4th February 2016
Evictions are getting harder, tightening up regulation and paperwork, immigration act, Rent Smart Wales (licensing), tax changes reducing cash flow and stamp duty changes are all making the lot of a landlord much harder and is probably making many question, why they do what they do and whether to continue, so what is the objective here?
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29th January 2016
Landlords have for a long time in British society been demonised and certainly prior to the introduction in 1988 of The Housing Act, accusation could legitimately be levelled at certain individuals who did not show due care and regard to their tenants. Houses were often overcrowded, gas appliances not safe and evictions carried out which could be seen as retaliatory or without any meaningful notice.
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11th January 2016
It seems the government have decided that landlords are profiteering greedy individuals that don’t deserve to make a profit, in fact they’re doing their damnedest not to. Under the new “Clause 24” taxation system, some landlords will not make any profit at all, pushing them further and further into debt. We’re already seeing some frightening and shocking reactions to the new system and I wonder where it’s going to lead.
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1st December 2015
Proposed changes for the housing sector through the Housing Bill 2015 The government is proposing quite a few changes to the housing sector at the moment and is currently in discussion with the industry as to how these will be implemented across the board which landlords may need to be aware of as it will affect both landlords and agents. The bill in fact covers many areas, not just the PRS (Private Rented Sector) but within this article I want to look at the items that directly affect us as residential property practitioners
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29th October 2015
· Three in five letting agents in the West Midlands saw rent increases for tenants this month · Supply in London still remains an issue · ARLA issues September Private Rental Sector (PRS) Report
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30th September 2015
David Cox, managing director, Association of Residential Letting Agents, comments on legislation coming into force affecting the Private Rental Sector: “As of Thursday 1st October, it will be compulsory for landlords to have fitted smoke alarms on every floor of their property where there is a room used wholly or partly as living accommodation. They will also be required to put a carbon monoxide alarm in any room where solid fuel is burnt.
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Licensing affects not just myself and landlords in Liverpool, but others across the country as more and more local authorities will adopt such schemes, once they realise how much money can be generated from it! Licensing was implemented in Liverpool on 1st April 2015. From the landlord’s perspective, that means every rental property within the boundaries of Liverpool City Council must have a licence, the cost of which is £400 per property, a big dent in cash flow even for someone with a small portfolio. If you have a block of, say, five flats, then you have to get a licence for each flat, amounting to £2,000 for a licence for one single building.
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4th September 2015
In December 2014, the government launched a pilot scheme in the Midlands and Birmingham areas making landlords responsible to check that any tenants moving into a property or living in a property of theirs had a legal right to rent a property in the UK under Immigration Act 2014. In august 2015, an announcement was made that this scheme would be rolled out nationally and apply to every landlord in the country.
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