Date

Library

Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

OPINION: The EPC ratings system is 'not fit for purpose'

OPINION: The EPC ratings system is 'not fit for purpose'

Opinion

Ever since I started to market one of my commercial buildings around 10 years ago now, I began to doubt the efficacy of the EPC rating system. The guy that came along to do the inspection told me himself he had just completed a 6 week course, or whatever it was, to train to be a

BREAKING: Government toughens up smoke and C0 alarm regulations

BREAKING: Government toughens up smoke and C0 alarm regulations

News

Social and private landlords are to face tougher new rules which make it mandatory to fit smoke alarms in all rented accommodation regardless of tenure, and widen the conditions under which they must be fitted. Revisions to the smoke and carbon monoxide detector regulations also

ANALYSIS: Does buy-to-let still beat the stock market?

ANALYSIS: Does buy-to-let still beat the stock market?

News

If you had �50k to invest right now, where would you put it, buy-to-let property or stocks and shares? Certainly leaving it in a traditional savings account, with interest rates as they are at rock bottom, thats out of the question. And with the threat of rising inflation ea

EXCLUSIVE: Costliest and most common landlord insurance claims

EXCLUSIVE: Costliest and most common landlord insurance claims

News

Research carried out by LandlordZONEs insurance partner, Hamilton Fraser Total Landlord Insurance, revealed that the vast majority of landlords, https://hamiltonfraser.co.uk/knowledge/good-landlord-quiz-results/?utm_source=landlordzone&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=lz_november

Opinion: Should landlords dive into heat pumps?

Opinion: Should landlords dive into heat pumps?

Opinion

The move to provide home heating and hot water by this method is part of a Government strategy aimed at making deep cuts to greenhouse gas emissions and decarbonizing the UK's power sector by 2035. Prime Minister Boris Johnson says the scheme was designed to bring low-carbon hea

UPDATED: Bailiff evictions to be suspended over Xmas and New Year for a month

UPDATED: Bailiff evictions to be suspended over Xmas and New Year for a month

News

Tenants facing eviction in England are to be protected from losing their homes during the Christmas and New Year period, HM Courts and Tribunal has confirmed. Between 13th December and 10th January no evictions should be s

Tax changes for Airbnb landlords 'in the pipeline' to stop gaming of the rates system

Tax changes for Airbnb landlords 'in the pipeline' to stop gaming of the rates system

News

Some holiday lets owners are gaming the system to claim business rate relief, comments made by the Housing Minister Lord Greenhalgh suggest, who has promised action to clamp down on the practice. In a Lords debate on second homes, peers voiced concerns that second homeo

Asylum seeker HMO operator fined �60,000 for running house without licence

Asylum seeker HMO operator fined �60,000 for running house without licence

News

A company that houses asylum seekers has been fined more than �60,000 for HMO offences in Newport. Clearsprings Ready Homes, which has the contract for operating accommodation for asylum seekers in Wales, was found guilty of letting an HMO in Redland Street (pictured), in the B

Bill to make EPC rules mandatory early 'unlikely to become law' after stabbing

Bill to make EPC rules mandatory early 'unlikely to become law' after stabbing

News

The Minimum Energy Performance of Buildings Bill, which aimed to advance the governments energy efficiency commitments, is in doubt following the tragic death of David Amess MP. He was the presentation bills main sponsor in the Commons, launching it at the same time as Lor

Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

RICS warns landlords over 'unqualified' fire assessors' paperwork

RICS warns landlords over 'unqualified' fire assessors' paperwork

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has urged flat owners to check assessors’ credentials after a fire engineer was sanctioned by the Institution of Fire Engineers for unprofessional conduct.

Council moves to ban 'To Let' boards in central London

Council moves to ban 'To Let' boards in central London

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Letting agents have warned Westminster Council that its plan to ban advertising boards outside landlords' properties borough-wide could cause delays for renters.

Tenants in England now pay half their income in rent

Tenants in England now pay half their income in rent

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Rightmove says the average rent in the UK now eats up 50% of the net income of those living within the private rented sector where the monthly rent per property is now £1,526.

Housing quality in rented sector rising - but so's damp

Housing quality in rented sector rising - but so's damp

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Numbers of non-decent homes and Category 1 hazards in the PRS have fallen in recent years, although problems with damp are on the rise.

Rent controls in Scotland 'favour landlords' says Generation Rent

Rent controls in Scotland 'favour landlords' says Generation Rent

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The Scottish government’s proposed rent control formula is generous to landlords but would leave tenants vulnerable to unaffordable rent rises, says Generation Rent.

Big council urges public to report rogue HMO landlords

Big council urges public to report rogue HMO landlords

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Croydon Council is calling on local residents to report concerns about unauthorised HMOs as it ramps up action against errant landlords.

Landlords 'bewildered and frustrated' by Scotland's latest rent controls

Landlords 'bewildered and frustrated' by Scotland's latest rent controls

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

There is still widespread frustration and bewilderment among landlords and agent that rent controls are the only policy intervention to help tackle affordability in Scotland

CLAIM: Investors 'moving out of residential into commercial'

CLAIM: Investors 'moving out of residential into commercial'

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Investors have started buying up shops and offices in London rather than houses in order to turn a profit.

Midlands landlord to pay £20,000 after ignoring improvement notice

Midlands landlord to pay £20,000 after ignoring improvement notice

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

A landlord in Telford is to pay a huge fine after his local council took him to court over a substandard property he rented out within the town.

BLOG: What next for leaseholders facing remediation nightmares?

BLOG: What next for leaseholders facing remediation nightmares?

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Cross-bench peer the Earl of Lytton reveals his attempts to make the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill a better piece of legislation for landlords and leaseholders.

Political parties largely misunderstand the business rates issues

Political parties largely misunderstand the business rates issues

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The three main parties manifestos' proposals fail to instil confidence in Colliers business rates expert, John Webber.

17% of deposits 'don't cover rent arrears or damage by tenants'

17% of deposits 'don't cover rent arrears or damage by tenants'

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Cash deposits increasingly don’t cover landlords’ claims for rent arrears or damage, according to a new study.

55% of tenants support rent controls says Generation Rent

55% of tenants support rent controls says Generation Rent

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

More than half of private renters (55%) reckon a new government should introduce rent controls.

Welsh nationalists back rent controls in manifesto

Welsh nationalists back rent controls in manifesto

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Plaid Cymru has come out in favour of rent controls in the PRS as part of its housing strategy in the party’s manifesto.

BLOG: Why accurate inventories are more important than ever

BLOG: Why accurate inventories are more important than ever

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The first thing I tell anyone is how important 'evidence' is in both deposit disputes and, now more than ever, monitoring fire safety compliance.

Renting £300 a month cheaper than owning says big lettings firm

Renting £300 a month cheaper than owning says big lettings firm

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Despite politicians and campaign groups claiming that the nation’s rental market is unaffordable, new research out today reveals that renting remains cheaper on average than buying a property with a 5% deposit.

GUIDE: Tenancy agreements as a deed instead of a contract

GUIDE: Tenancy agreements as a deed instead of a contract

Information
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

A tenancy agreement is just like any other contract, so as soon as both tenant and landlord have signed the agreement, it becomes a legally binding contract.

Definitive leasehold reform is still far from a done deal

Definitive leasehold reform is still far from a done deal

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Labour might be no more likely to deliver on promises to overhaul the leasehold system than the Conservatives, according to property experts.

Surveyors warn parties to focus on generation rent

Surveyors warn parties to focus on generation rent

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

A huge mismatch in the private rented sector has left tenants tackling ever-rising living costs and plummeting affordability levels.

Demand grows for greener properties to lower energy bills

Demand grows for greener properties to lower energy bills

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Most portfolio landlords have been asked to make energy efficient improvements by their tenants in the past year, according to a new poll.

Labour manifesto sets deadline for more energy efficient PRS

Labour manifesto sets deadline for more energy efficient PRS

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Private rented homes will have to meet minimum energy efficiency standards by 2030 if Labour get the keys to Number 10 next month.

Farage will push for urgent repeal of Section 24

Farage will push for urgent repeal of Section 24

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Reform UK wants mortgage interest tax relief brought back as part of ‘critical reforms’ suggested by the party following the general election.

Legal appeal aims to protect landlords' postal rights

Legal appeal aims to protect landlords' postal rights

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The NRLA has stepped in to help fight a legal battle over whether it is acceptable for vital rental documents to be served by post.

COMMENT: Aiming for net zero makes good business sense

COMMENT: Aiming for net zero makes good business sense

Opinion
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Increasing the energy efficiency of a property is undoubtedly of value - regardless of the election outcome.

Logbooks should be made compulsory for landlords, claims expert

Logbooks should be made compulsory for landlords, claims expert

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Landlords could have to start keeping a digital logbook to demonstrate their compliance with energy efficiency measures.

Greens vow to power up plans for warmer rental homes

Greens vow to power up plans for warmer rental homes

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Green MPs will push for rent controls and tenants’ right to demand energy efficiency improvements if they win more seats in the election.

PRS should be cut dramatically, campaigners tell Martin Lewis

PRS should be cut dramatically, campaigners tell Martin Lewis

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Property expert Julie Ford has called out tenant union Acorn for suggesting the private rented sector should be greatly reduced.

Utilita Homes boss says landlords need more help to retrofit properties

Utilita Homes boss says landlords need more help to retrofit properties

Sponsored
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

In a bold appeal to the country’s incoming policymakers, George Walters, Chief Home Services Officer at Utilita Energy, is urging political parties to prioritise helping landlords to retrofit their properties in a bid to make millions of tenants more comfortable

Landlords promised cash incentive under new Tory government

Landlords promised cash incentive under new Tory government

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Groups representing both tenants and landlords have reacted coolly to the Conservative manifesto which was deemed short on new initiatives.

Purpose-built rentals pushed as housing shortage solution

Purpose-built rentals pushed as housing shortage solution

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The British Property Federation has called on the next government to set a bold target of 30,000 new build-to-rent homes a year.

Rent increases slowing, but tenant demand is still outpacing supply

Rent increases slowing, but tenant demand is still outpacing supply

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The latest data shows that rent increases have been slowing but tenant demand still outstrips supply

Official figures confirm Scotland's PRS is shrinking

Official figures confirm Scotland's PRS is shrinking

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The Scottish government has published new evidence that confirms the country’s private rented sector is getting smaller.

Former Tory councillor banned after poor repairs

Former Tory councillor banned after poor repairs

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

A former Conservative councillor has been banned from letting properties for two years after repeatedly failing to comply with improvement notices.

Lib Dem manifesto promises renters a fair deal

Lib Dem manifesto promises renters a fair deal

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The Liberal Democrats have vowed to make three-year tenancies the default and to require landlords to achieve an EPC C or above by 2028.