A group of landlords and buy to let investors that has already successfully persuaded a council to scrap plans for a licensing system has gone one step further by organising its own training and accreditation scheme in a bid to weed out rogue operators.

In August we reported that an online agency, TR Online Lettings, was sponsoring the bringing together of around 50 local landlords into a body called that Somerset Property Network.

It was organised via Facebook after individual landlords expressed their anger at a North Somerset council proposal to impose a five-yearly charge of £320 per property for licences. To the surprise of many, lobbying by the group succeeded in persuading the local authority to scrap the idea.

Now the Somerset Property Network’s National Landlords Code of Excellence has been set up, with network members signing up to a training course which took place last week. It looked chiefly at tenants’ issues and the need to comply with new legislation governing the private rental sector.

A spokesman told the Weston Mercury: “The accreditation day was amazing. It was also lovely to spend the day with fellow landlords.”

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