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.

Renters (Reform) Bill - we take a first look at the radical new legislation

Renters (Reform) Bill - we take a first look at the radical new legislation

News

The Renters (Reform) Bill has finally had its first reading in Parliament, promising a fair deal to renters, faster redress for landlords and giving more details on how 'pets with lets' will work. Heralded as a once-in-a-generation overhaul of housing laws�, the government

Purplebricks sold to rival for �1 after senior team throw in the towel

Purplebricks sold to rival for �1 after senior team throw in the towel

News

Purplebricks, which at one stage was used by thousands of landlords to manage their properties, has announced that its assets and business are to be sold to rival Strike for �1, pending approval by its shareholders. Any funds remaining in the firm some �5.5 million are

Gove to approve looser rules for HMO landlords housing asylum seekers

Gove to approve looser rules for HMO landlords housing asylum seekers

News

Housing Secretary Michael Gove is set to push through new rules on HMO safety for housing asylum seekers with little fanfare on the same day that the Renters Reform Bill is published. The changes outlined in the proposed https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukdsi/2023/9780

BLOG: 'Reform bill will solve the problem of pet damage for landlords'

BLOG: 'Reform bill will solve the problem of pet damage for landlords'

News

The long-awaited Renters (Reform) Bill will finally be introduced in parliament after Prime Minister's Questions today. Setting out plans for 12 key reforms to the private rental sector, the 11th pledge - to give tenants the right in law to request a pet, which should not be unr

Agents who lack licencing law know-how 'putting landlords at risk'

Agents who lack licencing law know-how 'putting landlords at risk'

News

Bungling letting agents with a lack of legal understanding are putting landlords at risk of prosecution, it has been claimed. One landlord expert has advised caution when signing up with a firm in the current climate of increasing legislation and falling profits, particularly fo

Opinion: does Michael Gove know something we don't?

Opinion: does Michael Gove know something we don't?

Opinion

It would seem that successive Tory governments have waged an ongoing and progressively more vicious war on buy-to-let landlords, but this latest layer of legislation goes much further. Yes, this latest iteration, and one thats https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/1768/s

EXTRA red tape, scams and repairs drive more landlords to use agencies

EXTRA red tape, scams and repairs drive more landlords to use agencies

News

Almost two thirds (63%) of private landlords who manage their own properties are tired of sorting out repairs and dealing with red tape and considering using a letting agency or property manager instead.  A Uswitch poll of 2,000 landlords found that the most common reason t

Labour to 'go further than Tories' with harsher Decent Homes Standard

Labour to 'go further than Tories' with harsher Decent Homes Standard

News

Labour has promised to ramp up the pressure on private landlords by introducing a legally binding Decent Homes Standard 2. Its latest draft policy programme a provisional blueprint likely to shape the next general election manifesto includes a proposal to take the

Starmer 'set to U-turn on rent controls' as London Mayor pleads for more powers

Starmer 'set to U-turn on rent controls' as London Mayor pleads for more powers

News

Keir Starmer is set to rebuff previous calls by London mayor Sadiq Khan to bring in a rent freeze, it has been reported. Khan has been banging his rent freeze drum for months now as the cost-of-living crisis has hit many tenants personal finances, telling the BBC in Oct

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

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.

Landlords caught up in latest cladding remediation problems

Landlords caught up in latest cladding remediation problems

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

A Lib Dem MP has highlighted what he describes as an unfolding EWS1 form scandal after a fire safety consultant was sanctioned for unprofessional conduct.

How will landlords handle risky tenants when 'rent in advance' is banned?

How will landlords handle risky tenants when 'rent in advance' is banned?

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

One of the seismic changes for landlords and letting agents this year will be when the Renters’ Rights Bill bans taking rent in advance.

'Game changer' heat pump installation service for landlords launches

'Game changer' heat pump installation service for landlords launches

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Home energy installation company BOXT aims to revolutionise the way heating systems are installed in private rented homes.

Landlords and agents slam Scots stamp duty hike

Landlords and agents slam Scots stamp duty hike

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Landlords and agents have slammed the Scottish government’s decision to increase the Additional Dwelling Supplement (ADS) under Land and Buildings Transaction Tax from 6% to 8%.

Labour to make landlords renew EPCs more often

Labour to make landlords renew EPCs more often

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Proposed changes to Energy Performance of Buildings regulations mean private landlords in England and Wales would have to get EPCs more frequently.

Tax hike prompts buying and selling rush among portfolio landlords

Tax hike prompts buying and selling rush among portfolio landlords

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Landlords buying up property portfolios have helped non-residential property sales reach a new high this year as investors seek to capitalise on the existing tax rate, ahead of stamp duty changes.

Report reveals shock gap between Chinese and UK student rents

Report reveals shock gap between Chinese and UK student rents

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Wealthy Chinese students are paying £66 a week or 42% more in rent than their British counterparts, according to the latest StuRents annual report.

Will councils begin selling off empty landlord properties?

Will councils begin selling off empty landlord properties?

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

A property expert has voiced concerns that councils won’t have the resources to implement the government’s new high street auctions initiative.

'Lackadaisical' landlord to repay tenants £10,538

'Lackadaisical' landlord to repay tenants £10,538

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

A landlord in London has been ordered to repay three of his tenants £10,538 after they applied successfully for a rent repayment order (RRO).

How to tackle damp and mould as the mercury falls

How to tackle damp and mould as the mercury falls

Sponsored
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Damp and mould can affect your rental properties at any time of year; but issues are much more likely to occur in colder months.

Landlords with mortgages 'to get early Xmas present'

Landlords with mortgages 'to get early Xmas present'

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Mortgage rates are likely to drop even further before the end of the year, providing some much-needed festive cheer for landlords.

Labour says renters face 'insecurity' but tenancies getting longer

Labour says renters face 'insecurity' but tenancies getting longer

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Private renters are increasingly staying for longer in their homes, contrary to tenant groups’ argument that they face ‘insecurity of tenure’.

PIX: Shocking size of 'rooms' within illegal HMO revealed

PIX: Shocking size of 'rooms' within illegal HMO revealed

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

A rogue landlord who turned her three-bedroom bungalow into a 15-room unlicensed HMO where tenants slept on camp beds in windowless rooms has been handed a £12,000 fine.

HMO landlords should be Scrooge not Santa this Christmas

HMO landlords should be Scrooge not Santa this Christmas

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Landlords have been advised not to let their tenants deck the halls with flammable holly during the festive season.

Government promises to fix cladding remiation problems by 2029

Government promises to fix cladding remiation problems by 2029

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The government has set out new targets to fix unsafe buildings in England as part of its Remediation Acceleration Plan.

Gloucester plans clampdown on spread of HMOs

Gloucester plans clampdown on spread of HMOs

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Gloucester Council is to apply for an Article 4 Direction in a bid to curb the number of shared houses in the city.

'Labour's reforms will cost landlords and tenants'

'Labour's reforms will cost landlords and tenants'

Opinion
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The Renters’ Rights Bill will add extra costs for tenants as well as landlords, and it will cause landlords to leave the private rented sector

Property groups call for more homes, not rent controls

Property groups call for more homes, not rent controls

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Property groups have called on the Scottish government to focus on building homes rather than rent controls in a bid to address the country’s housing crisis.

Labour to spend £20m helping tenants fight evictions

Labour to spend £20m helping tenants fight evictions

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Civil legal aid fees for eviction cases and immigration are to receive a £20 million boost, marking the first increase since 1996.

Looming open-ended tenancies to have 'unintended consequences for tenants'

Looming open-ended tenancies to have 'unintended consequences for tenants'

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The Government should further consider its plans to mandate open-ended tenancies as a legal requirement, as set out in the Renters’ Rights Bill going through parliament.

New tech enables landlords to make money from solar

New tech enables landlords to make money from solar

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

A new tech launch allows landlords to generate and sell electricity from rooftop solar panels either to their tenants or back to the grid without going through the main meter.

Landlords: Get Your Properties Sold Fast and Cash in the Bank before the New Year!

Landlords: Get Your Properties Sold Fast and Cash in the Bank before the New Year!

Sponsored
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Thousands of landlords are feeling the pinch as rising costs, talk of rent caps, and upcoming EPC regulations add pressure to an already challenging rental market.

Allowing tenants to rent out homes via Airbnb 'a huge risk'

Allowing tenants to rent out homes via Airbnb 'a huge risk'

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

A leading letting agent has warned that a new Airbnb initiative allowing tenants to rent out their homes could put landlords at risk.

How to future-proof your rental business

How to future-proof your rental business

Sponsored
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Buy-to-let is a long-term investment, often requiring 15+ years to maximise returns. To ensure success over time, landlords should take these key steps to protect their rental business.

Right to Rent: Minister to fix 'broken' e-Visa system ahead of deadline

Right to Rent: Minister to fix 'broken' e-Visa system ahead of deadline

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

The Government has promised to fix significant glitches that have been reported within its e-VISAs system, which is used by landlords and letting agents to verify the Right to Rent status of prospective tenants.

'More lodgers are best solution to UK's housing crisis'

'More lodgers are best solution to UK's housing crisis'

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Lodgers’ rental costs could revert to 2017 levels if just 1% of the UK’s 26 million spare rooms were rented, according to flat sharing site SpareRoom.

Government gives Northern city green light to begin selective licencing

Government gives Northern city green light to begin selective licencing

News
News
Podcast
Opinion
Sponsored
Information

Blackpool council has received the go-ahead to start selective licencing in eight inner wards despite worries among some landlords about the consultation process that preceded the decision.