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Legionella! What is all the fuss?
Legionella is a pneumonia style bug caused from being in contact with contaminated water droplets – primarily breathed in. The regulations, in their most basic form, state that the water system must be safe to use and that every property let out needs to be assessed. In order to do this the landlord or agent…
‘No DSS’: Five leading letting agents risk breaking discrimination law
I have every sympathy for people, especially families, on benefit, not being able to rent a property; but it is not just the landlords who may decide not to take them on. The mortgage lenders and insurance companies can attach extra costs to letting to people on housing benefit. The answer has to be more…
Complain and you’re out: Research confirms link between tenant complaints and revenge eviction
It is a great shame if genuine tenants feel unable to complain about poor living standards. Quite often it can be tenant behaviour as much as a problem with the structure of the property. Professional landlords should acknowledge a tenant who brings a problem with “their” property to their attention and investigate to check the…
Social housing green paper: a ‘new deal’ for social housing
This is one part of the property market jigsaw that is at long last being addressed. One assumes it is all part of a larger picture as this government continues its journey towards more affordable and accessible homes for all! https://www.gov.uk/government/news/social-housing-green-paper-a-new-deal-for-social-housing
Tech firms win prize to help UK’s renters onto the housing ladder
An excellent initiative which shows a more open minded attitude to the problem of being able to obtain a mortgage. These schemes must be watched with interest and hopefully will enable lenders to adopt a more flexible approach towards tenants who want, and can afford, to become home owners. Read the full story here
Photos and Tenant privacy! Really
Quite often during the maintenance of a property or garden, 3rd parties are needed to enter the and in order to provide a full and proper report with regard to repair, photographs of the problem will need to be taken. To ensure there is no misunderstanding regarding photographs, especially if the property is a family…
Rents to continue to rise, as supply of new property to let drops again
Yet another report highlighting the problem with the housing supply and in particular within the Private Rental Sector (PRS). Partially a result of the intended consequences of increasing stamp duty on second homes and exacerbated by the lower than needed levels of new housing. An interesting piece relating to a growing problem for tenants and…
Renters battling through broken deposit system, says Which? report
A down to earth and hard hitting report into the unjustifiable way some agents and landlords look to keep deposits, and the sometimes lengthy timescales in getting resolution coupled with the strain on tenants finances. Time for a change! Read the full article here
Landlords call for support to improve energy efficiency of rented homes
A further worry for landlords with Energy Performance Certificates below E, unless holding an Exemption Certificate. They face a real financial crunch unless the government help out with other accessible forms of energy efficiency grants. Read the full article here
Soaring rents rose 60% faster than pay since 2011 – Shelter
“Rents have risen 60% faster than wages across England since 2011, according to analysis from housing charity Shelter, which claims the crisis is spilling out of cities into “Middle England” towns such as Tunbridge Wells.” Read the full article in the Guardian here
Agent Fees – Do the Public Really Understand What You Do?
I am constantly bemused when I read about how unfair and too high Agent Fees are!! I write this, having been asked to arrange an EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) on behalf of a Landlord who wanted to re-market a property but needed an up to date EPC to be able to start their own advertising….
84% of the Private Rented Sector (PRS) tenants are happy with their accommodation
The latest English Housing Survey, published by the Government, shows that one in five people in England now live in the private rented sector, a figure that has dramatically increased since the survey’s current format was introduced back in 1996/97. The report shows that the majority of tenants in the PRS are happy with their…