A prominent housing expert has told MPs that letting agents could be used to police the standards of homes made available to rent. Dr Julie Rugg is the senior research fellow at the Centre for Housing Policy at the University of York, and has authored a series of significant reports on the private rental sector homes made available to rent in recent years. Towards the end of last week she…

A survey of over 2,400 tenants has found that 55 per cent would prefer to have all-inclusive charges within the price of their rent. What’s more, 44 per cent say they would be more likely to rent a property if all-inclusive charges were included versus a property that didn’t. In addition 41 per cent claim to find the task of organising and paying their utility bills stressful. However an analysis…

Senior Labour MP Clive Betts says the party’s official house building policy won’t actually solve the shortage of homes. Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner, who is also responsible for housing policy, recently set out her views on new builds, insisting that a Labour government would require private developers to build more affordable housing as a price of planning consent. However Betts – who chairs the all party Levelling Up, Housing…

British Gas is calling for a Green Upgrade Relief which would allow landlords to deduct green improvements from their annual income as well as government-kitemarked zero or low interest loans to help them make improvements. The energy supplier also wants an amendment to the Renters (Reform) Bill so landlords cannot reasonably refuse smart meter installation. They also wants to start the data-gathering process to implement Building Passports for individual properties…

The government has vowed to ensure that the court system for landlord repossession cases with valid reasons to evict tenants, will be speeded up under the Renters Bill. The highly contentious bill which will scrap Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions, was included in Housing Minister Rachel Maclean’s discussions in a fringe event at the Conservative Party conference. The event was sponsored by a trade body was hosted by a liberal conservative…

The Renters Reform Bill could force landlords into insolvency warns a housing law specialist. The housing law specialist Des Taylor says the Bill which has finally passed through its Second Reading will make common mistakes and errors made by agents and landlords illegal and hand over powers to councils to impose massive fines of up to £30,000 for each misdemeanour. Taylor said: “The Bill will not only end the use…

A property association says landlords and tenants warned that they must join forces with to “proactively” tackle the growing bed bug crisis. Landlords and tenants warned by the association with stark warning following reports of some landlords and agents telling tenants the best way to deal with the bed bugs is put their duvets in the freezer. Figures from Rentokil highlights the surge in bedbug infections with a 65 per…

The boss of Winkworth has warned Chancellor Jeremy Hunt against making any tax cuts that could ultimately send interest rates soaring while calling for a return of mortgage interest relief for landlords when he makes his Autumn Statement next week. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is preparing for his Autumn Statement but Winkworth boss Dominic Agace worries some tax and VAT cuts would be self-defeating. Hunt will deliver his fiscal plans to…

Property experts support the housing select committee in calling out ministers over delays to court reform and trying to ‘shift the blame’. Property leaders joined MPs in calling out the Government for failing to say when the slow courts system for evictions will be speeded up. Ministers decided to postpone abolition of Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions until reforms to the court system made processes quicker. The measure was taken…

Propertymark has called on the government to retain the option of fixed-term tenancies in the private rental sector where it is mutually beneficial for both parties. Propertymark made the call at the committee stage of the Renters Reform Bill. Timothy Douglas, Head of Policy and Campaigns at Propertymark, presented evidence to MPs where he stressed the need for tenants to have more choice and “have the option to rent on…

Landlords are extremely perturbed and exasperated with the pet policy measures in the Renters Reform Bill. Landlords are frustrated by the tenants with pets’ regulations included in the Renters Bill and many wish to cover themselves and properties by hiking up rents. The Bill states that tenants must be allowed to have pets in their rented ‘homes’ unless the landlord “reasonably refuses”, however landlords will be able to stipulate that…

A new report suggests London’s Build To Rent quarter is being held back by a “stark inconsistency” from local councils in the capital. The report, by national consultants Lichfields, says planning policy across all London boroughs is mixed and “could do far more” to support the delivery of more BTR units.  It says a key finding highlights a stark inconsistency in how BTR is addressed in Local Plans: of the…

Update from the Ministry of Justice reveals that despite attempts to recruit more judges, landlords and rental agents still face huge delays with evictions. The courts are taking over half a year on average to process bona fide evictions by landlords and rental agents, official figures have revealed. Latest data from the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) shows that repossessions by landlords are taking on average 29 weeks, while the Ministry…

Propertymark has told politicians that an additional homes tax surcharge will not succeed in increasing housing supply. Timothy Douglas, head of policy and campaigns at Propertymark, presented evidence to Members of the Scottish Parliament who are considering the Council Tax (Variation for Unoccupied Dwellings) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2023. The draft regulations give councils discretionary powers to increase homes tax surcharge on second homes of up to 100 per cent and…

The number of people falling behind and into mortgage arrears rose sharply over the summer months, figures from the banking sector show. Rising interest rates have put pressure on homeowners, with 87,930 in arrears said UK Finance, up 18% compared with July to September last year. Among landlords, the number in arrears doubled in a year. Home repossessions are rare, but lenders and charities urge people to act early when…

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has used his Autumn Statement to reveal measures affecting both the wider rental market and property industry. The Local Housing Allowance is to be increased next year to the 30th percentile of local market rents, as requested by numerous landlord and lettings agency groups. Hunt says this will help some 1.6m households currently renting in both the private and social rental market and property industry. It’s the…

Propertymark has welcomed the pledge by Housing Secretary Michael Gove not to introduce rent controls in England. The trade body says such rent controls in England discourage investment and are in any case ineffective at regulating rent levels. Propertymark says where rents have risen, the recent increases in costs and legislative requirements that landlords face, along with an array of tax changes have placed additional financial burdens on landlords. This…

New data reveals a 68 per cent surge in reports of meter tampering and energy theft during winter. The data – revealed by Stay Energy Safe, an independent service operated by the charity Crimestoppers – is based on an average of 1,000 tip-offs a month between August 2022 and August 2023. The service says record levels of suspected energy theft were reported during the winter months and it forecasts more…

Rent control guidance as currently in force in Scotland and under consideration in Wales will not be put into effect in England, the government has made clear. In a letter from Housing Secretary Michael Gove to the all-party Select Committee on Housing, Gove rejects a call for Valuation Office Agency data to be made public so some form of assessment could be made as to what constitutes “a justified rent…

More Section 21 eviction details have emerged of what appears to be a sort of stay of execution for it’s powers. The abolition of Section 21 was arguably the centrepiece of the Renters Reform Bill, which has its Second Reading in the House of Commons this afternoon. On Friday it emerged that Section 21 eviction details would still be abolished but only when improvements were made to the way courts…