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Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Our most popular BTL mortgages

Max LTV Initial Rate Term Completion fee Booking fee Incentives Lender
85% 4.99% Discount 2 Years 2.5% £130.00 No Kent Reliance Semi Exclusive
85% 5.19% Fixed 2 Years 2.5% £130.00 No Kent Reliance Semi Exclusive
85% 5.29% Discount 2 Years 2.5% £130.00 No Kent Reliance Multi Let & Ltd Co. Semi Exclusive
80% 3% Fixed 2017-10-31 2.5% £150.00 Free valuation Mortgage Trust Exclusive
80% 3.25% Fixed 2017-10-31 £2495 £150.00 Free valuation Mortgage Trust Exclusive
80% 3.29% Discount 2 Years 0% £0.00 No Hanley Economic Exclusive
80% 5.39% Variable 0 Years 2% £0.00 No Saffron Light Refurbishment
75% 2.35% Fixed 2 Years 2.5% £0.00 Free Valuation Newcastle Building Society
75% 2.75% Fixed 2017-10-31 2.5% £150.00 Free valuation Mortgage Trust Exclusive
75% 3.69% Fixed 2 Years 2% £125.00 No Foundation Prime
75% 3.79% Fixed 2 Years 1.5% £100.00 No Axis Bank
75% 3.89% Fixed 5 Years £999 £0.00 Free Valuation Newcastle Building Society
75% 4.59% Fixed 5 Years 2% £100.00 No Axis Specialist
70% 4.99% Fixed 2 Years 2% £125.00 No Foundation Light Adverse

Email:info@propertyhawkbtlmortgages.co.uk
Tel: 029 2069 5446
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgages.  
The Financial Services Authority does not regulate some forms of mortgage.

Guide to buying commercial property

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Fergus Wilson chased by tenants

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Corbyn's 100,000 new social homes promise

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Nationwide's HPI sees 0.5% growth in September

Nationwide's September UK house price index reports an increase of 0.5% over the past month, bringing annual growth to 3.8%.

Their Chief Economist, Robert Gardner comments:

“The data in recent months provides some encouragement that the pace of house price increases may be stabilising close to the pace of earnings growth. However, the risk remains that construction activity will lag behind strengthening demand, putting upward pressure on house prices and eventually reducing affordability.

Indeed, in recent months surveyors have reported historically low levels of properties for sale and increased new buyer enquiries. Therefore it is unsurprising that most surveyors expect a pickup in house price growth in the months ahead."


The London market appears to be remaining strong despite the media talk of a 'wobble'. Annual price growth in the capital accelerated to 10.6% in Q3, up from 7.3% in Q2.

Robert Gardner reflects:

“The gap between London house prices and the rest of the UK has continued to reach new highs. The price of a typical home in the capital (£443,399 on our measure) is more than double the UK aggregate and more than three and a half times the price of the typical property in the cheapest UK region (the North of England)."

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

More for BTL investors to worry about

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BTL boom despite tax crackdown

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Lincolnshire Landlord & Letting Agent Expo

Just one week to go until the Lincolnshire Landlord & Letting Agent Expo.

The free event, organised by EMPO, is being held on Tuesday 6th October 2015, between
10am and 4pm at the Bentley Hotel, LN6 9NH.

Apparently there will be over 40 Exhibitors.

Free entry, free Parking and most importantly - free tea and coffee! 

More info on the Lincolnshire Landlord & Letting Agent Expo

Southampton Additional HMO Licensing Scheme

Southampton City Council have extended their Additional HMO Licensing Scheme to four more wards in the city – Bassett, Freemantle, Millbrook and Shirley. The scheme will be launched on Tuesday 20th October 2015.

Any property occupied by three or more people (including children) who form two or more households will require an HMO licence. This will include shared houses, bedsits, and some flats where there is some sharing of the kitchen and/or bathroom.

The council initially introduced the scheme back in July 2013 to four wards of the city - Bargate, Bevois, Swaythling and Portswood. 

For more information - the Southampton City Council Additional HMO Licensing Scheme 

Landlord sentence following tenant deaths

Snaresbrook Crown Court has heard how a fire at a Walthamstow House in Multiple Occupation killed two of its tenants. 

Thomas McCann, 60 and Hamza Zulfiqar, 21 both died in the fire back in July 2011.

The 5 bedroom HMO at 43 Woodlands Road, E17 was owned by landlord, Muhammad Ashraf. 

The day after the fire, the property was inspected by the London Fire Brigade who found it had breached a number of fire safety regulations. 
  • The only fire exit, the front door, due to its mortice lock required a key to unlock it.
  • There were no fire detectors or smoke alarms at the property.
  • There was no firefighting equipment at the property.
  • No fire risk assessment had been undertaken.
  • None of the internal doors provided the required 30 minutes fire resistance. 
Mr Ashraf pleaded guilty to four offences under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005

He received a a six month suspended jail sentence, 200 hours of community service and told to pay £22,684 in prosecution costs. 

London Fire Brigade's Assistant Commissioner for Fire Safety, Neil Orbell, commented:

"It is a tragedy that two people’s lives have been lost as a direct result of fire safety failures and our thoughts are with the family and friends of Mr McCann and Mr Zulfiqar.

Landlords running houses of multiple occupation have a legal duty to keep their tenants safe from fire. The defendant has fallen extremely far short of the necessary fire safety standards which sadly contributed to this terrible loss of life."


Starting from October 1st, new Fire Safety Regulations in Rental Properties mean all properties must be fitted with a working smoke alarm on each floor, alongside a carbon monoxide alarm in any rooms with a solid fuel burners - such as cookers and heaters.
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Monday, September 28, 2015

Interest rates won't rise before the summer

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BofE concerns over BTL sector growth

Concerns over the ever expanding BTL sector were raised at the The Bank of England's
Financial Policy Committee policy meeting on 23rd September 2015.

The sector's rapid growth, of over 40% since 2008 to become 16% of outstanding mortgage lending is becoming an increasing worry to the UK's future economic stability. 

The Bank reflected -

 "Buy-to-let mortgage lending has the potential to amplify the housing and credit cycles, though the extent of the amplification is hard to judge because the market has only recently grown to significant levels. Any increase in buy-to-let activity in an upswing could add further pressure to house prices. This could prompt owner-occupier buyers to take on even larger loans, thereby increasing overall risks to financial stability. Demand for buy-to-let lending is itself likely to be cyclical, as in an upswing demand may increase from landlords seeking not only rental return but also capital gains. Buy-to-let investors may further exacerbate a downturn if they expect rental incomes to fall below their interest payments, and consequently add to selling pressure. Survey evidence suggests that around 40% of buy-to-let investors would respond to a fall in their rental income below their interest payments by seeking to sell their property. Large falls in house prices may in turn directly affect consumer spending, as households have less collateral against which to borrow. Credit risk on UK lenders’ balance sheets would also rise. 

Changes to mortgage interest tax relief announced in the July Budget are likely to reduce the incentives of some investors to take on increased leverage. And there is little evidence that underwriting standards of major lenders have fallen. Less than 12% of buy-to-let lending in Q2 2015 had an LTV greater than 75%, compared to almost 40% of owner-occupier mortgage lending. The majority of buy-to-let lending further appears to be extended at interest coverage ratios of greater than 125%, evaluated at a stress interest rate of 5%.

The FPC judges that there is, at present, no immediate case for action in the buy-to-let mortgage market. However, the FPC is alert to the rapid growth of the market and potential developments in underwriting standards. As the market continues to grow, particularly if driven by loosening of underwriting standards, the sector could pose risks to broader financial stability, both through credit risk to banks and the amplification of movements in the housing market. Intensified competition among lenders could lead to loosening underwriting standards in future. The FPC supports the intention of the Bank and the PRA to develop datasets needed for systematic monitoring of those standards and other terms and conditions on buy-to-let mortgage lending.

The rapid growth of the market also underscores the importance of FPC powers of direction for use in future. HM Treasury has said it will consult on powers of direction for the FPC related to buy-to-let lending later in 2015. "


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World's most expensive student digs

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Saturday, September 26, 2015

Rents show seasonal surge to new high


Rents continue to surge according to the only national real time measurement of buy-to-let rents the Rentindex.

Rents have surged almost 3% over the last month to a record of £667 per month.  The average rent in the UK is now a full £100 higher than the low reached early in 2008 just after the financial crisis.

The rental figure derived from over 2600 tenancies created over the last 90 days show the usual seasonal spike as landlords hike rents and tenants are prepared to pay more prior to the onset of Winter and the Christmas season.

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Thursday, September 24, 2015

Irish rents attracting BTL investors

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Paragon's PRS report looks positive

The third quarter 2015 'Private Rented Sector Report' from Paragon Mortgages record a stable marketplace with landlord confidence remaining high despite the global economic uncertainties.

Three reasons to be cheerful -
  • Annual rental yields are up from 6.3% to 6.4%.
  • Rental void periods remain at historically low levels of just below 2.6 weeks.
  • Tenant demand is reported to be strong, with more than 40% of landlords polled stating that tenant demand is either ‘growing’ or ‘booming’, and more than half of landlords expecting demand to grow further over the next 12 months

The survey reported an  increasing proportion of young families with children were moving into the Private Rented Sector, just as the numbers of young couples and professionals were decreasing. corresponding decrease in young couples and professionals. 

John Heron, Paragon’s director of mortgages commented on how the data -

‘ reveals the changing demographic of those choosing to live in the PRS. This is reflected in the buying intentions of landlords which seem to be shifting slightly away from investing in multi-occupancy blocks, towards terraced housing, often more suited to young families,’

The number of of landlords looking to invest in terraced houses increased from 38% in the previous quarter to 43%.  


Tenants stopped from swapping energy supplier

Energy comparison site uSwitch have accused landlords of stopping tenants from swapping energy supplier.

The website surveyed  500 landlords and 1,000 tenants (so not very many surveyed by a self interested party). 

The survey found 13% of landlords admitted to having stopped tenants switching their energy supplier, this figure rose to  19% for portfolio landlords ( three or more properties).

Commenting on the comparison sites findings, Ofgem states, - tenants are allowed to switch supplier, and landlords and letting agents cannot unreasonably prevent them from doing so, although they did go on to say it was OK for a ‘preferred supplier’ clause to be used in rental agreements, although tenants are then not legally bound stick to this named ‘preferred supplier’.

Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Scottish rents fall by £3 in August

Your Move's 'Scotland Buy-to-Let Index' for August has reported a monthly drop of 0.5%.

Average monthly rents have fallen to £546 from their summer peak of £549.

The annual rental growth in Scotland is now at just 1.7%.

Your Move Scotland, lettings director, Brian Moran commented on the latest data, saying

“Scottish rents have retreated back from record levels, after an acceleration of rent rises in 2015.

“This should provide a welcome let-up for tenants, after only last month rents hit a new record level. This adjustment has also broken up the forward march of annual rent growth that’s been gathering speed recently."

Tim Fallon's Lib Dem housing plan

As the new leader of the Lib Dems, I can't imagine Tim Fallon will ever be in the position to carry out his plans, but just on the off chance of a miracle, Tim has just outlined his plans for housing at the Lib Dem conference.

"Housing is the biggest single issue that politicians don't talk about," 

"Well, we are going to talk about it, campaign on it, go on and on and on about it, and make a difference to the millions who have been ignored.

"Communities up and down this country have spent 25 years building housing association homes, picking up the pieces of Mrs Thatcher's destruction of council housing, and we will not allow David Cameron to destroy that work too."

Mr Farron is calling for Lib Dem peers to vote against the Governement's plan to enable housing association tenants access to the 'right to buy' scheme.

Other Lib Dem policies aimed at solving the housing shortage include:
  • Form a Gov-backed housing investment bank to finance new home building
  • Stop advertising of UK properties to overseas investors
  • Lift the borrowing cap on local authorities
  • Create ten new garden cities in England

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Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Institutions set to move into PRS

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Crawley HMO landlord fined

A Crawley landlord has been convicted of renting out a 'dangerous and overcrowded' House in Multiple Occupation by Worthing Magistrates’ Court.

Bushra Akhtar, failed to comply with an Improvement Notice served by Crawley Borough Council under the Management of Houses in Multiple Occupation Regulations 2006.

Crawley Borough Council took action against Bushra Akhtar, of Medlar Close, Langley Green.

The  HMO property was found to be 'overcrowded', have a number of fire risks and in a very poor state of repair.

Despite a number of attempts by Crawley Borough Council to get the landlord to resolve the properties shortcomings,  Akhtar failed to satisfy their requirements.

Bushra Akhtar was fined £5,000 alongside costs of £2,460.

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This weeks most popular BTL mortgages


Max LTV Initial Rate Term Completion fee Booking fee Incentives Lender
85% 4.99% Discount 2 Years 2.5% £130.00 No Kent Reliance Semi Exclusive
85% 5.19% Fixed 2 Years 2.5% £130.00 No Kent Reliance Semi Exclusive
85% 5.29% Discount 2 Years 2.5% £130.00 No Kent Reliance Multi Let & Ltd Co. Semi Exclusive
80% 3% Fixed 2017-10-31 2.5% £150.00 Free valuation Mortgage Trust Exclusive
80% 3.25% Fixed 2017-10-31 £2495 £150.00 Free valuation Mortgage Trust Exclusive
80% 3.29% Discount 2 Years 0% £0.00 No Hanley Economic Exclusive
80% 5.39% Variable 0 Years 2% £0.00 No Saffron Light Refurbishment
75% 2.35% Fixed 2 Years 2.5% £0.00 Free Valuation Newcastle Building Society
75% 2.75% Fixed 2017-10-31 2.5% £150.00 Free valuation Mortgage Trust Exclusive
75% 3.69% Fixed 2 Years 2% £125.00 No Foundation Prime
75% 3.79% Fixed 2 Years 1.5% £100.00 No Axis Bank
75% 3.89% Fixed 5 Years £999 £0.00 Free Valuation Newcastle Building Society
75% 4.59% Fixed 5 Years 2% £100.00 No Axis Specialist
70% 4.99% Fixed 2 Years 2% £125.00 No Foundation Light Adverse
Email:info@propertyhawkbtlmortgages.co.uk
Tel: 029 2069 5446
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgages.  
The Financial Services Authority does not regulate some forms of mortgage.

Should I trust my estate agent?

I'm selling one of my properties

I am in the process of selling one of my properties.  It is one that I originally acquired because it was a bargain and I was going to do it up and sell.  I never would have brought it to rent out, (ground floor apartments unless they have a great and secure garden are always a difficult let). 

However, circumstances changed; I ended up spending several happy years living there myself.  I have recently discussed my estate agent dilemma.

Becoming an accidental landlord has dangers

After a half-hearted attempt to let it out & my experiences of a tenant from hell reinforcing my own letting advice that you need to carefully select your letting property specifically for your desired tenants and letting market. 

I don't subscribe to the view (unless you are London) that any accidental landlord can let out successfully any property irrespective of it's location, look and facilities - those days have gone.  There is too much competition and the wrong property will just end up attracting the wrong tenants.  A landlord (as I did) will then suffer the painful consequences.

I have now come to the realisation that it is time to move on and I have bigger and more important fish to fry than having to manage an ill-suited parade of tenants, and all the hassles that come with them, just to pull in a meagre £500 a month.  Time to sell!

Don't trust over optimistic valuations

Having a figure in my own mind of what the property was worth I approached a local estate agent and was amazed when they came back with an asking price of £125,000 some £15,000- 20,000 more than my best guesstimate.

It's always flattering and a pleasant surprise when your property is valued higher than you expected.  However, too good to be true, normally is.  There is a raft of free property information from places such as the land registry that will give you comparable selling prices.  It really isn't difficult to value a property. The RICS rules on valuing look at the Open Market Value of a property ( assumes what a property is worth is what on any given day given a willing seller and willing buyer would do a deal on).  I have been out of the local Nottingham market for several years and this is what you are relying on, your agent to know and be able to be aware of local movements, demands and nuances.  However, when the valuation is undertaken by a wet behind the ears rookie I'm guessing you should have doubts about their accuracy.  Having taken their initial guidance on the price, the property has had a few offers and a little bit of interest, but none close to the original asking price - despite a small price reduction.

Landlords in a fortunate position not having to sell

I'm in the fortunate position, like a lot of landlords, that I don't have to sell.  In fact I like the fact that my repayment mortgage means that my mortgage debt is coming down by approximately £3,000 a year, meaning that when I do sell there will be more spare cash in the pot for me.  What is a minor annoyance is my utility bill with the Carphone Warehouse. I'm paying a ridiculous amount each month whilst not using any gas or electricity.  If I had more time I would have sorted it out but as usual I'm focused on the essentials of keeping and developing my other businesses as well as managing the re-development of my penthouse apartment acquisition.

Should I trust my estate agent to get it right?

Having taken the advice of this estate agent and 5 months into the process not had any offers close to the original asking price should I trust them? Clearly, their judgement was not great.  I have not been unhappy with their service and they appear competent in most other areas, but like a lot of landlords and small businessmen I'm left with the feeling that I would have handled the sale differently and to be frank, better.

Having contacted the agent last week to discuss the sale options I floated one idea to slash the price of my apartment. So rather than operating their dutch auction, we try to generate a vulture scenario, where we flush out the bargain hunters looking for a Below Market Value bargain (or so they think). 

They were wary of this scenario, in that if you don't get near your asking price, then you have 'shot your marketing bolt' and it become more difficult to raise the price back up to the original asking price without swapping agents (I suspect this is what they are most worried about).

Talking of estate agents I recently bumped into one of the regulars at my local, Damian, who has written a humorous and informative book on his experiences on being estate agent which ironically is called Trust Me I'm An Estate Agent. Perhaps I should read it?

So what would other landlords do in my situation?  Stick with my current agent and see it through?  Go for a fire sale of the investment property and hope to drum up some serious interest, or just move to another estate agent and start the process over again. 

Let me know.

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Monday, September 21, 2015

LSL rent index up by a whole pound

Average rents across England and Wales fell by a pound in August according to the LSL rent index.

Average rents fell 0.1%, from £804 to £803. Yes, that's right a drop of a whole pound.

Annual rental growth is now at 5.5%, slowing from the July rate of 6.8%.

Adrian Gill, director of estate agents at Reeds Rains and Your Move commented 

‘August has witnessed a break in a series of blistering rent rises. Yet this mild correction comes on the back of a whole year of acceleration. Rents are rising rapidly on an annual basis, underpinned by an improving economic picture for many potential tenants and the peak lettings season is only just about to start this autumn,’

‘There is also no major change to the fundamentals of supply and demand. This means that in the longer term, faster rent rises may become a semi-permanent feature of the British property market. Alongside purchase prices, rents will continue to rise rapidly until something happens to address a drastic shortage of homes in the UK,’


For those of you who want to read the LSL BTL Index for August 2015 in full

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Rightmove's average asking price hits a high

Right move report that their house price index has hit a record high.

Their index of asking prices of new properties hitting the market rose by 0.9 per cent during September. The average asking price is now at an all time high of £294,834.

Rightmove's commercial director, Miles Shipside, commented
“Prices are at an all-time high, yet borrowing is historically cheap and positive sentiment is aided by the ongoing postponement of rate rises from these six-year lows. Demand from those who can afford to buy remains high, and suitable supply remains tight, with the number of properties coming to market down 6.0 per cent on the same period in 2014”

“It looks like some of those buying typical first-time-buyer properties are now struggling to afford prices in this bracket that have on average gone up by nearly £10,000 in the last year, hence new sellers are asking for less”


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LGA call for more power to tackle rogue landlords

A body representing over 370 local councils in England and Wales want more powers to control the private rental sector, letting agents and landlords - and says magistrates should have the right to jail the worst offenders.

The Local Government Association are asking for councils to be granted further powers to help control landlords and agents in the private rented sector who they say are shrugging off fines.

The LGA are asking for magistrates to be given the power to jail the worst offenders, alongside joining the call for a national blacklist of rogue landlords and agents. 

The LGA recommends -
  • The introduction of sentencing guidelines on housing act offences as a priority to ensure consistent and appropriate fines. For more serious housing offences, the Housing Act could be amended to bring in a new range of penalties from a fine up to a community order or custodial sentence.
  • A ‘blacklist' of persistent offenders would be useful to councils to support the issuing of licenses to landlords and other enforcement work, as long as the administrative burden and cost of compiling a list does not fall on local authorities.
  • The "fit and proper person" test for landlords should be strengthened to provide a clear framework to remove the uncertainty for councils and landlords and to provide a robust basis for accepting or refusing a license.
  • Government should amend the notice period and compensation arrangements for Article 4 planning powers so that councils can respond effectively to local concerns over concentrations of houses in multiple occupation (HMOs).
  • Councils should be given "power to direct" surplus public land to improve the quality of the private rented sector through large scale investment.
Read the full LGA release on tackling rogue landlords and tenants


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Government wants to build 1m homes

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Net change in UK housing stocks

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Friday, September 18, 2015

Average rents fall in August

Your Move's latest BTL survey reports a drop in the average rent across England and Wales.

The agency reported a fall of 0.1% in August to £803 pcm.

The fall slows annual rental growth to 5.5%, down from 6.8%.

So much for the 'rents spiralling out of control' lobby....


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Thursday, September 17, 2015

Council sets up as private landlord

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Corbyn and Osborne have it in for BTL

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London mayor candidate wants rent controls

Labour's candidate for London Mayor, Sadiq Khan, has housing top of his agenda.

Stating his views in a piece he did in the New Statesman in June, Khan identified his support for rent controls in the capital, saying

"And while we build the homes we need, I will do everything I can to protect Londoners renting in the private sector. I'll introduce a new “London Living Rent” model of intermediate housing - linking rents to a third of income. I'll create a London-wide social letting agency, building on the brilliant work of London Councils and I'll push the Government to give the mayor the power to freeze rents in the private sector."

Smoke and CO alarm regs passed

After a certain amount of 'umming and ahhing' between the Lords and the  Commons, the Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations have been passed by Parliament.

This means the October 1st deadline is back on, despite the Lords concerns over the 'badly drafted legislation'

All letting agents and landlords need to now comply to a working smoke alarm on each floor of a rental property and a carbon monoxide alarm is installed in any living space with solid fuel appliances. 

Wednesday, September 16, 2015

The most popular BTL mortgages


Max LTV Initial Rate Term Completion fee Booking fee Incentives Lender
85% 4.99% Discount 2 Years 2.5% £130.00 No Kent Reliance Semi Exclusive
85% 5.19% Fixed 2 Years 2.5% £130.00 No Kent Reliance Semi Exclusive
85% 5.29% Discount 2 Years 2.5% £130.00 No Kent Reliance Multi Let & Ltd Co. Semi Exclusive
80% 3% Fixed 2017-10-31 2.5% £150.00 Free valuation Mortgage Trust Exclusive
80% 3.25% Fixed 2017-10-31 £2495 £150.00 Free valuation Mortgage Trust Exclusive
80% 3.29% Discount 2 Years 0% £0.00 No Hanley Economic Exclusive
80% 5.39% Variable 0 Years 2% £0.00 No Saffron Light Refurbishment
75% 2.35% Fixed 2 Years 2.5% £0.00 Free Valuation Newcastle Building Society
75% 2.75% Fixed 2017-10-31 2.5% £150.00 Free valuation Mortgage Trust Exclusive
75% 3.69% Fixed 2 Years 2% £125.00 No Foundation Prime
75% 3.79% Fixed 2 Years 1.5% £100.00 No Axis Bank
75% 3.89% Fixed 5 Years £999 £0.00 Free Valuation Newcastle Building Society
75% 4.59% Fixed 5 Years 2% £100.00 No Axis Specialist
70% 4.99% Fixed 2 Years 2% £125.00 No Foundation Light Adverse
 
Email:info@propertyhawkbtlmortgages.co.uk
Tel: 029 2069 5446
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgages.  
The Financial Services Authority does not regulate some forms of mortgage.


London houseshare rents topping £1k pcm

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Shadow minister attacks rip off agency fees



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BTL boom to push up house prices

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No hot water puts landlord in hot water

A Brent landlord has found himself in hot water ( awful pun - my apologies ) for not providing any hot water or heating at his rental property.

Bernard McGowan failed to act on a formal notice served by Brent Council back in March and consequently ended up with a fine of £1,500, court costs of £1,507 and charges of £270.

The tenants, including a young child, had to be re-housed by the council.

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Licensing of landlords off the political agenda

It seems, at least for now that the Government has no intention of bringing in mandatory licensing for landlords in England. The subject of rogue landlords was raised with the Housing Minister, Brandon Lewis in the House of Commons on Monday -

Mike Freer (Finchley and Golders Green) (Con): What steps his Department is taking to tackle rogue landlords. [901316]

The Minister for Housing and Planning (Brandon Lewis): We have provided £6.7 million thus far to crack down on rogue landlords and have legislated to protect tenants from retaliatory eviction. I am determined to go further. We have recently published plans to blacklist and ban rogue landlords and to enable councils to impose civil penalties and to seek rent repayment orders in more circumstances.

Mike Freer: Does my hon. Friend agree that the approach of creating a register will simply create bureaucracy and drive up rents for tenants?

Brandon Lewis: My hon. Friend makes an important point. Last time the Opposition costed their plans for a national register, it was, I think, about £40 million a year, a cost that would fall on the tenants. More regulation in that sense is simply not the answer; it drives down supply and, as a result, quality for tenants.

Let's all hope the Corbyn factor doesn't upset the apple cart.

For those of you who want to read Monday's full discussion in the H of C

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Tuesday, September 15, 2015

Yorkshire Landlords Day

There is to be a 'Yorkshire Landlords Day'.

Yorkshire landlords, agents and property professionals are all invited.

The free event is on Wednesday 21st October 2015. 

Landlords can either pre-register (which gets your name in a raffle for some rugby tickets) or  just rock up on the day.

The partnership event claims it will ' inspire, inform and support those landlords and agents who seek to provide vital housing stock. '

The day will follow the usual template, some seminars from guest speakers alongside the usual line up of exhibitors trying to dig their hands into your back pockets. 

Doors open at 10:30am until 5:00pm, so sat-navs at the ready for St Michael's Lane, Headingley, Leeds, LS6 3BR, St Michael's Ln, Leeds, West Yorkshire LS6 3BR.

Visit the 'Yorkshire Landlord Day website to find out more and to book a place.

Do BTL investors have a tax advantage?

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ONS data for July 15 house prices

The Office for National Statistics latest UK house price index has been published.

The ONS data for July 2015 shows -
  • Prices up by 5.2% in the year to July 2015, slowing from the 5.7% rate in June.
  • Annual growth now 5.6% in England, 0.3% in Wales, 7.4% in Northern Ireland and -1.3% in Scotland.
  • England's increases strongest in the East (8.3%) and the South East (6.7%).
  • Excluding London and the South East, UK annual growth was 4.4%. 
  • Seasonally adjusted basis, average house prices increased by 0.8% between June and July 2015.
  • First-time buyer prices were up 4.4% higher over the 12 month period.
  • Owner-occupiers (existing owners), prices were up 5.5% over the 12 month period.


  • Read in full data for July 2015 ONS house prices


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Monday, September 14, 2015

Council houses sold 70% too cheap

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RICS consider Corbyn's vision

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King of buy-to-let raises rents by 30%

We have highlighted the highs and lows of Fergus Wilson the so called King of Buy-To-Let  in his journey as one of the UK's biggest private landlords.  Despite a number of attempts to unload his residential investment portfolio he still seems very much 'in the game!'  Apparently, the collapse of the Shanghai Stock market has know calmed demand from Chinese investors.

In his latest move he is responding to the rising demand from migrant workers by increasing the rent on one of his portfolio of 900 new build properties in Kent by up to 33% from £900 to £1200.  Most of the demand locally is coming from migrants he says who are prepared to pay more than locals.

The rental market in Maidstone in Kent is apparently overheating and Fergus is using this strong demand by using a section 13 notice to increase rents.

Fergus has justified his rent rises on the forthcoming removal of the higher rate income tax relief by the Chancellor.  Unfortunately, most of us landlords don't have the opportunity to increase our rents by such large amounts.  To check out the latest changes in the average rent then have a look at our Rentindex website.

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Friday, September 11, 2015

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Average property up £1,900 in August


LSL Property Services latest house price index report an August boost.
  • Average house prices in England and Wales up £1,900 in August.
  • Average house prices in England and Wales £282,816, a 4.1% annual increase 
  • Sales volumes continue fell by 14% in August.
Director of Reeds Rains and Your Move estate agents, Adrian Gill, comments: 

“House price growth now firmly has the bit between its teeth, and August witnessed the strongest monthly boost for a year. Average property values across England and Wales have jumped 0.7% (equal to £1,876) since July, which is the biggest monthly increase seen since August 2014. So far in 2015, monthly price rises had struggled to break above the 0.5%, so this clearly marks a step up in pace, as a shortfall of summer sellers puts buyers in hot contention for properties.

“August’s monthly surge takes house prices to their eighth peak this year, with the typical home value in England and Wales now standing at £282,816. This means that compared to last year, average property prices have climbed £11,225. More importantly, all ten regions of England and Wales are showing annual increases in house prices – the last region to experience a year-on-year fall in property values was Wales in July 2013.

“Home sales across England and Wales reached 76,700 in August, down 14% on July levels. This should be taken with a pinch a salt – July was an exceptionally strong month for transactions, and activity in August can be seen as balancing this out. But August is also the first time in 2015 to date that property sales have fallen below their equivalent month in 2013. In the three months to July 2015, property sales have dropped 3% year-on-year. Across all of England and Wales, the North is the only region where activity has increased over the period, with home sales up 3% during May to July 2015 compared to the same three months in 2014.

“The largest fall in activity has been in East Anglia, with total property sales down 9%, and sales of flats 15% lower year-on- year from May to July. At the same time, this region has experienced the highest house price growth of any region, at 5.9% in July 2015. This dichotomy suggests it’s not demand that is the problem, but supply. The lack of properties coming onto the market here is intensifying competition and heating up price rises, above temperatures we’re seeing elsewhere.

“The nationwide mismatch between sellers putting homes up for sale and buyer demand should warm up measures of growth for the autumn. August represented the twelfth month in succession that the annual rate of growth declined – down steadily from 11.1% in August 2014, to 4.1% last month. But encouragingly, we’re seeing this downtrend start to level-off now, suggesting that the annual rate of price rises may start to pick-up again soon, driven by the strengthening monthly improvements that are emerging. Property price growth in London has been waning most notably recently, but this appears to be following a similar pattern to the nationwide trend, and after bottoming out, we are beginning to see signs that house prices in the capital are starting to gee up. Once again, London and the South East are boosting our overall measures of average annual change for England and Wales as a whole.”


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Thursday, September 10, 2015

BofE keeps rates on hold - pheww

And relax....

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Halifax HPI reports 9% annual increase

Halifax's September 2015 House Price Index reports an increase of 3.0% over the latest three months (June-August).

The bank's data shows an increase of 9.0% from the same three month period in 2014.
  • Annual change +9.0%
  • Quarterly change +3.0% 
  • Monthly change +2.7% 
  • Average Price £204,674 

Martin Ellis, Halifax economist, comments:

"House prices in the three months to August were 3.0% higher than in the previous quarter. This measure of the underlying rate of house price increased from last month’s 2.5% but remained below June’s 3.3%.

The underlying pace of house price growth is strong. The shortage of secondhand properties for sale on the market is resulting in upward pressure on house prices. At the same time, economic recovery, real earnings growth and very low mortgage rates are supporting housing demand. Strengthening demand and highly constrained supply are likely to mean that house price growth continues to be robust in the short-term.” 

PRS benefit tenants face shortfalls

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Gov. ask landlords about proposed Finance Bill

For those concerned over the Government's new Finance Bill, in particular the loss of mortgage interest relief, now's your chance to let them know what you think.

The Government state - 'Your submission should address matters contained within the Bill and concentrate on issues where you have a special interest or expertise, and factual information of which you would like the Committee to be aware.'

So now's the time to let them know you concerns.

The Public Bill Committee are scheduled in the programme motion to conclude by Tuesday 20 October 2015, but could finish earlier, so you need to get your opinions in quick.

Submit your opinion on the new Finance Bill

and if you haven't already, go and sign the petition to -

'Reverse the planned tax relief restriction on ‘individual’ landlords'

Minister points to a corporate PRS future

The Housing Minister, Brandon Lewis has shared the Government's aims for the Private Rented Sector in a speech at the RESI 15 conference.

Chumming up with the big corporates at the conference held at the Celtic Manor Hotel, Lewis talked up the Government's £1 billion 'Build to Rent' scheme, saying -

" real progress has been made in Build to Rent since the last RESI conference. 15 schemes will create over 4,000 new homes; and there are more deals in the pipeline." 

The minister then went on to describe how the Government is looking to support further building of rented homes through housing guarantees, promising

 "£10 billion worth of investment in both private rented and affordable housing projects.The Affordable Housing Guarantee Scheme has already committed to guarantee over £1.5 billion of debt for more than 13,000 new affordable homes, across 41 borrowers. The Guarantee Scheme for the private rented sector is now open for business, operated by Venn Partners."

Rogue landlord crackdown

The Minister vision of a pro-corporate PRS future, was further compounded by a dig at individual landlords, saying
"we recently published a discussion document setting out proposals that include a blacklist of rogue landlords and letting agents, banning orders for the worst offenders, extending Rent Repayment Orders to cover poor property conditions and illegal eviction, and the introduction of civil penalties."

"We will crack down on rogue landlords and drive them out of business." 

What with the recent tax changes, added tiers of regulation and legislation it appears the Government is hoping to create a more corporate PRS future.

Wednesday, September 09, 2015

The rise of 'granlords'

One in ten over-50s now own a buy to let property according to a survey by Saga Landlord Insurance.

A third of these 'granlords' entered BTL within the last 5 years.

One in seven 'granlords' inherited their rental property and one in 14 originally purchased the property for a child or grandchild to live in.

Sue Green, of Saga, said: ‘Buy to let is an increasingly popular investment for the over-50s, particularly in the current financial climate but clearly it is not without challenges.

‘The recently announced cuts to tax relief for buy-to-let landlords, for example, are a new factor that people will have to take into account when deciding whether to start letting a property.

‘While landlords are largely positive about their decision, they are also likely to face practical and financial hurdles. This is why we have developed a guide that provides practical advice.’

The 'granlord' sector is expected to continue to grow as more of us take advantage of pension freedoms allowing access to pension lump sums instead of being forced into buying annuities.

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Best university towns to buy property

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Tuesday, September 08, 2015

Smoke and Co alarm regulation motion

The Lords failed to agree the motion for Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015 yesterday, describing it as 'poorly worded'.

The proposed introduction on October 1st will therefore need to be delayed or will end up as some kind of last minute farce.

Landlords need to be aware that if the motion is eventually passed then failing to install at least one smoke alarm on every storey of a rental property could leave them liable to a £5,000.

Our advice, get one installed regardless.


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Tenants cause £9.9bn of damage each year

Specialist landlord law firm, Access Legal estimates UK landlords lose out  £9.9bn each year from damage,  repairs and rent arrears. 

The law firm estimate that tenant's cause £4.5bn worth of damage to rental properties each year. 

Eamonn Hogan, from Access Legal, comments: “We work with many landlords covering tenant and landlord disputes. The extortionate cost of being a landlord seems to be a figure that keeps growing. Many landlords are subject to damaged properties and rent arrears. The law doesn’t always side with tenants, but it’s a hard process for landlords to go through and a tricky legal system.”

The five most listed causes of damage placed in claims are:
  • Broken appliances (41%)
  • Damaged decorating (40%)
  • Damaged carpets (37%)
  • Lack of cleanliness (33.18%)
  • Cigarette burns (22%)

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Monday, September 07, 2015

Britain's most expensive council houses

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Central London rents August slowdown


Knight Frank's  August prime central London rental index saw rental value growth slow to 2.5%.

The agency reported high supply levels were not matched by demand, with a subdued summer market being compounded by low corporate demand caused by uncertainty in the financial sector, leading to fewer corporate relocations.
Rental values rose just 0.1% during August.

The agents reported that increasing numbers of  new tenancies in recent weeks had been taken by  UK-based families re-locating neighbourhoods.

New applications were down 15% for the three months period to July this year, compared to the same period in 2014. Viewing levels also fell, down 12.6%, as did and tenancies agreed, down 12.1%. 

Why do people live in 'beds in sheds'?

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