A new law to crack down on predatory landlords who exploit vulnerable people for sex in return for free or discounted rent is being considered, Home Secretary Suella Braverman (main picture) has announced. Her department is seeking the views of victims, the police and charities
There are heavy fines for those landlords who fail to have their rental properties tested by a qualified electrician before letting, and for existing tenancies, or if they fail to comply with any of the important recommendations made in a test report. The landlord will ordinarily have 28 da
A Tribunal judge has warned landlords that unless they have a specific contractual arrangement with their letting agency to keep them abreast of licencing requirements it will - in most circumstances - be the landlord who pays the fine for non-compliance. Judge Phillip Barber ha
The number of VAT and/or PAYE enterprises operating in the UKs residential and commercial rental sectors climbed 2% in the past year, despite the governments best efforts to deter investment. Analysis of government data by debt advisory firm https://siriusfinance.
Luton Council is making yet another attempt to bring in two new licensing schemes after a string of false starts amid landlord opposition. Its overview and scrutiny board has agreed to recommend a town-wide additional scheme as well as a selective scheme in South ward, which now
Durham citys parish council has taken the unusual step of asking student landlords to make a voluntary donation towards the cost of cleaning up street waste and discarded furniture. It will ask for a contribution of �52 towards its precept from student landlords to match the
Two-thirds of private landlords might sell up if they are forced to make EPC upgrades, new research finds. The Mortgage Advice Bureau says 59% would consider selling their property due to not being able to afford the changes needed to meet the minimum level. With an
NRLA boss Ben Beadle has urged the government to learn from the awful implementation� of Renting Homes Wales which he labelled a car crash of epic proportions�. Speaking on The Guild of Property Professionalshttps://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/guildprop
The Mayor of London has accused private landlords across the UK of taking rent worth �9 billion for homes that are non decent, �1.6 billion of which is paid for via housing benefit. The figure is highlighted as, this morning, Sadiq Khan reveals his PRS research generated
Councils will be given more power to force landlords to rent out vacant residential properties as part of the government’s English Devolution white paper.
Letting agents have slammed plans to ease licensing rules that will mean local councils can introduce large selective schemes without government approval.
Ealing Council has ramped up its crackdown on rogue landlords with a rigorous programme of HMO inspections.
Local authorities will no longer have to ask the Secretary of State for permission to introduced selective licensing schemes in England and Northern Ireland, it has been revealed.
Economic headwinds are set to shrink purchases in the buy-to-let market by 7% next year to £9 billion, predicts UK Finance.
Landlords in Norwich are chasing thousands of pounds in rent payments from a letting agency which appears to have gone under.
Hundreds of tenants have staged a protest in central London calling for the government to introduce rent controls.
One of the UK’s larger national parks is planning to stop any new homes that are built within it being used as holiday/short lets or second homes.
New Government schemes that are offering advice to help tenants with legal issues
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is scrutinising green claims from boiler maker Worcester Bosch to see if they mislead landlords.
The Renters Reform Bill is expected to get its second reading on Monday, heralding a huge shake-up of the sector after four years in the planning.
A leading landlord has welcomed the Government’s recent U-turn on EPCs, telling a webinar this week that he was facing a ‘crazy’ bill to upgrade his portfolio of properties to the minimum ‘C’ band.
A quarter of landlords are to sell some of their property portfolio in the coming months but not in the volumes previously claimed, a big letting agency has claimed.
Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary Claire Coutinho (main picture) has rejected the idea of tax breaks for landlords to pay for green upgrades.
Harlow Council in Essex aims to take a harder line with private landlords by introducing civil penalties as an alternative to prosecution.
Landlord leader Ben Beadle has pinned the shortage of private rental sector homes squarely on the Government, saying George Osborne’s decision in 2015 to cut mortgage interest tax relief for landlords has been the key driver of the current stock crisis.
Tenants on benefits will get more help when paying court fees during evictions and claiming Rent Repayment Orders after the government expanded its Help with Fees scheme.
Burnley Council has launched plans to clamp down on landlords converting homes into small HMOs.
PRS chief Sean Hooker relects on the bumpy ride landlords face in the coming months, and how they can get prepared for the changes.
The average mortgaged landlord paid 37% of their rent on mortgage interest in August, up from a low of 24% in November 2021, according to Hamptons.
Thirty charities and non-profit organisations have written to the Prime Minister urging him to ensure the Renters Reform Bill is passed during this Parliament.
A WhatsApp-style ‘dating service’ designed to marry up landlords and tenants has launched seeking to simplify London’s ‘chaotic’ private rented sector and rival established portals such as Rightmove and Zoopla.
There’s now a significant proportion of adults in the UK struggling to meet their rent or mortgage payments
Landlords who took out a new mortgage between April and June this year made an annual cash loss for the first time since 2007.
A landlord who ignored improvement notices on his two unlicensed properties has been handed a £15,000 fine by magistrates.
It is very convenient and timely to accept documents relating to tenancies signed electronically and transmitted electronically - are they legal valid?
A letting agency in Hove has been ordered to pay nearly £69,000 for “abhorrent and vile” behaviour towards its tenants.
Renters with pets or children are paying as much as £460 more during their tenancy compared to other renters.
After a tough week, starting with reports from the Telegraph urging banks to “stop treating landlords like cash cows”.
A buoyant private rented market continues to outshine the struggling sales sector, although there is cause for optimism long-term, reports The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).
Landlords wondering how the planned register for landlords in England may operate have been given a taste of what’s to come following a case in Glasgow.
Barclays has been ordered to pay benefits landlord Mick Roberts compensation over a long-running saga which saw him wrongly given a bad credit rating.
Landlords looking to re-mortgage until December 2024 at a typical 6.5% rate face an alarming 52% jump in their monthly mortgage payments, according to credit ratings agency DBRS Morningstar.
