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Leading lawyer asks landlords for help to reverse 'morally wrong' HMO rules

Leading lawyer asks landlords for help to reverse 'morally wrong' HMO rules

News

HMO owners and associations are being urged to support calls for a rethink of plans to remove licensing requirements for HMOs used as asylum accommodation. Property lawyer at JMW, David Smith , wants the High Court to agree to a judicial review of changes o

LATEST: Rental homes stock plummets by 35% to four-year low

LATEST: Rental homes stock plummets by 35% to four-year low

News

The number of available private rental homes has dropped by more than a third since 2019 to a 14-year low. Only 241,000 PRS homes were available last month compared with 370,000 in June 2019, a fall of 35%, according to consultancy TwentyCi which analysed

Landlord couple fined thousands after ignoring property repair notices

Landlord couple fined thousands after ignoring property repair notices

News

A landlord couple have paid a heavy price for ignoring their tenant's request to fix a boiler after being fined �3,500. David and Emily Griffiths, of Tickhill Road, Harworth (pictured), Nottinghamshire left the tenant with no hot water or heating for three weeks. D

Renters (Reform) Bill: How will the changes to evictions affect landlords? - The Property Cast

Renters (Reform) Bill: How will the changes to evictions affect landlords? - The Property Cast

Podcast

In this episode of The Property Cast, Eddie and Paul are joined by special guest Paul Sowerbutts, Head of Legal at Landlord Action, to discuss how the proposed changes to evictions will affect landlords. How will scrapping Section 21 really impact tenancies and, given the delay

Likely cost of EPC upgrades for rental properties revealed by Government

Likely cost of EPC upgrades for rental properties revealed by Government

News

Energy efficiency improvement costs for most private rental homes work out at between �5,000 and �9,999 (46%), while almost a third (30%) could be improved for under �5,000, according to the latest government analysis. At the other end of the scale, 19% of homes would cost be

Higher mortgage rates driving more landlords to request rent guarantors

Higher mortgage rates driving more landlords to request rent guarantors

News

Landlords hit by mortgage rate hikes are demanding guarantors from increasing numbers of high earning tenants. Many tenants are seeing a greater proportion of their take-home pay go towards rent so are having to provide the additional security of a guarantor when signing new agr

Influential Labour group says tougher eviction rules needed to tackle poverty

Influential Labour group says tougher eviction rules needed to tackle poverty

News

Landlords should be prevented from serving an eviction notice for at least the first year of a tenancy, in the case of repossession for selling or occupying the property, according to a new report from the Fabian Society. The independent left-leaning

Rents soar as agents report rising tenant demand but landlord slump

Rents soar as agents report rising tenant demand but landlord slump

News

The Governments housing policies are coming home to roost as tenant demand continues to soar but the number of landlords advertising new properties to rent plummets, it has been revealed. RICS says that during June it found significantly more members (a net balance increase o

NEW: Big London borough brings in tighter HMO conversion rules for landlords

NEW: Big London borough brings in tighter HMO conversion rules for landlords

News

Landlords in one of London's biggest boroughs now need planning permission to convert family homes into HMOs for three to six tenants. After a year-long pilot and consultation with residents, the London Borough of Hounslow (main picture) has made its borough-wide A

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Government rejects calls for longer licencing schemes

Government rejects calls for longer licencing schemes

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The Government has rejected calls for 10-year selective licensing schemes and insists that the government recognises the burden that licensing puts on landlords.

LATEST: Bank of England cuts base rate by 0.25%

LATEST: Bank of England cuts base rate by 0.25%

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The Bank of England has cut interest rates from 5% to 4.75%, providing some welcome cheer for landlords looking to invest and remortgage.

Rent arrears climb by 22% as 'cost of living' crisis continues

Rent arrears climb by 22% as 'cost of living' crisis continues

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The average rent arrears claim climbed to £2,064 in the third quarter of this year, a 22% rise on the same period last year.

Housing minister says rent controls would damage landlords and tenants

Housing minister says rent controls would damage landlords and tenants

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Housing minister Matthew Pennycook has said rent controls in England would hit both tenants and landlords negatively by reducing supply and discouraging investment.

Generation Rent hires former Labour MP and housing campaigner

Generation Rent hires former Labour MP and housing campaigner

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Former Labour MP Dame Karen Buck has been hired as Generation Rent’s new chair of the board.

Landlording 'not a real business' says Green politician

Landlording 'not a real business' says Green politician

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Scotland’s Housing Bill has been diluted to keep landlord lobbyists happy rather than focusing on renters’ needs, according to a Green MSP.

Landlord trio given UK's largest ever HMO fine

Landlord trio given UK's largest ever HMO fine

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Three rogue landlords who operated a string of unlicensed and unsafe HMOs across Northampton have been collectively fined a whopping £452,796.

New property 'powerhouse' organisation being planned

New property 'powerhouse' organisation being planned

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The formation of a new ‘powerhouse’ organisation to represent the commercial property sector including build-to-rent and co-living is under way, it has been announced.

Labour confirms plan to force landlords to lease out shops

Labour confirms plan to force landlords to lease out shops

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Labour has confirmed that it will compel landlords of high street shops to rent out their premises if they stand empty for too long.

ADVICE: Are you ready for the Leasehold Reform Act going live on 30th June?

ADVICE: Are you ready for the Leasehold Reform Act going live on 30th June?

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In its latest plans, the Government is hoping to make the leasehold system fairer for leaseholders through a brand new Reform Act. There are several things for landlords to consider when the Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022 comes into force including where it

OPINION: What abolishing Section 21 evictions will mean for landlords

OPINION: What abolishing Section 21 evictions will mean for landlords

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The long-awaited Government White Paper, https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1083378/A_fairer_private_rented_sector_web_accessible.pdf" target="_blank" A Fairer Private Rented Sector ,

It's now cheaper to rent than to buy...

It's now cheaper to rent than to buy...

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According to recent research buy property agents Hamptons International, for the last 11 months its been cheaper to buy a home with a 10% deposit than rent. This is because to rental growth was tearing away before and mortgage rates were near their record lows. In May this ye

WARNING: Proposals to abolish fixed-term tenancies will 'ruin student market'

WARNING: Proposals to abolish fixed-term tenancies will 'ruin student market'

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Abolishing fixed-term tenancies will devastate the student market and lead to a major contraction of student homes to rent, warns a leading accommodation provider. The governments https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/a-fairer-private-rented-sector" <stron

Section 21 eviction ban? We're off to short-term lets, say thousands of landlords

Section 21 eviction ban? We're off to short-term lets, say thousands of landlords

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Thousands of landlords have vowed to switch to short-term lets when Section 21 notices are abolished, a new survey has found. Assist Inventories study of 10,000 landlords and letting agents revealed that 45% plan to move away from long-term tenancies while 41% said they might

EPCs are already changing and about time too, says homes assessment expert

EPCs are already changing and about time too, says homes assessment expert

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The new Building Regulations and accompanying technical upgrade to the SAP assessment methodology ask for a completely different way of measuring the energy performance of many buildings, giving a market boost to those properties with higher EPC ratings. Effective from last week

Check your properties regularly warns landlord after armed police raid rental house

Check your properties regularly warns landlord after armed police raid rental house

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A landlord too terrified to reveal her name has warned others to conduct more regular property checks after she unwittingly rented her house to a drug-dealing gang for years. The North London-based landlord has had the same tenants since 2005 but only discovered their illegal ac

How much damage to rental properties by pets really costs landlords

How much damage to rental properties by pets really costs landlords

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New research reveals how adult tenants cause as much damage as pets in rental properties and that for smaller landlords, animal damage costs less to repair. The survey of 537 landlords and lettings agents found 85% have experienced both kinds of damage while only 29% of landlord

Landlord gives key evidence during trial of parents accused of son's murder

Landlord gives key evidence during trial of parents accused of son's murder

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A landlord has given evidence in the Sebastian Kalinowski murder trial, who died at his home in Huddersfield. Prosecutors allege his mother Agnieszka Kalinowska, 35, and her partner Andrzej Latoszewski, 36, subjected him to a campaign of abuse before his death in August 2021.</p

Surging electric car sales leads to two tier housing market

Surging electric car sales leads to two tier housing market

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Houses with off-road parking space will not only command a higher sale price, the rental value will also be boosted as more people buy electric cars. Surge in EV sales The electric vehicle (EV) market is booming, which will inevitably have its impact on property pric

UPDATED: FOUR leading landlord figures pick holes in renting reform White Paper

UPDATED: FOUR leading landlord figures pick holes in renting reform White Paper

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Landlord group leaders have begun picking holes in the governments radical Renters Reform Bill white paper. <figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type- " data-rt-type="" data-rt-align=""><div><img src="https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/63bef2f3c329eff8e3a4af45/64cb991c5630fcc809d71717_

LATEST: HMRC names dozens of landlords who dodged tax totalling �6.7m

LATEST: HMRC names dozens of landlords who dodged tax totalling �6.7m

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HMRC has named and shamed 26 property tax dodgers who collectively tried to avoid paying more than �6.7 million. The deliberate tax defrauders earned income from either rental property, property developing or property tax advising, and have all been investigated and fined for e

LATEST: Renting reform White Paper - its full shocking proposals go live

LATEST: Renting reform White Paper - its full shocking proposals go live

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The Government has finally published its renting reform White Paper three years after it was first promised, with legislation based on its proposals not due until at least next Spring. Introduced in parliament by housing minister Eddie Hughes (main picture) but prefaced by his b

FIRST details of controversial 'new deal' for tenants and landlords published by DLUHC

FIRST details of controversial 'new deal' for tenants and landlords published by DLUHC

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Key details of the Governments radical renting reform White Paper have been released this morning by Michael Gove, full details of which are due to be published when his housing minister Eddie Hughes addresses parliament later this morning. In a statement embargoed for midnig

BREAKING: Government to give tenants 'legal right' to have a pet in their home

BREAKING: Government to give tenants 'legal right' to have a pet in their home

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The Government is planning to give tenants the legal right to keep a pet as Ministers swing behind efforts to re-purpose the housing market towards the consumer. These proposals will be within the long-awaited draft Renters Reform Act that, it is reported, Gove is to publi

BREAKING: Government to require landlords to adapt communal areas for disabled tenants

BREAKING: Government to require landlords to adapt communal areas for disabled tenants

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The Government wants to make it a 'duty' for landlords to respond to requests from disabled tenants to make communal spaces outside their homes more accessible. A consultation on the proposals has been launched by equalities minister Kemi Badenoch (main pi

OPINION: Has the Prime Minister's landlord bashing gone too far this time?

OPINION: Has the Prime Minister's landlord bashing gone too far this time?

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It may have gone unnoticed by many landlords that Boris Johnson made one of the most extraordinary attacks on the sector in living memory last week. And it is fair to say, one of the most unfair. Most landlords have become accustomed to the government's frosty rhetoric over the

EXCLUSIVE: New guidance to make EPCs more accurate after 10-year wait

EXCLUSIVE: New guidance to make EPCs more accurate after 10-year wait

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The government has finally updated the guidance it provides to property assessors on how to calculate EPCs for new homes and, in six months time, for existing homes too. This is the first time the methodologies of calculation have been updated for almost ten years for t

Landlord wins legal battle over �3,300 gas safety paperwork fine

Landlord wins legal battle over �3,300 gas safety paperwork fine

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A professional landlord has scored a partial win against his council fines for charges relating to gas safety inspections. Mahendra Maharaj , who owns 78 properties in Liverpool, had been fined �9,000 by the city council a decision confirmed by a First

Re-launched Right to Buy to take 'money from pockets of buy-to-let landlords'

Re-launched Right to Buy to take 'money from pockets of buy-to-let landlords'

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Boris Johnsons pledge to reform the housing market will see the government launching a dusted-off version of David Camerons right to buy scheme for social housing in order to turn the tables on private landlords, his housing secretary Michael Gove has suggested. During a s

HMRC is clawing back overpaid and fraudulent Covid support payments

HMRC is clawing back overpaid and fraudulent Covid support payments

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The self-employed who took advantage of the multi-billion pound self-employed income support scheme (SEIS), claiming grants they were not entitled to, when they were either not trading at all, or their profits did not fall within the specified limits, are now being asked to pay the money ba

EXCLUSIVE: What will happen after Section 21 evictions go? We ask the experts

EXCLUSIVE: What will happen after Section 21 evictions go? We ask the experts

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For several years now the government has promised to reform how landlords evict tenants including the abolition of possessions enabled under Section 21 of the 1988 Housing Act. This kind of eviction was a key plank of Margaret Thatchers attempts to persuade more landlords int

Comment: fears over the future of private rental market in the regions mount

Comment: fears over the future of private rental market in the regions mount

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While in England the housing minister Eddie Hughes has just https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/news/breaking-minister-confirms-government-will-not-consider-rent-controls-in-england/" target="_blank" ruled out rent controls , in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Irish R

Legal case '� can there be a reasonable excuse for not licensing an HMO?

Legal case '� can there be a reasonable excuse for not licensing an HMO?

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Weve all heard the expression, ignorance of the law is no excuse� and this applies without question in all areas of the law. But in some rare instances it seems the courts and tribunals are open to accepting a defence of what is termed reasonable excuse even when the regulatio

Landlord says protecting tenants during portfolio sale will cost him �500,000

Landlord says protecting tenants during portfolio sale will cost him �500,000

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Nottingham benefits landlord Mick Roberts (main picture) has made another bid to sell 40 of his properties by offering to cut the sale price by a tenth if a landlord buyer keeps his existing tenants on. The regular LandlordZONE contributor has previously suggested https