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'Despicable fraudster' gets eight-year ban for stealing landlords' deposits and rent

'Despicable fraudster' gets eight-year ban for stealing landlords' deposits and rent

News

A letting agent who ripped off dozens of landlord clients has been banned from being a company director for eight years. https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/news/letting-agent-who-stole-80000-from-dozens-of-landlords-admits-fraud/" Frank Smart , 46, the owner of Sma

UPDATED: consider these things before you increase your tenant's rent

UPDATED: consider these things before you increase your tenant's rent

News

With interest rates rising and this reflected in mortgage rates, landlords are being forced to contemplate rent increases. If you go down this road you need to be aware and follow the rules.As landlord you can't legally increase your rent whenever you like, or by any amount you see fit. You need

Landlords encouraged to sell this month as property prices rise by 0.2%

Landlords encouraged to sell this month as property prices rise by 0.2%

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In a market where interest rates are sky high, tax bills are extortionate and mortgage payments are higher than rents, coupled with a backlog of refurb costs and difficult tenant situations, landlords are rushing to cash in and sell their property portfolios. If you were a landl

REFORM: 'We need legislation that works with landlords, not against them'

REFORM: 'We need legislation that works with landlords, not against them'

News

With one in five households now renting, the private rented sector is an essential part of the housing market. As the government has reduced its housebuilding strategy for all local authorities from mandatory to advisory, with some councils scrapping targets all together, the ho

Portal launches in UK offering landlords direct online advertising to find tenants

Portal launches in UK offering landlords direct online advertising to find tenants

News

A European lettings portal has launched in the UK aimed at globe-trotting students and young professionals. Rotterdam-based https://housinganywhere.com/" HousingAnywhere , which specialises in mid- to long-term rentals, now covers London,

Do HMOs still stack up as an investment?

Do HMOs still stack up as an investment?

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Over the last 15 years, the HMO market has been transformed and there has been a boom. The reason for the boom  was, quite simply, that HMOs could generate far better returns than single home lets.   But as the market grew, regulations tightened. On top of the extra du

LATEST: Section 21 evictions increasing as landlords quit sector, says Citizens Advice

LATEST: Section 21 evictions increasing as landlords quit sector, says Citizens Advice

News

Nearly half of all Section 21 eviction notices have been prompted by landlords selling their properties, Citizens Advice has revealed. It also says that its seen a ramping up of evictions by landlords using Section 21 notices, handling some 2,000 cases last month. <p id=""

Guaranteed rent firm takes down website after LandlordZONE probe

Guaranteed rent firm takes down website after LandlordZONE probe

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A guaranteed rent firm has taken down its website after being exposed for using spurious claims about its connections with reputable bodies. London-based UK Housing Group Ltd, which boasts of being, the largest social housing agency in London and the Midlands featured out-

'Frustrated' council makes historic move to limit short-let holiday homes

'Frustrated' council makes historic move to limit short-let holiday homes

News

A council in Wales is likely to become the first one to use an Article 4 Direction to clamp down on the use of houses as holiday lets. Gwynedd councillors approved the historic move after becoming frustrated with the increase in holiday homes across the county, and the effect th

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Saying social housing is good and private housing bad 'false and unrealistic'

Saying social housing is good and private housing bad 'false and unrealistic'

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A leading Scots letting agent has warned that policies which seek to undermine the PRS are damaging tenants’ wellbeing.

Landlords await welcome reprieve from boiler ban

Landlords await welcome reprieve from boiler ban

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Landlords could get longer to replace gas boilers if the government makes an expected announcement to allow their sale beyond 2035.

Where landlords can find bargains with a £50K budget

Where landlords can find bargains with a £50K budget

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Wales and the North East are the best areas for hard-hit buy-to-let investors looking for above-inflation returns.

Agents report slightly improved picture for tenants

Agents report slightly improved picture for tenants

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The average number of available rental properties at letting agencies jumped to a two-year high last November.

It's time to get ahead of game

It's time to get ahead of game

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With the new year now upon us there’s no better time for landlords to start preparing for the wide-ranging legislation change on the cards for 2025.

TikTok video about looming landlord pets rules goes viral

TikTok video about looming landlord pets rules goes viral

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News
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A TikTok video on upcoming rules around tenants’ ability to keep pets has garnered more than two million views.

Letting agent slams Shelter over 'headline grabbing' eviction claims

Letting agent slams Shelter over 'headline grabbing' eviction claims

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A letting agent has slammed Shelter’s campaign to highlight Section 21 eviction cases as “absurd sensationalism”.

Labour MP declares war on 'too many' HMOs

Labour MP declares war on 'too many' HMOs

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News
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A campaigning MP has helped her constituents get every new HMO application thrown out in the last three years.

Thinktank reveal unusual solution to renting 'crisis'

Thinktank reveal unusual solution to renting 'crisis'

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The landlord exodus is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for councils to buy up properties and restore what was lost under Right to Buy, according to a campaigning think-tank.

End of lease repairs - what do landlords need to know?

End of lease repairs - what do landlords need to know?

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News
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The end of a tenancy can be a stressful time for landlords, faced with a range of repairs before they can relet the property. "Dilapidations" is the term generally used to refer to the process a landlord needs to follow to recover any loss they may have suffered as a result of t

HMO landlords warned not to over-charge 'all inclusive' tenants as energy bills soar

HMO landlords warned not to over-charge 'all inclusive' tenants as energy bills soar

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News
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Following energy regulator Ofgems decision to https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications/price-cap-increase-ps693-april" raise the price cap by nearly £700 a year per household, HMO landlords have been warned to observe the maximum resale value

Awards scheme for HMO landlords launched to highlight best operators

Awards scheme for HMO landlords launched to highlight best operators

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News
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A new property awards has launched that aims to celebrate good landlords in the previously neglected HMO sector. The HMO Awards is dedicated to highlighting good practice and will hand out gongs to HMO agents, operators and investors at a ceremony with a difference that aims to

LATEST: Greenwich agrees £2.6m selective licensing scheme after Covid delay

LATEST: Greenwich agrees £2.6m selective licensing scheme after Covid delay

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The London borough of Greenwich has re-started its planned roll-out of selective licensing across three of its key areas Woolwich, Plumstead and Shooters Hill. Expected to go live at the beginning of July following its Cabinet committee decision, this means nearly a fifth of

Currys closing its London head offices for flexible working space

Currys closing its London head offices for flexible working space

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Currys plc, the leading electrical retailer, operating online and through 829 stores in 7 different countries, is vacating its London head offices for flexible rented space in serviced offices. A sign of the times? This could be the start of a trend that reflects a c

Company linked to high profile investor put into liquidation owing �1.5m

Company linked to high profile investor put into liquidation owing �1.5m

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A high-profile property investor hailed as a rent-to-rent success story has put his company StayBC Ltd into liquidation, owing creditors nearly �1.5 million.<br><br>Newport-based Ben Brand charted his rapid rise on social media, describing his introduction to the property sector after atte

How can landlords afford to upgrade their properties to EPC band C by 2025?

How can landlords afford to upgrade their properties to EPC band C by 2025?

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Like almost all industries the housing market is increasing its efforts to tackle climate change. Households account for 40% of the UKs carbon footprint and the government has forced landlords to move more quickly than others, and from 2025, all properties in the private rent

How can landlords make their properties more energy efficient?

How can landlords make their properties more energy efficient?

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Rising energy prices are at the forefront of a cost-of-living squeeze that will be felt by many in the UK. If youre a tenant, the rising price cap on energy is out of your control but saving money through energy efficiency is within it. For landlords, increased energy effici

Barrister warns landlords over pitfalls of offering Ukrainian refugees whole properties

Barrister warns landlords over pitfalls of offering Ukrainian refugees whole properties

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Landlords have been warned about the legal pitfalls of offering a home to Ukrainians fleeing the war. The governments newly launched Homes for Ukraine scheme lets individuals and businesses �360 a month to provide a spare room or separate self-contained accommodation for ref

It's time to consider challenging your business rates calculation, says RVA Surveyors

It's time to consider challenging your business rates calculation, says RVA Surveyors

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Business rates or non-domestic rates are a variant of a 500-year-old tax, the current version of which was introduced in 1990 to fund local services based on property values, raising approximately �25 billion a year. RVA Surveyors are business rates reduction specialists who ha

LATEST: Arguments over social problems linked to HMOs hot up in Hartlepool

LATEST: Arguments over social problems linked to HMOs hot up in Hartlepool

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Labour councillors in Hartlepool campaigning to restrict HMOs in the town have been told to find evidence of problems caused by shared properties. <figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type- " data-rt-type="" data-rt-align=""><div><img src="https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/63bef2f3c329ef

High Street banks will be gone by 2025

High Street banks will be gone by 2025

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Thats the prediction made by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) and banking software company, Temenos. Temenos AG is a company specialising in enterprise software for banks and financial services headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. An overwhelming proportion of European

New TV series highlights property fraud

New TV series highlights property fraud

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A new four-part ITV drama series starting tonight is based around title fraud which can rob you of your property. Downton Abbey actress Tuppence Middleton and Line of Duty star actor Martin Compston portray a couple who become victims of the little-known crime of house hijacking

UNFAIR': Landlord faces �5,000 fine for deposit protected six months late by her lettings agency

UNFAIR': Landlord faces �5,000 fine for deposit protected six months late by her lettings agency

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A landlord with a property in West Essex has urged LandlordZONE readers to be more careful when trusting agents to protect their tenants deposits via one of the governments approved schemes after a vindictive renter took her to a property

LATEST: HMO landlords must not pocket tenant's �150 council tax rebate, warn MPs

LATEST: HMO landlords must not pocket tenant's �150 council tax rebate, warn MPs

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A cross-party group of MPs has urged the government to ensure HMO and other 'all inclusive' landlords dont pocket multiple council tax rebates under its new scheme https://www.gov.uk/government/news/households-urged-to-get-ready-for-150-council-tax-rebate" target="_blank"

Wales clamps down on holiday lets with draconian new council tax rules

Wales clamps down on holiday lets with draconian new council tax rules

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News
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The Welsh Government is to bring in its https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/news/welsh-government-to-wage-new-war-on-holiday-lets/" promised local tax rules for holiday lets to address the problem of unaffordable housing. Self-catering accomm

LATEST: Landlord wins review of selective licensing scheme for 'value for money'

LATEST: Landlord wins review of selective licensing scheme for 'value for money'

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External auditors are to investigate selective licensing in Nottingham following a complaint about whether it provides value for money. One of the citys landlords has made a formal objection about the scheme which charges them up to �890 every five years for each rental prop

Wave of 'unfair' HMO council tax revaluations revealed that can QUADRUPLE bills

Wave of 'unfair' HMO council tax revaluations revealed that can QUADRUPLE bills

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Councils are seeking to reclassify HMO properties as multiple single dwellings for council tax purposes to raise additional revenue, it has been reported. <figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type- " data-rt-type="" data-rt-align=""><div><img src="https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/63bef2

EXCLUSIVE: Lettings firm goes bust leaving trail of 200 unprotected deposits

EXCLUSIVE: Lettings firm goes bust leaving trail of 200 unprotected deposits

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A long-established letting agent has gone bust, leaving more than 200 deposits unprotected and many landlords without tenancy agreements and gas and EPC certificates. Pendley Estates in Kings Langley, Hertfordshire, was a formerly reputable firm that had been trading since the 1

Are hydrogen boilers the future of heating in the UK?

Are hydrogen boilers the future of heating in the UK?

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The UK government has committed to meeting internationally agreed carbon neutral targets and as natural gas (used in domestic boilers) is a major contributor to carbon emissions, a low carbon alternative such as hydrogen, used in existing equipment, is a likely replacement in the future.</p

BBC joins in the 'endless grind' of media landlord bashing

BBC joins in the 'endless grind' of media landlord bashing

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The BBC has joined the ranks of landlord-bashing media by publishing a story that gives a distinctly one-sided view of an eviction, helping bolster Shelter and other organisations' campaigns to ban Section 21 notices. It quotes a tenant as saying she was in panic mode� when

Thousands of landlords affected by sale of struggling digital lettings agency

Thousands of landlords affected by sale of struggling digital lettings agency

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Thousands of landlords whose properties are managed by a leading online letting platform are to see their property management firm change hands after Howsy revealed it is to be acquired by a major high street lettings agency. Launched in 2016 originally as No Agent

Commercial property energy upgrades could cost over �30bn

Commercial property energy upgrades could cost over �30bn

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The road to net zero is paved with additional costs for Britain, not least the amount of money it will take to upgrade commercial property, in the industrial alone. Achieving grade B� ratings under the 2030 Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) requirements for the UK

LATEST: Infamous rogue landlord and three associates are banned for five years

LATEST: Infamous rogue landlord and three associates are banned for five years

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Camden Council has handed out banning orders to four rogue landlords for letting an unlicensed and unsafe home in Kilburn. All part of the same interconnected group of London-based family and business associates - Mohammed Ali Abbas Rasool, 30, of Manor House Drive, Daya Ahmed D

LATEST: Coventry to clamp down on HMOs with new planning powers

LATEST: Coventry to clamp down on HMOs with new planning powers

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Coventry aims to come down hard on HMO expansion within the city by introducing an Article 4 Direction. Councillors have approved the plans which will now form part of a public consultation this summer. They hope to change the rules which currently allow landlords to