they were unable to realise the potential themselves or to pay the mortgage costs during the renovation.

In this case, in collaboration with the owner, our strategy was to renovate and sell properties in mint condition to owner occupiers for the best price possible.

We agreed an interest free loan to be paid back from the sale funds and arranged a trusted team of builders to complete the work.

Both properties sold for full market value just two weeks after the renovations were complete and after paying back our £80K refurb costs, £10K mortgage payments we paid, plus our fee for advancing funds, the landlord was over £90K better off.

So, if you’re a landlord looking to adapt, get in touch and we’ll help you plan your strategy.

We have an extensive private database of over 30,000 buyers who will buy your properties with or without tenants and get text messages to alert them to new properties every time a landlord comes to us to sell.

Our buyers are a mix of new landlords, investors and first-time buyers meaning that whether you’re selling with or without tenants, the properties will be snapped up. It also means that we’re able to get you’re the best possible price for the property.

Any company promising you 100% market value for a tenanted sale is hiding a huge list of costs that are going to come after the sale. That’s not the case with us. It’s one of the things that make us different, we are fiercely realistic and proudly transparent.

More landlords are recognising that this does not have to be an all-or-nothing decision when it comes to selling your portfolio and here at Landlord Sales Agency, we are here to help.

You have nothing to lose and everything to gain, fill out the form below.

(function(){
var uid = “crm-form-ba09a29b”;
var form = document.getElementById(uid + ‘-form’);
var wrap = document.getElementById(uid);
var msg = wrap.querySelector(‘.crm-message’);
var totalPages = 1;
var curPage = 0;

// ── Conditional logic ────────────────────────────────────────────────
var condMap = {};

function getFieldValue(fieldId) {
var els = form.querySelectorAll(‘[name=”‘ + fieldId + ‘”], [name=”‘ + fieldId + ‘[]”]’);
if (!els.length) return ”;
var first = els[0];
if (first.type === ‘checkbox’ || first.type === ‘radio’) {
var checked = [];
els.forEach(function(el){ if (el.checked) checked.push(el.value); });
return checked.join(‘,’);
}
return first.value;
}

function evalRule(rule) {
var val = getFieldValue(rule.fieldId);
var cmp = rule.value;
switch (rule.operator) {
case ‘is': return val === cmp;
case ‘isnot': return val !== cmp;
case ‘greaterthan': return parseFloat(val) > parseFloat(cmp);
case ‘lessthan': return parseFloat(val) < parseFloat(cmp);
case 'contains': return val.indexOf(cmp) !== -1;
case 'startswith': return val.indexOf(cmp) === 0;
case 'endswith': return val.slice(-cmp.length) === cmp;
default: return false; // fail closed — mirror the CRM shared matcher
}
}

function applyConditionals() {
Object.keys(condMap).forEach(function(fieldId) {
var cond = condMap[fieldId];
var rules = cond.rules || [];
var match = cond.logicType === 'any'
? rules.some(evalRule)
: rules.every(evalRule);
var show = cond.actionType === 'show' ? match : !match;
var wrapper = form.querySelector('[data-field-id="' + fieldId + '"]');
if (!wrapper) {
var el = form.querySelector('[name="' + fieldId + '"], [name="' + fieldId + '[]"]');
if (el) wrapper = el.closest('.crm-field, .crm-half');
}
if (wrapper) wrapper.style.display = show ? '' : 'none';
});
}

form.addEventListener('change', applyConditionals);
form.addEventListener('input', applyConditionals);
applyConditionals();

// ── Multi-page navigation ────────────────────────────────────────────

// ── Submit ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
var submitBtn = form.querySelector('button[type=submit]');
var btnText = submitBtn ? submitBtn.textContent : 'Submit';

var crmApiUrl = "https://p118-crm-api.accent.sh";

function collectFormData() {
var data = {};
for (var j = 0; j < form.elements.length; j++) {
var el = form.elements[j];
if (!el.name) continue;
if (el.type === 'file') continue; // handled by uploadFiles()
if (el.type === 'radio' && !el.checked) continue;
if (el.type === 'checkbox') {
if (!el.checked) continue;
var k = el.name.replace('[]','');
data[k] = data[k] ? data[k].concat([el.value]) : [el.value];
} else {
data[el.name] = el.value;
}
}
// GF auto-substituted {user_agent} / {referer} on hidden fields
// at render time. We do the equivalent right before submit so
// fields whose default value carries these placeholders
// resolve to the browser's actual values rather than being
// stored as literal "{user_agent}" / "{referer}" strings.
// The last ARTICLE the visitor read (set client-side on post views by
// P118_Article_Views). Used to attribute the enquiry to the article
// even after navigating away or with a stripped/absent referer.
var lastPost = '';
try {
var lpm = document.cookie.match(/(?:^|;s*)p118_last_post=([^;]+)/);
if (lpm) lastPost = decodeURIComponent(lpm[1]);
} catch (e) {}
var subs = {
'{user_agent}': navigator.userAgent || '',
// Prefer the last article read; fall back to the (lossy) HTTP referer.
'{referer}': lastPost || document.referrer || '',
'{last_post}': lastPost || '',
'{embed_url}': window.location.href || '',
};
for (var name in data) {
if (!data.hasOwnProperty(name)) continue;
var v = data[name];
if (typeof v !== 'string') continue;
for (var tag in subs) {
if (v.indexOf(tag) !== -1) v = v.split(tag).join(subs[tag]);
}
data[name] = v;
}
return data;
}

function uploadFiles(data) {
var fileInputs = form.querySelectorAll('input[type=file][data-crm-file-field]');
var uploads = [];
fileInputs.forEach(function(el) {
if (!el.files || !el.files[0]) return;
var fd = new FormData();
fd.append('file', el.files[0]);
var fieldName = el.name;
uploads.push(
fetch(crmApiUrl + '/public/forms/' + "08ceeaae-4809-444e-ba0f-88da5836c463" + '/upload', { method: 'POST', body: fd })
.then(function(r) {
if (!r.ok) throw new Error('File upload failed (' + r.status + ')');
return r.json();
})
.then(function(res) {
if (res.path) data[fieldName] = res.path;
else throw new Error(res.error || 'File upload failed');
})
);
});
return Promise.all(uploads).then(function() { return data; });
}

function submitFormData(data) {
var body = new FormData();
body.append('action', 'p118_crm_submit');
body.append('form_id', "08ceeaae-4809-444e-ba0f-88da5836c463");
body.append('data', JSON.stringify(data));
// Embed-page context for GF-style merge tags ({embed_url},
// {embed_post:post_title}, {embed_post:ID}). Captured PHP-side
// at render time, then echoed to JS so the submit fetch can
// forward to V2 as request headers.
body.append('embed_url', "");
body.append('embed_post_id', "0");
body.append('embed_post_title', "");

return fetch("https://www.property118.com/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php", { method: 'POST', body: body, credentials: 'same-origin' })
.then(function(r){ return r.json(); })
.then(function(res){
var p = res.data || res;
if (p && p.success) {
if (p.confirmationType === 'redirect' && p.confirmationRedirectUrl) {
window.location.href = p.confirmationRedirectUrl;
} else {
form.style.display = 'none';
msg.className = 'crm-message success';
msg.innerHTML = p.confirmationMessage || 'Thank you for your submission.';
msg.style.display = 'block';
}
} else {
throw new Error((p && p.error) || 'Submission failed.');
}
});
}

form.addEventListener('submit', function(e){
e.preventDefault();
var data = collectFormData();
if (submitBtn) { submitBtn.disabled = true; submitBtn.textContent = 'Processing…'; }
msg.style.display = 'none';

// Standard form (no payment)
uploadFiles(data)
.then(function(d) { return submitFormData(d); })
.catch(function(err){
if (submitBtn) { submitBtn.disabled = false; submitBtn.textContent = btnText; }
msg.className = 'crm-message error';
msg.textContent = err.message;
msg.style.display = 'block';
});
});
})();

The post The ability to adapt is the ability to succeed: landlording the smarter way appeared first on Property118.

View Full Article: The ability to adapt is the ability to succeed: landlording the smarter way

Council’s landlord licensing schemes begin after landlords lose legal fight

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Property118

Council’s landlord licensing schemes begin after landlords lose legal fight

Landlords in one town face new landlord licensing rules from this week after a court battle that went all the way to the Supreme Court – which the landlords lost.

Luton Borough Council will now introduce selective licensing in the town centre and Park Town areas, while additional licensing for HMOs will apply across the whole town.

The decision follows the Supreme Court’s refusal of an appeal by Luton Landlords and Letting Agents Limited, ending a long-running challenge to the council’s licensing plans.

The schemes will require licences for HMOs across Luton and certain single-tenancy homes in designated areas.

Defending landlord legal challenge

Councillor Alia Khan, the council’s portfolio holder for housing, said: “Successfully defending the legal challenge means we can now move forward and continue making meaningful improvements for residents across Luton.

“I believe that every resident deserves a safe, secure and comfortable home. That is not negotiable.

“These measures are an important part of our wider work to improve housing conditions and tackle issues that impact local neighbourhoods.”

She added: “Most landlords are responsible. But for the ones that aren’t this gives us the power to act.

“We do recognise the valuable role responsible landlords play and so have introduced an early bird period to support applications.”

Cost of landlord licenses

The council says that license application fees will range from £122 to £366, although landlords applying during the early bird period will pay £150.

It estimates set-up costs of up to £50,000, which it says will be recovered through licence fees.

Current mandatory licensing rules apply to HMOs with five or more households, but Luton’s new schemes will extend regulation further into the town’s private rent sector.

The additional licensing scheme will be introduced borough-wide within three months, while selective licensing will focus on areas where the council says particular property types require closer oversight.

Schemes will support powers

Landlords with eligible residential accommodation will need to apply for a licence for each property covered by the schemes.

To obtain a licence, they will have to meet specified standards and comply with conditions covering how homes are managed.

The council says the schemes will support its existing enforcement powers and help address poor property management, anti-social behaviour and environmental concerns.

There’s more information about Luton’s selective and additional licensing schemes on the council’s website.

The post Council’s landlord licensing schemes begin after landlords lose legal fight appeared first on Property118.

View Full Article: Council’s landlord licensing schemes begin after landlords lose legal fight

Government pushes action on overheating fears in social housing

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Property118

Government pushes action on overheating fears in social housing

The government has urged all social housing landlords to meet standards of thermal comfort in their properties.

In a written parliamentary question, Green MP Carla Denyer asked: “What assessment has the government made of the risk of overheating in social housing?”

The news comes after a group of tenants has threatened legal action against their housing association over excessive heat in their homes.

Social housing landlords need to follow Awaab’s law

Housing minister Matthew Pennycook confirmed all social housing landlords need to follow the rules under Awaab’s law.

He said: “All social homes should meet at least a minimum standard of thermal comfort.

“My Department made an assessment of subjective overheating through the English Housing Survey, which found that in 2024, 10.6% of social housing households reported at least one part of their home got uncomfortably hot.

“Awaab’s Law came into force in the social rented sector on 27 October 2025. As a result, all social landlords must repair all emergency hazards within 24 hours and fix dangerous damp and mould within fixed timescales.

“The next phase of Awaab’s Law will consider the application of requirements to a further set of Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) hazards, including excess heat and excess cold.

“My Department has also laid new statutory guidance on the operation and enforcement of the Health and Housing Safety Rating System (HHSRS) before Parliament. This will come into force in June and will provide councils with a more intuitive means of assessing hazards in rented homes, including excess heat.”

Not fit for purpose

The news comes as, in what is believed to be the first case of its kind, residents living in flats managed by PA Housing in Woolwich, London, claim their homes are not fit for purpose, with indoor temperatures reaching 43°C during the summer.

A report by the BBC, reveals residents are planning to take action against their housing association, marking the first claim filed for excessive heat under the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018.

A resident living in Canada Court and Clifton Lodge in Woolwich told the BBC the building was not fit for purpose.

Chris Sayudo, chair of the tenant association at Clifton Lodge and Canada Court, said the buildings’ corridors reached 48 degrees in the summer.

He told the BBC: “It’s a combination of problems; the build-up of heat in the building, because there’s no real ventilation, and the fact there are leaks in the cupboards and communal areas means there is a massive amount of mould.

“Not just in communal areas, but in our flats as well, because we don’t have ventilation. There’s a built-in new air ventilation system but it doesn’t do anything. It’s not effective.”

Michael McDonagh, chief executive of PA Housing, said the issue was mainly concentrated to communal intake cupboards rather than residents’ homes.

He told the BBC: “This is an issue that, we agree, needs to be addressed across the housing sector. Like most properties in the UK, Canada Court and Clifton Lodge were designed to keep heat in rather than keep them cool.

“However, when they were built, they met all relevant planning and building regulations at the time.

“All the same, we will be putting measures in place to monitor internal temperatures at both buildings as a way of understanding whether this is just an issue during excessive heat or throughout the year so we can support residents as much as we can.”

The post Government pushes action on overheating fears in social housing appeared first on Property118.

View Full Article: Government pushes action on overheating fears in social housing