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
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
A leading ethical repair firm has shamed a rogue plumber who charged an 85-year-old woman £1,500 to repair a water pipe.
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 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
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
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 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 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
Croydon has announced plans to bring back its selective licensing scheme after a five-year break.
A student housing firm has been told to pay £13,160 for breaching safety regulations at a Salford HMO.
Landlords will collectively have to spend more than £20billion making improvements to their rental properties to meet proposed new energy efficiency standards
Gravesham Council is looking into a possible planning breach after studio flats were advertised for rent at a disused Premier Inn.
Landlords are waiting even longer to repossess their properties - up to 25 weeks in the last quarter of 2024.
Fed-up students in Bristol have launched a campaign to introduce a TripAdvisor style review system for the city’s accommodation.
Tenants cite lazy landlords as the main reason for repairs and maintenance not being done in their rental homes.
Rents should emulate energy prices, with a cap used to help people pay a fairer price for bills, says Generation Rent.
Landlords with small portfolios are being disproportionately impacted by an increasingly regulated PRS, according to Shadow Housing Minister Kevin Hollinrake.
The most pressing questions on LandlordZONE readers minds were revealed during a recent webinar hosted by Chief Commercial Officer of the HFIS group, Paul Shamplina (main pic). He joined forces with industry figure David Coughlin
The government has been urged to exempt all student housing from its plans for open-ended tenancies or risk making it harder for students to enter higher education. <figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type- " data-rt-type="" data-rt-align=""><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.
Suffolk Building Society has launched a new mortgage aimed at expat landlords with properties that boast a high EPC rating. Its five-year fixed expat buy-to-let product for properties with an Energy Performance Certificate rating of A to C is available on
Tenants union Acorn has pledged to continue targeting letting agents in the city until they stop encouraging 'bidding wars' to help landlords achieve higher rents. Members launched a noisy protest outside a number of branches; some agents which had started talks with Acorn ab
Leading Tory MP Anthony Browne (main pic) has urged the government to ditch stamp duty for home buyers but increase the tax rate for investors. The chair of the 1922 Backbench Treasury Committee says people buying homes to live in are over-taxed while those buying properties for
A landlord has spoken out to defend a substantial rent increase after its tenant complained about his eviction to the local newspaper. Richard Symonds told https://www.sussexexpress.co.uk/" target="_blank" Sussex World tha
Damp and mould has always been a very difficult issue to deal with for landlords, but the recent case of Awaab Ishak and the rapid and direct involvement of Government has really brought matters to a head. The death of a Rochdale social housing tenants son, Awaab Ishak, has l
The boss of housing charity Shelter has repeated the organisations previous assertion that tenants seeking properties in the private rented sector (PRS) too often face racism from both landlords and letting agents. Polly Neates comments have been published by the BBC withi
The government has vowed to expedite a proposed law forcing landlords to respond quickly to complaints about damp and mould. Housing minister Felicity Buchan (pictured) told MPs that proposals were being worked through, after it announced plans last week t
Birmingham council has concluded its consultation into an additional licensing scheme across the city that would include 9,500 properties in all 69 wards. Following a full cabinet meeting report on the scheme's consultation which included several landlords sessions organised by
A rogue landlord who let out an unlicensed HMO with no working kitchen, unusable toilets, blocked drains and rats, has been fined a whopping �175,000. Adam Ali had turned the former Anchor Hotel in Cobham Road, Westcliff-on-Sea (pictured), into an HMO whe
Four former housing ministers have backed a Tory thinktank policy paper that urges a radical rethink of government housebuilding policies. The Centre for Policy Studies report, The Case for Housebuilding , explains how the UKs massive shortfall in homes
Big Issue founder John Bird has called on the government to help landlords prevent rent rises. The magazines editor-in-chief - a crossbench peer in the House of Lords - says it needs to stop households who cannot pay their rent from being evicted, warning of a surge in homele
The Scottish government has seen sense and converted its controversial rent freeze announced last September into a rent cap, limiting rent rises in the private sector to between 3% and 6% from April 1st this year. This decision was announced by housi
A serial rogue landlord has become the first in the North West region to be served with a banning order after he failed to improve poor housing conditions in his unlicensed properties. Wirral Council had previously prosecuted Frank Morrow from New Brighton
A coalition of landlords and letting groups is seeking a judicial review of the Scottish governments rent control and eviction ban legislation. The Scottish Association of Landlords , Scottish Land and Estates and <strong id=
Overseas entities that bought UK property before 1st August 2022 must register with Companies House by 31st January or risk a fine and jail time. Thehttps://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3120" https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3120" target="_blank" id=""
A petition urging the reversal of the controversial Section 24 https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/news/autumn-statement-chancellor-reveals-tax-rises/" tax changes for landlords has received a written response from the government after reaching some 28,000 signatures. <p id
Buy-to-let investors are increasingly turning their sights on the north of England in the quest for better deals and yields. In 2015, just four of the 10 top local authorities for landlord purchases were in the north, but by last year, all ten were, according to data from <a hre
Letting agents are worried about landlords selling up, new legislation, rising costs and an upsurge of abuse across the sector. A https://www.propertymark.co.uk/" target="_blank" Properymark survey found that most feared landlords quitti
Three tenants have only been awarded 20% of a rent repayment order application after a tribunal went easy on their forgetful landlord. Lawrence Hoo admitted he had not renewed an additional HMO licence for the property in St Marks Grove, Easton, Bristol, but had applied as soon
Speaking at Davos, the Swiss ski resort where the World Economic Forum holds its annual meeting, Lloyds bank CEO Charlie Nunn said that the UK house price fall will be limited. His views are bolstered by recent numbers on the progress of the UK economy which managed a second
The Scottish governments flippant disregard for the private rental sector will only exacerbate the housing crisis, warns industry group Propertymark, which wants an urgent review of landlord taxation. <figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type- " data-rt-type="" data-rt-align="
London rental prices were a staggering 20% higher at the end of last year compared to 2021, with 18 renters competing for every new property. Foxtons Lettings Market Index reveals that at �551, Decembers average weekly rental price broke records for end-of-year prices. Centr
When a tenant refuses the Gas Safe engineer access to a property to carry out gas safety checks the landlord is presented with a really difficult problem. Tenants denying access for things like safety checks, repairs and maintenance or regular inspections is not unheard off, in
