Labour says the government should ban evictions for people who fall behind on their rent due to Coronavirus. John Healey, the shadow housing secretary, is publishing draft legislation which Labour is urging the government to adopt immediately. The new law would mean any non-payment of rent due to Coronavirus would not count as legal grounds for eviction. The party claims it would cover over 20m people – eight and a…

A landlord from Plymouth has been sentenced after failing to maintain gas appliances and failing to have landlord’s gas safety checks undertaken at his rental property in the city. Plymouth Crown Court heard how, in August 2018, a concern was raised with the Health and Safety Executive by a previous tenant that no landlord’s gas safety checks had been carried out for three years. The HSE made numerous attempts to…

Research within the 15 largest rental markets around the world has found that some tenants are asked to put down 10 months’ rent or £6,145 as a deposit. The UK is one of the most affordable places to begin a tenancy, research among the world’s 15 largest private rental housing markets has discovered. As well as the first month’s rent, tenants in the UK must pay an average deposit of…

Landlords who transferred their portfolio to a company wrapper to avoid the 3% Stamp Duty surcharge on buy-to-let properties have been hit by changes to entrepreneurs’ relief in Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s inaugural Budget. Entrepreneurs’ relief – which gives company owners (including many buy-to-let investors) a 10% cut in the Capital Gains Tax they pay on selling their assets – has seen its lifetime cap on the profits made from the…

The government has relaxed some provisions of the controversial Right To Rent regulations for the duration of the Coronavirus outbreak. The temporary changes will mean the Home Office will not require agents, landlords and employers to see original documents and will allow checks to be undertaken over video calls. This means that during the outbreak prospective renters and workers are now able to submit scanned documents, rather than originals, to…

The government issued further guidance on the private rental sector over the weekend. The new 21 page document – a link to which is at the bottom of this story – pulls together for the first time the ad hoc information on various regulations that have changed in the past week. Measures outlined in this new guidance are in force until the end of September. On the subjects of rent…

The Guild of Letting and Management has thrown helpful light on the responsibilities and recommended approach of letting agents faced with mandatory checks on properties rented by tenants who are self-isolating because of Coronavirus. “We are grateful to clients who are calling the advice line to share their experiences  so that other letting agents and property managers can be made aware of the situations that they may have to deal…

The typical UK private rental deposit, often considered high in this country, is thought to be relatively low by international standards according to a new study. Deposit replacement scheme Ome has looked at comparative deposits from 15 nations. In England and Wales a tenant currently pays an average of £1,139, although across the UK as a whole (so including Scotland and Northern Ireland) this reduces to £811. The tenant fees…

One of the biggest hurdles for renters to overcome when trying to secure their home is the deposit. Depending on where you are in the country and who your landlord is, this could potentially run into the thousands. Rental deposit replacement scheme, Ome, has compared the average cost of a rental deposit in the UK with 14 other nations who have the highest percentage of renters across the world. Ome…

Current housing secretary, Robert Jenrick, has revealed new government planning reforms claiming that they will “bring Britain’s planning system into the 21st century”. According to the announcement, local authorities will be encouraged to build “upwards and above and around stations” to revitalise high streets and “take a more innovative approach to home building”. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) will consult on a new permitted development right…

The chief executive of a new lettings sector trade body is to address his first conference next month, giving an indication of the objectives of the new group. The National Residential Landlords Association was given the green light early last autumn by the two previous trade organisations, the National Landlords Association and the Residential Landlords Association. However, a proposed formal launch date for the new organisation – January 1 this…

The parlous state of many tenants’ personal finances has been highlighted by website CompareTheMarket which claims that one in 10 rely on overdrafts to cover the rent. The site’s research found two-fifths use their overdraft for emergency funding and nearly one quarter use them to cover the cost of everyday bills which is concerning. Some one in 10 use them to cover rent, with a similar proportion using overdrafts to…

All court possession orders are being suspended from today as part of the changes to the private rental sector to cope with the Coronavirus crisis. This means that neither cases currently in the system, nor any about to go in, can progress to the stage where someone could be evicted. This suspension of housing possessions action will initially last for 90 days, but this can be extended if needed. The…

Bristol outperformed all other cities with regards to carbon emissions, recycling rates and gas consumption. Bristol is the most environmentally-friendly city in the UK, whilst Birmingham has been named and shamed as the least eco-friendly, a new study has revealed. The research, conducted by Good Move, ranked UK cities based on a variety of sustainability factors, before taking an average score to produce a leaderboard. Bristol came out on top…

The Property Ombudsman is warning agents not to discriminate against tenants through a No DSS or any similar policy. Following the legal victories of two tenants winning out-of-court settlements against lettings agents, TPO has also confirmed that it will “consider” obtaining Assured Advice and strengthening its codes of practice to clearly prohibit No DSS clauses in rental advertisements. TPO has issued a statement reminding agents of existing codes stating that…

The safeagent accreditation business says it has helped secure the conviction of a rogue lettings agent who falsely claimed membership of professional trade associations. The business worked with Haringey council Trading Standards in an operation which ended with Matthew Estates being ordered to pay £12,630 by magistrates after being found guilty of five offences relating to false claims. During the trial the court heard that following a visit by Trading…

Despite the challenges being thrown up to the lettings sector by Coronavirus, this is a reminder that new MEES regulations on energy efficiency in rental properties come into effect on April 1. For some two years it has been a requirement under the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards for any new tenancies or tenancy renewals of properties rented in the private rented sector to have a minimum energy performance rating of…

Labour’s London Mayor, Sadiq Khan, has put his call for powers to control private rents at the heart of his campaign to be re-elected this May. Khan – no doubt aware of the fact that some 2.4m Londoners live in private rented accommodation – put the issue at the forefront of the launch of his campaign yesterday. He says:  “The case for rent controls is now absolutely undeniable. But Tory…

Brent Council’s application to extend its selective licensing scheme in the wards of Willesden Green, Harlesden and Wembley Central have been rejected by Housing Secretary, Robert Jenrick MP. The council had also hoped to extend the scheme to 10 new wards in the borough, following a consultation last year. However, the government has said today more evidence would be needed before approval could be given. Objections The RLA objected to the plans during a…