In this episode of The Property Cast, Eddie and Paul are joined by Maxine Fothergill, President of the leading membership body for property agents, ARLA Propertymark. The trio discuss the topical issue of rental reform and ROPA, delving into the detail of what lies ahead for age
Middle-income households are to be eligible for grants worth up to �15,000 to make their homes more energy efficient says Grant Shapps, the business secretary. Grant Shapps is to announce the plans for insulation grants to help households fund loft insulation, cavity wall insul
Portsmouth is to go ahead with its contested additional licensing scheme but has promised to reward good landlords by charging them a lower licence fee and doing fewer inspections. Landlords had urged their council not to go ahead with plans to extend licensing to about 4,000 th
The long awaited renting reforms first muted in 2019 will be implemented next year, promises Housing Secretary, Michael Gove MP. Admitting that the Government should have moved more quickly� on these reforms to protect tenants following the Grenfell Tower tragedy, Mr Gove
A landlord battling to evict his nightmare tenants using a Section 8 order is exasperated that county court bailiffs encouraged them to stay put. The Cumbrian-based landlord had been granted a possession order, but his tenants - on bail for alleged drug offences and owing �3,00
The Government has averted a looming crisis in the HMO sector that would have seen many tenants charged individually for council tax, rather than paying a share of the propertys annual bill. As LandlordZONEhttps://www.landlordzone.co.uk/news/exclusive-official-counci
London Renters Union will picket successful estate agents across the capital next week who it blames for pushing up rents to unaffordable levels. Protests are planned in Tower Hamlets, Hackney and Crystal Palace on 3rd December by activists who have taken partic
The Welsh government has given a strong indication that landlords and property owners operating Airbnb holiday homes within its borders are to face a compulsory licensing scheme similar to the Rent Smart Wales scheme for the traditional private rental sector. This follows a parl
Landlords long-standing criticisms of health and safety regulation that tenants are often the cause of problems such as mould or water leaks look set to be addressed in new government guidance. Councils inspecting rented properties will be formally instructed to exami
Three quarters of Suffolk renters have struggled to find an affordable home in the last six months, while half had a rent increase – an average of £58 – according to new research.
Peterborough Council’s selective licensing scheme has uncovered some “horrendous” living conditions since its launch last March.
A rogue landlord has been fined for a second time this year for failing to license his portfolio of houses.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer is facing an EPC upgrade bill of up to £28,000 for the property he rents out in North London.
The past 12 months have been a momentous time for private landlords as tax changes and looming new regulations have been unveiled by politicians of various hues.
Councils are sending the wrong message to law-abiding landlords by failing to investigate those who can’t provide a valid EPC certificate.
A landlord in Liverpool has been prosecuted by its city council for 23 offences under national HMO management regulations.
Despite enthusiasm in Whitehall for heat pumps they not the best way to upgrade a rented property EPC rating, a new report has claimed.
Nearly two-thirds of working private renters - 4,450,000 people - are falling behind with rent payments or struggling to pay their rent.
Peterborough councillors hope to come down harder on the growth of smaller HMOs by introducing a trial Article 4 Direction. It comes only a few weeks after the authority https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/news/peterborough-looks-to-repeat-success-of-former-licensing-scheme/
A government minister has admitted that landlords could quit the market unless upcoming changes to EPC rules are implemented carefully. In a Lords debate to discuss the challenges of achieving net zero, https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/tag/lord-callanan/" target="_blank"
Tenants group Generation Rent has backed the DLUHC select committees call to close a loophole in proposed Section 8 reforms. It says the governments plan to ban Section 21 evictions but still allow landlords to evict tenants when needing to sell or move back into a prop
MPs have slammed the Governments proposed reforms to the private rented sector (PRS) within its looming Renters Reform Bill, calling for Ministers to wake up to its unintended consequences. Their report, published this morning, also makes the point that most tenants are not w
Large areas of the country will be without vital legal advice to prevent eviction if the government cant get law firms to take part in its Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service, the Law Society has warned. The scheme, which gives free legal aid advice for people facing repos
The trade association that represents short-let landlords says the Airbnb economy contributed �27.7 billion to the UK economy during 2021 and has helped create some 500,000 jobs, latest data shows. The UK Short Term Accommodation (https://ukstaa.org/" target="_bl
Economic headwinds facing the construction industry put the brakes on the build-to-rent sector last year. Build cost inflation and labour shortages meant that it only grew by 14% in 2022 adding up to 242,548 homes in planning, under construction or completed - compared to a
Spreadsheets. Theyve been around since 1979 and have served the property industry well since their inception. However, with legislation like Making Tax Digital coming into play in 2026, were seeing Landlords slowly transition from using outdated equipment to more modern an
Redditch MP Rachel Maclean is the latest housing minister to arrive through the revolving door at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. The newcomer replaces previous housing minister Lucy Frazer, https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/news/breaking-housing-
A Rugby councillor is trying to drum up opposition to HMOs with an online petition calling for an Article 4 direction in the town. John Slinger (main picture) believes too many family homes are being turned into HMOs by landlords who often dont have the communitys best int
Landlords and the wider rented sector face more uncertainty after it was announced this morning that housing minister Lucy Frazer, who has only been in post since October last year, is to become secretary of state at the new department of Culture, Media and Sport. In private at
A former Generation Rent campaigner is now working as an advisor shaping private rented sector policy at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. Caitlin Wilkinson - policy advisor for the private rented sector - was policy and public affairs manager at the camp
Falling house prices and rising mortgage rates, coupled with a cost of living crisis, which inevitably results in higher incidences of rental arrears, are scaring off potential new investors in buy-to-let. But new investments in the right locations could be an astute move for ne
A leading ethical repair firm has shamed a rogue plumber who charged an 85-year-old woman £1,500 to repair a water pipe.
Arun Council is getting tougher with landlords wanting to convert homes into small HMOs by introducing an Article 4 direction in three of its wards. The move means that proposals to convert homes will need to go through the normal planning process rather than being allowed under
The future of new rented accommodation in the UK will be developments where all facilities including transport, shops and services including schools are all within 15 minutes of a tenants property, it has been claimed. This comment was made during a https://www.savil
The Bank of England has joined the chorus of voices highlighting the worsening problem of landlords leaving the sector. Its findings in the latest Monetary Policy Report offer yet more proof that government tax and other policies are forcing out investors; it says demand for ren
A rogue Liverpool landlord has been fined £30,000 for failing to get licences for two student HMOs three years after it was fined 45,000 for similar offences. Trophy Homes, which claims to operate within the 'luxury' student, co-living and general rental sectors, admitted
The Tories should take the blame for the landlord exodus and crisis-hit private rental sector, according to one leading investment guru. Financial columnist and author Matthew Lynn says that for the last decade, the party has been in an all-out war against buy-to-let landlords,
A Government investigation into damp and mould in the social housing sector has disclosed initial findings which show a significant number of homes in the social sector are affected by this problem. On Thursday (2 February) the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) published a <a hr
Two out of three HMO landlords in Portsmouth plan to call it quits this year, largely prompted by the launch of an additional licensing scheme in September. Portsmouth & District Private Landlords Associations survey found that this would mean a loss of 348 rooms which, e
Two London landlords have been handed hefty rent repayment orders for letting poorly managed, unlicensed HMOs. <figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type- " data-rt-type="" data-rt-align=""><div><img src="https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/63bef2f3c329eff8e3a4af45/64cb9a1279893522f8df8bb3_
Landlords are calling on the Government to review how they are taxed after new figures reveal the devastating impact higher levies are having on the private rented sector. The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) says new research conducted on its behalf by co
Englands HMO market has shrunk by more than 21,000 properties in the last two years as local councils ramp up planning rules and licensing schemes. Numbers were down by -2.4% to 489,701 last year, having already seen a -1.7% drop in 2021, according to figures from Octane Capi
The Bank of England has raised interest rates for the 10th consecutive time as it battles inflation - a move likely to hit thousands of investors with variable rate mortgages and those forced to renew fixed-rate deals. The base rate has gone up by half a percent to 4%, the highe
