

A very Merry Christmas to all our readers from the LandlordZONE editorial team.
Are landlords to blame for our housing crisis, or are they on the receiving end of a very raw deal?
Scottish ministers have defended proposals to introduce minimum energy efficiency standards in the private rented sector by 2028.
A leading figure in the property world has pinned the blame for the UK’s rocketing rent rises on the Government, claiming that it’s absurd to accuse landlords and letting agents of profiteering from huge demand.
Octopus Energy is launching its first private rental properties in the new year, kitted out with solar panels, heat pumps, and home storage batteries, where tenants are guaranteed to pay no energy bills for a minimum of five years.
The government has given Peterborough Council the green light for its new selective licensing scheme, covering 40% of the city’s private rental properties.
Landlords who are unable to sell apartments because the block they are in continue to suffer from post-Grenfell fire safety issues have been given some additional Xmas cheer.
Housing Secretary Michael Gove has strongly hinted that selective licensing schemes will not be needed when the government’s new property portal is launched.
A landlord looks set to lose his leasehold flat after being caught renting it out on Airbnb by his freeholder.
The exact wording in leases is so very important when it comes to landlord - tenant disputes with commercial and residential property leases
The extent of the Government’s reliance on private landlords to provide housing for those on benefits after years of under-investment in affordable homes has been revealed.
A proposed shake-up of social housing would tighten allocation rules and allow landlords to get tougher on anti-social tenants.
Signs that landlords may see their tax bill reduced during the Spring Budget on March 6th have emerged from parliament following a question in the Lords.
A lack of council-organised landlord gatherings could hamper the Renters Reform Bill’s ambitions, according to Propertymark.
Problem tenants are difficult to deal with for landlords at the best of times. The government's promise to introduce a fast-track process to deal with anti-social behaviour sounds promising, but can it work in practice?
Tenants have been urged to be wary of ‘no-win, no-fee’ solicitors who deal with private rental sector cases after an almost farcical case in London.
Disability rights groups have called on the government to include information about accessibility for disabled people on its new property portal due to go live next year.
A service that alerts landlords when fraudulent tenants try to ‘steal’ their properties via title fraud has struck a deal with the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA).
Private renters now have potentially more political power, with Generation Rent analysis finding that 194 constituencies in England have populations containing 20% or more private renters, up from 114 in 2011.
Airbnb and two other big short-lets platforms have agreed to share their data on guest numbers and nights booked with the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to help shape policy decisions on the sector.
Two legal experts have told MPs probing the Government’s plans to abolish Section 21 ‘no fault evictions’ that improving the crumbling courts system could take years.
Latest changes to the Renters (Reform) Bill published a few days ago highlight the legal hill that many landlords faced with anti-social tenants will have to climb, it has been claimed.
More tenants living in flats could find themselves unable to have a pet than those in a house under the Renters Reform Bill, warns the founder of a campaigning group.
The second national awards for HMO landlords has been announced by property management platform COHO chief Helen Turner, who is one of the driving forces behind its creation.
Just over half of tenants surveyed about the cost of living want their rent to include all their utility bills, it has been revealed.
Rental homes should be confiscated from private landlords who repeatedly break the rules and exploit tenants, according to the head of the Commons housing committee.
Despite interest rate hikes battering investor confidence, the UK’s portfolio landlords remain focused on expanding their property portfolios, research from Shawbrook finds.
British Gas has urged the government to consider a raft of measures aimed at helping landlords increase energy efficiency, including Green Upgrade Relief which lets them deduct green improvements from their annual income.
At least 44% of landlords won’t let their property to tenants with pets and 15% won’t consider those with children, according to a new Confused.com mortgages poll.
Winter is coming and high energy bills are really focussing attention on to what it takes to properly insulate a home. A well insulated home can make the difference between living in freezing conditions or feeling warm and comfortable this winter.
The Government has revealed that it intends to overturn this year’s landmark Jepsen vs Rakusen rent repayment order decision in the Supreme Court within its Renters (Reform) Bill.
The Government has published some 100 amendments to its Renters (Reform) Bill including ‘missing parts’ left out of the first draft lodged with parliament earlier this year.
Tom Entwistle explains how landlords can proceed when faced with outstanding debts at the end of or even during a tenancy.
Private rental prices paid by tenants in the UK rose by 6.1% during the 12 months to October 2023, up from 5.7% during the 12 months to September 2023, ONS data shows.
The Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH) has told MPs that the Government's looming national property portal for landlords won’t diminish the need for selective licencing.
Landlords using a guaranteed rent scheme can earn £3,600 a year more than by conventional letting, according to one guaranteed rent provider.
Granting landlords and tenants the ability to give the same notice periods would prevent the private rented sector “becoming Airbnb by the back door”, NRLA’s chief executive Ben Beadle has told MPs.
Landlords in Luton claim to have once again persuaded the town’s council to delay its highly controversial additional and selective licencing schemes, the fourth time this has happened in as many years.
More than 20% of short-term lets advertised in London were previously long-term rentals, according to research by property data platform Propalt.
Councils are calling for a widening of the conditions under which tenants can claim rent repayment orders (RROs) as part of the Renters (Reform) Bill.
Letting agents and landlords are benefitting from higher interest rates by reaping more than £80 million this year from billions of pounds’ worth of tenants’ deposits.
A leading student accommodation expert has urged the Government to create a level playing field for the sector within the looming Renters (Reform) Bill or face a perfect storm of rising rents and contracting suipply.
A housing minister appointed just nine months ago by Rishi Sunak has now been asked to stand down during today’s reshuffle triggered by the sacking home Home Secretary Suella Braverman.