From 1st April 2018, it will become unlawful to let a property in the private rented sector if it has an energy performance rating below an E on the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC). Does this effect me? If you let a residential property in England or Wales, then most probably, yes! The Regulations will apply…

Rental growth continues to shift away from London and the south of England, with the east of the country now recording the biggest increases, Your Move says. Data from the estate agent shows that the east of England had the fastest rising rents in October, up 6% to £887, compared with a 2.4% boost across…

Section 8 and a Section 21 notices are both used to serve notice on a tenant, however they are very different, and it is vitally important that the correct notice is served to avoid delay and expense. Section 8: A Section 8 notice (also known as a Notice to Quit) is most often served when…

Jeremy Corbyn has said that Labour would introduce rent controls across UK cities were the party to come into power – a move the RLA described as an attack on landlords. The announcement, made at the Labour Party Conference yesterday, was described as “disappointing” by RLA policy director David Smith. He said: “Rent controls would be a…

If you have a property to let, the quickest and easiest way to find new tenants is through a letting agent who advertises on the major property websites, particularly rightmove and zoopla. In a previous post, we have discussed high street letting agents vs online letting agents, but if you’ve already opted for the low…

Changes to buy-to-let lending criteria being introduced at the end of this month could encourage a surge of rental stock as landlords look to offload their ‘weakest’ properties. From 30th September 2017, the Bank of England’s Prudential Regulation Authority will tighten lending criteria further, following the introduction of more stringent ‘stress tests’ earlier this year….

Housing Minister Supports Government Report which Calls for New Measures to Protect Rental Money Letting agents across the country will soon be required to protect rental monies through an approved Client Money Protection (CMP) scheme, following the recommendations made in a new Government report. The Online Letting Agents is already offering local landlords and tenants across…

Two-thirds of individual landlords are only liable for the basic rate of income tax according to data released by the Government. The Residential Landlords Association says that it challenges the myth that landlords have large incomes and so can cope with tax rises. According to the figures obtained in response to parliamentary questions from DUP…

Anyone hoping the fallout of the General Election or Brexit negotiations would push the lettings fee ban into the long grass was bitterly disappointed yesterday after it was included in the Queen’s Speech. A draft Tenants’ Fee Bill was among 27 proposed laws that MPs will be working on over the next parliamentary term, however…