Posts with tag: landlords

Brexit uncertainty prompts decline in UK property activity

Published On: March 28, 2017 at 1:18 pm

Tags: Article 50,Brexit,landlords,UK Property market

Home buyer demand has seen a slow recovery from initial Brexit uncertainty. Now, there are only 24 hours to go until the Prime Minister plans to trigger Article 50, in what is set to be a historic day for Britain.

A new YouGov poll for HomeOwners Alliance and warranty provider BLP Insurance has discovered than over one million people have put off plans to move this year because of Brexit uncertainty.

Brexit

The housing market in Britain has slowed during the past 12 months, against a backdrop of political and economic uncertainty. This is attributed somewhat to the outcome of the EU referendum, with 15% of people saying that they had postponed moving plans for this year. One in six cited Brexit as a main reason.

650,000 people were found to have been deterred from moving due to higher stamp duty rates.

Other main reasons for putting people off moving or from buying a home were:

Rising property prices-26%
Living costs-25%
Difficulty in obtaining a mortgage/re-mortgage-25%

Those in the North East (27%) and Northern Ireland (21%) were most likely to have cancelled plans to move since the vote.

Brexit uncertainty prompts decline in UK property activity

Uncertainty

Paula Higgins, chief executive of the HomeOwners Alliance, said: ‘With the Government preparing to trigger Article 50 this week, we expect further uncertainty in the market until the UK’s future relationship with Europe is more clearly defined.’[1]

‘The Government could help to ameliorate the situation, by looking again at stamp duty. It remains stubbornly high and acts as a drag on the market. Reducing the burden for genuine owner-occupiers could really help to keep the market moving in these uncertain times,’ she added.[1]

[1] https://www.propertyinvestortoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/3/brexit-uncertainty-prompts-sharp-fall-uk-property-sales

Wales sees largest rental growth in the UK

Published On: March 27, 2017 at 10:19 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Landlord News

Tags: Buy-to-Let,landlords,rental yields,rents,rising rents,Wales

Rents throughout England and Wales increased in all bar two of the eight regions analysed by the latest Your Move England & Wales Buy to Let Index during February

This was led by increases in Wales, where rents grew by an average of 7.7% year-on-year to February to hit £593 per month. Despite this, Wales remains one of the cheapest places to rent.

Rental Costs

The North East and Yorkshire and the Humber were found to be the only regions in the report with cheaper rents than Wales, with average rents of £545pcm and £566pcm respectively.

In terms of rental growth, the East and South East of England led the way, with rents in these regions rising by 5.6% and 3.4%. Average rents in the East of England currently stand at £868 per month, while in the South, this figure rises slightly to £878pcm.

Valerie Bannister, Letting Director at Your Move, said: ‘Areas in the South East and East of England have traditionally offered much better value than the capital and this has tempted many Londoners to look further afield for rental properties.’[1]

Capital Pains

In London, rents continued to fall, with the city the only region surveyed to see rents slide both month-on-month and year-on-year.

The average rental property in London was let for £1,280pcm in February 2017-1% lower than at the same period one year ago.

Continuing, Bannister noted: ‘The dramatic rent increases in London have now slowed as people look outside the capital in order to meet their housing aspirations. Renters in London could be reaching the limits of their affordability as prices dropped back 1% in the last year. This will be one to watch as the year progresses.’[1]

Wales sees largest rental growth in the UK

Falls

London was not the only region to see rents slip year-on-year. In the South West prices fell by 1.5% in the last 12 months to reach £662pcm.

Taking England and Wales as a whole, the average rent stood at £798 in February. This was the same as in January, but was down from the £811 seen at the end of 2016.

In terms of yields, the report found that the average was 4.1% in February. This is down on the 4.9% seen at the same period last year.

Unsurprisingly, places with higher house prices command the smallest yields. It is not a surprise then to see that the average yield in London was only 3.2%, lower than in any other part of the country.

On the other hand, properties in the North East saw the largest yields, returning an average of 5.3% in the last month.

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/3/wales-sees-rents-rise-faster-than-anywhere-else-in-the-uk

Agents are not going to be included in Money Laundering Directive

Published On: March 24, 2017 at 12:59 pm

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Finance News

Tags: landlords,legislation,letting agents,Money Laundering Directive

The UK property industry feels that a recent Government decision not to include letting agents in its proposals for legislation to meet requirements of the fourth Money Laundering Directive is wrong.

There are many elements of the consultation on the directive that are likely to have an impact on the property sector. While letting agents will be expected to carry out consumer due diligence, lettings agents will not.

This means that buyers and sellers of properties will be checked by estate agents, but tenants and landlords won’t.

Disappointed

David Cox, Chief Executive of ARLA Propertymark, said: ‘We’re disappointed the Government has chosen not include letting activity within the money laundering regulations 2017.’[1]

‘The risk with this is that money laundering activity will transfer from the sales sector due to the increased powers within the new regulation, into the lettings sector which remains unregulated. However, within the context of the recently increased legislative burden on letting agents, coupled with the shock announcement to ban letting agent fees in the Autumn Statement, we understand why the Government has chosen not to impose these requirements at this critical juncture,’ he continued.[1]

Agents are not going to be included in Money Laundering Directive

Implementation

Mark Hayward, NAEA Propertymark Chief Executive, believes it is good news that the consultation on money laundering has appeared. He believes that when legislation comes into force, it is imperative that the sector acts to implement the changes.

Hayward said: ‘The Government has announced that purchasers are now included in the application of customer due diligence, so additional checks will need to be made by sales agents and auctioneers, which will be complicated by the fact that buyers are sometimes at arm’s length and there’s not necessarily a face to face relationship.’[1]

‘However, further clarity will be required as to what point the purchaser becomes a purchaser and this is an issue we will be seeking guidance on,’ he added.[1]

[1] http://www.propertywire.com/news/uk/uk-property-industry-disappointed-letting-agents-not-included-money-directive/

NLA fears mass sell-off of buy-to-let homes

Published On: March 24, 2017 at 9:33 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Landlord News

Tags: Buy-to-Let,investors,landlords,rental market,tax

An increasing number of buy-to-let landlords are looking to sell-off their properties, as Government tax changes leave them with no choice.

New research from the National Landlords Association reveals that the removal of mortgage interest tax relief and the 3% stamp duty surcharge is deterring a number of investors.

Selling

In fact, the number of landlords looking to sell-up during the next year has more than doubled since July 2015, from 7% to 16%. This would majorly reduce the supply of needed rental accommodation.

84% of buy-to-let landlords also said that they are not looking to add to their existing property portfolios.

As a result, the National Landlords Association suggests that there will be a net reduction in property transactions by 2018, which will only add to the supply/demand imbalance in the market. This is only likely to drive rents up.

NLA fears mass sell-off of buy-to-let homes

Activity

Richard Lambert, Chief Executive at the National Landlords Association, said: ‘There has been a clear correlation over the past year between our findings on what landlords have told us they intend to do in terms of buying and selling in the coming year and their actual transaction activity.’[1]

‘If the trends keep moving in the same direction, then by 2018 we’ll have more experienced landlords selling than buying, contributing to a net reduction of private rented properties,’ he added.[1]

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/3/trade-body-fears-mass-sell-off-of-buy-to-let-properties

Landlords told to allow tenants to make improvements

Published On: March 23, 2017 at 9:50 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Landlord News

Tags: inventories,landlords,rental accommodation,tenants

The Association of Independent Inventory Clerks (AIIC) has said that landlords should offer a more open-minded approach to tenants’ requests to making improvements to their rental properties.

It suggests that a growing number of number of private tenants are keen to personalise their rental accommodation.

Improvements

A recent study from Plentific found that 73% of tenants have carried out DIY improvements out of their own pocket.

The research questioned more than 2,000 tenants a found that 23% had spent more than £500 on home improvements in their property.

Patricia Barber, chair of the AIIC, observed: ‘It’s clear that tenants are increasingly willing to spend their own money on improving their rental property and this is certainly something landlords should think about.’[1]

Barber suggests that landlords who permit tenants to make reasonable alterations could see long-term rewards.

Landlords told to allow to allow tenants to make improvements

Standards

Continuing, Barber said: ‘We’re seeing more long-term tenants and they’re clearly committed to living in a higher standard of property. Landlords who cautiously allow tenants to put their own stamp on a property could benefit from a lower turnover of tenants and an improved and well-maintained property at the end of the contract.’[1]

She also advises all landlords to make sure that they have an accurate inventory in place, whereby they can long the condition of the property before, during and after the tenancy.

This will not only be imperative in terms of a dispute, but can help eradicate the risk in the first place.

Concluding, Barber said: ‘If rental properties are noticeably changing over the course of a tenancy, it’s vitally important that there is an inventory which comprehensively details the condition and contents of the property at the start of the tenancy. This way any fair deposit deductions can be made by the landlord and the chances of a [tenancy] deposit dispute are minimised.’[1]

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/3/landlords-urged-to-allow-tenants-to-personalise-their-rental-properties

MPs call for greater powers to crackdown on illegal London lets

Published On: March 22, 2017 at 10:37 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Property News

Tags: landlords,letting agents,rogue agents,short-term lettings

As more buy-to-let landlords in London are beginning to utilise short-term letting platforms such as Airbnb, MPs are calling for more powers in order to crackdown on rogues.

A growing number of landlords are using these platforms to breach rules on letting properties, which only permit homes to be rented out short-term for up to 90 days.

Crackdown

Talking to Parliament yesterday, Westminster North Labour MP Karen Buck, along with nine other MPs, argued that landlords should have to notify councils of the dates that their property is being used for short-letting.

Buck notes that Westminster council alone is investigating over 1,100 properties which are believed to have breached the 90-day limit.

She said she welcomed, ‘freedom for homeowners to let their properties,’ but insisted that, ‘without excessive bureaucratic interference,’ it is hard for, ‘cash strapped councils to police the rules.’[1]

‘Alongside the responsible owner-occupiers are irresponsible ones, illegal sub-letters and an increasingly significant commercial operation, seeking to take advantage of potentially higher yields,’ she continued.[1]

MPs call for greater powers to crackdown on illegal London lets

Blocks

Earlier in March, the Mayor of London called on short-term agents operating in London to block hosts from renting out homes in the capital for over 90 days. These include Veeve, One Fine Stay, Wimdu, Booking.com, HomeAway and Airsorted.

However, until there is a change in the existing rules to analyze activity levels, Field thinks that a, ‘free-for all in short-term lets’ will keep, ‘causing misery for thousands of our constituents.’[1]

‘We want the local council to have effective powers to clamp down on this,’ she concluded.[1]

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/3/mps-call-for-greater-powers-to-clamp-down-on-illegal-lets-in-london