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'Licencing schemes should be abolished and replaced with annual MOT'

'Licencing schemes should be abolished and replaced with annual MOT'

News

Licencing schemes are a blunt instrument, pointlessly cost compliant landlords hundreds of pounds, are ignored by rogue operators and consume scarce council resources.

Property experts say new EPC target 'impossible to meet'

Property experts say new EPC target 'impossible to meet'

News

A straw poll of building surveyors, recovery experts, private landlords, investors and developers has found that the vast majority deem the government’s EPC C target by 2030 as impossible to meet.

Landlord fined £5,000 after ignoring improvement notices

Landlord fined £5,000 after ignoring improvement notices

News

A landlord has been handed a £5,000 fine after persistently ignoring requests to carry out improvement works on his property – despite being a builder.

EPCs to be replaced by a new Home Energy Model this year

EPCs to be replaced by a new Home Energy Model this year

News

EPCs to be upgraded with a new method of assessment, the new "Home Energy Model", later this year

US rent data firm with UK arm faces legal action at home

US rent data firm with UK arm faces legal action at home

News

A tech firm is being sued by the US government for allowing landlords in America to increase rents and stifle competition.

Eco-upgrade schemes worth £20m for landlords now live across England

Eco-upgrade schemes worth £20m for landlords now live across England

News

Landlords can get free or subsidised advice on eco upgrades from a raft of new government-funded schemes that are now up and running across England.

Solicitor convicted of harassing tenants given suspended jail term

Solicitor convicted of harassing tenants given suspended jail term

News

A landlord in Northern Ireland has been handed a jail sentence of two months suspended for two years.

Report paints grim picture of homeless excluded from private rented sector

Report paints grim picture of homeless excluded from private rented sector

News

Access to low-cost private rented housing across England has become nearly impossible for ‘bottom of the market’ people living in homelessness accommodation and services, according to new research.

Boom in landlords turning to short lets since 2022

Boom in landlords turning to short lets since 2022

News

Most landlords don’t use the agent they bought the property from to rent it out – and are increasingly likely not to market it as a long-term tenancy.

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HMO landlord loses fine appeal after blaming agent for rules breach

HMO landlord loses fine appeal after blaming agent for rules breach

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News
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An HMO landlord who blamed a guaranteed rent firm for breaching his licence has failed in his bid to overturn a £7,500 fine.

RICS member agents predict growing rental shortages

RICS member agents predict growing rental shortages

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News
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RICS survey predicts growing shortage of rental properties. Demand is predicted to grow while supply declines.

HMO planning register rejected in East of England

HMO planning register rejected in East of England

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News
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Councillors in Ipswich have rejected plans for a register of all HMO licensing applications in the town.

Renting reforms will pose 'serious risk' to self-managing landlords

Renting reforms will pose 'serious risk' to self-managing landlords

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News
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Landlords face considerable risks from self-managing their properties when the Renters’ Rights Bill goes live, according to a letting agent expert.

Rent controls will backfire, landlords warn Scots ministers

Rent controls will backfire, landlords warn Scots ministers

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News
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Scotland’s landlords and letting agents have warned that the country’s imminent rent controls will backfire.

Rent rewards app urges tenants to pay by card not BACS

Rent rewards app urges tenants to pay by card not BACS

News
News
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Landlords could soon be paid their rent via credit cards rather than bank transfer after a Spanish company said it plans to launch in the UK.

Renters' Rights Bill - a month on, what's happened?

Renters' Rights Bill - a month on, what's happened?

Opinion
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It's been just over a month since I last penned my thoughts for LandlordZONE, and in that brief period, the private rental sector has continued to evolve at rapid pace.

Landlord to pay £64,000 fine over 'hidden' HMO

Landlord to pay £64,000 fine over 'hidden' HMO

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News
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A rogue landlord has been handed a whopping £64,000 fine after he was found renting a five-bedroom house to 13 people.

House raffle boss slams UK's 'unaffordable' rental market

House raffle boss slams UK's 'unaffordable' rental market

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News
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A prize company CEO says the UK’s rental stock shortage is driving tenants’ anxiety about rent rises.

Rogue landlord and agent first to be banned from PRS in Essex

Rogue landlord and agent first to be banned from PRS in Essex

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News
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A rogue landlord and also letting agent who let out grotty and overcrowded properties has been handed the first banning order in Essex.

Number of tenants looking for properties to rent drops 39%

Number of tenants looking for properties to rent drops 39%

News
News
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Rental growth has slowed to its lowest level for nearly three years while demand has dropped by 39% during the past 12 months.

Northern city named best BTL hotspot with 13.1% gross yield

Northern city named best BTL hotspot with 13.1% gross yield

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News
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As house prices have risen sharply in recent decades, many had thought that the sub-£100,000 house that returned double-digit gross returns had gone for good.

Scottish rent rises top charts after controls end

Scottish rent rises top charts after controls end

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News
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The Scottish government’s failure to plan for the end of temporary rent controls has led to rents rising faster than in most other parts of the UK.

Generation Rent boss urges landlords to absorb costs

Generation Rent boss urges landlords to absorb costs

News
News
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Landlords can bear the brunt of longer notice periods due to charging high rents, according to Generation Rent.

Manx council moves to restrict holiday let growth

Manx council moves to restrict holiday let growth

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News
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An Isle of Man village has become the latest authority to clamp down on the growth in short-term lets.

NEW: Councillors vote through selective licensing and higher fees

NEW: Councillors vote through selective licensing and higher fees

News
News
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Burnley councillors have recommended that its three selective licensing schemes covering some 2,000 homes be extended for another five years following a three-month-long consultation. The schemes in Burnley Wood and Healey Wood, along with the Leyland Road area of the town, were

NEW: Royal family make £1.4m a year from holiday lets

NEW: Royal family make £1.4m a year from holiday lets

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News
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The Royal Family could be raking in £118,775 each month from their holiday let portfolio, adding up to a lucrative annual rental income of more than £1.4 million.

3,000 landlords are under 21 years old, reveals finance data

3,000 landlords are under 21 years old, reveals finance data

News
News
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Opinion
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Gen Z are rushing to invest in buy-to-let property, with more than 3,000 buy-to-let landlords in the UK now under the age of 21.

Landlord given police caution after assaulting tenant over 'arrears'

Landlord given police caution after assaulting tenant over 'arrears'

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News
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A landlord who reportedly attacked a tenant after he complained about serious disrepairs has been handed a police caution.

Rent controls reduce supply and housing quality, says new report

Rent controls reduce supply and housing quality, says new report

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News
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A new report that evaluates the dozens of rent control schemes implemented over the past 60 years across the world has concluded that overall they are harmful to rental homes supply.

COMMENT: Did you know that tenants can claim compensation over disrepair?

COMMENT: Did you know that tenants can claim compensation over disrepair?

Information
News
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Tenants can claim compensation from their landlord for repairs that are not done in a reasonable time; repairs that are of bad quality and do not fix things

EXPERT: 'Now is the time to convert from commercial to residential'

EXPERT: 'Now is the time to convert from commercial to residential'

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News
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There’s never been a better time for landlords to convert a commercial building to residential use, according to a leading architect.

'Dont be afraid of the future' Zoopla boss tells landlords

'Dont be afraid of the future' Zoopla boss tells landlords

News
News
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Zoopla boss Richard Donnell has urged landlords and investors to steer clear of misinformation about the PRS and focus on the positives.

Landlord's rental properties seized in UK regulation 'first'

Landlord's rental properties seized in UK regulation 'first'

News
News
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A rogue landlord who persistently failed to license several rented properties has had them seized by Merton Council in one of the first actions of its kind in the country.

Sadiq Khan goes quiet on rent controls after Labour 'slap down'

Sadiq Khan goes quiet on rent controls after Labour 'slap down'

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News
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London Mayor Sadiq Khan has been slapped down by Labour’s national leadership after asking to be given rent control powers, it has been reported.

Coventry to extend HMO licencing for five years

Coventry to extend HMO licencing for five years

News
News
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Coventry councillors look set to give the go-ahead to extending the city’s additional licensing scheme, raising the fee for a five-year licence from £840 to £916.

Potential buyer reports landlord to council over illegal HMO

Potential buyer reports landlord to council over illegal HMO

News
News
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A landlord renting out an unlicensed HMO was caught out when a prospective buyer reported her to the council.

REVEALED: £10k cost of getting rental properties up to Labour's new EPC minimum

REVEALED: £10k cost of getting rental properties up to Labour's new EPC minimum

News
News
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Information

Private landlords face an average bill of £10,000 to hit government EPC C targets by 2030, according to new research.

City's selective licensing to generate £7.7 million for council

City's selective licensing to generate £7.7 million for council

News
News
Podcast
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Information

The City of Peterborough says it has received selective licencing applications for three quarters of the properties due to be included in the ten-ward scheme, with a deadline for the completion of applications due at the end of November.

Lobby group launches to fight Scotland's rent controls

Lobby group launches to fight Scotland's rent controls

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News
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A new private rented sector lobbying group hopes to convince the Scottish government to temper its plans for permanent rent controls under the Housing (Scotland) Bill.

Landlords warned after deposits court case stops eviction

Landlords warned after deposits court case stops eviction

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News
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An appeal judge has backed a tenant’s argument that serving prescribed information before the deposit is paid isn’t valid, meaning their eviction cannot go ahead.

REVEALED: Where landlords wait longest and shortest to find tenants

REVEALED: Where landlords wait longest and shortest to find tenants

News
News
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Opinion
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Information

Gloucester was the fastest moving rental market last month where the average property was let within 14 days of being advertised.

NRLA warns rent controls would 'not benefit tenants' in long run

NRLA warns rent controls would 'not benefit tenants' in long run

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News
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Trade association the NRLA has warned that rent controls would prompt a third of landlords to sell up if they were introduced in England.

Big build-to-rent firm in trouble over 'misleading consumers'

Big build-to-rent firm in trouble over 'misleading consumers'

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News
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Build-to-rent developer Quintain Living has had its knuckles rapped for wrongly suggesting tenants could make big energy bill savings, get free WiFi and work from home areas.