Posts with tag: landlords

Buy-to-let approvals soar ahead of tax changes

Published On: February 11, 2016 at 10:48 am

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The forthcoming stamp duty changes have been the catalyst behind buy-to-let approvals soaring in January.

Figures from research conducted by esurv shows that in January, there were 85,432 house purchase approvals. This represented a rise of 20.6% month-on-month. In addition, this was the highest number of monthly house purchase approvals since October 2007, when 87,594 were recorded.

Annually, house purchase lending has risen by 39.3%.

Rush

‘Buy-to-let approvals contributed to the growth in January home lending,’ noted Richard Sexton, director of e.surv charterted surveyors. ‘Concerns about the sector’s growth have sparked a wave of legislation but as stamp duty changes come into effect this April, there’s been a rush to get buy-to-let loans approved. Many have predicted a narrowing of the buy-to-let sector but actually what we’re seeing in lending quarters appears to be the opposite.’[1]

‘This buy-to-let rise also hasn’t been at the expense of first-time buyers. The number of small-deposit loans granted has risen in January and this is a great sign that lenders still have the appetite to give first-timers a chance. Rising wages and a delayed interest rate rise have also boosted first-timer’s prospects. For those investing in a second property it’s also a race to beat April’s legislation-adding an extra boost to overall house purchase approval levels,’ Sexton continued.[1]

Climbs

In addition, small deposit lending climbed in January to reach 12,388 loan approvals. This was an improvement on the 11,546 recorded in December. Annually, this figure rose substantially from the 9,385 small-deposit loans given in January 2015.

Despite January seeing a numerical increase in the total of small-deposit loans granted, this may not necessarily mean an increase in sales. The most recent First Time Buyer Tracker from Your Move and Reeds Rains indicates that in December 2015, there were 26,600 first-time buyer sales. This represented a 4.7% decrease from the 27,900 seen in November.

What’s more, the proportion of total lending compromised by small-deposit approvals in January fell to 14.5% from 16.3% in November and December 2015-forming the smallest proportion since the 13.9% in December 2014.

Buy-to-let approvals soar ahead of tax changes

Buy-to-let approvals soar ahead of tax changes

Bright outlook

Mr Sexton feels, ‘ a buy-to-let surge has pushed down the proportion of small-deposit lending-but this figure conceals a more realistic and upbeat picture. In fact, January has been a positive month for small-deposit borrowers-the number of loans approved have reached their highest total for four months, since September 2015. And the slowdown in small-deposit lending seen towards the end of 2015 hasn’t continued into 2016 so far.’[1]

For first-time buyers, prospects are looking bright. Government initiatives introduced to help first-timers onto the property ladder appear to be working. According to the Treasury, large numbers of aspiring homeowners have taken advantage of the Help to Buy ISA and this is an incredibly promising start,’ he added.[1]

Concluding, Sexton acknowledged that, ‘challenges do remain, supply issues are ongoing and the promise of starter homes may take longer to be realised, but for first-time buyers, lenders remain willing to support

[1] http://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/finance/btl-approvals-hit-nine-year-high.html

 

Renters warned not to leave personal documents behind

Published On: February 10, 2016 at 12:47 pm

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Categories: Landlord News

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The National Landlords Association has joined forces with the Royal Mail to warn tenants across the country to update their address details or take out a redirection service when they move on from a property.

This is to prevent identity theft and financial fraud, with a new survey showing that mail and other personal documents are the sixth most common item left behind by outgoing renters.

Information

In a survey of 1,364 landlords 8% said that they have found or received personal information, including bankslips, payslips, utility and passports after a tenant has vacated their property.

5% said they had to report an item they had found in a home to the police.

Richard Lambert, CEO of the National Landlords Association observed, ‘with a quarter of tenants moving on from a property after just a year, it is no surprise that many forget to inform their bank or building society of their new address.’[1]

‘Recent ONS figures show that application fraud cases-when fraudsters open an account using fake or stolen documents in someone else’s name-rose by 14% last year. This means that renters who don’t update their address details or take out a Redirection service to their new home are putting themselves at risk of identity theft leading to financial fraud,’ he continued.[1]

Renters warned not to leave personal documents behind

Renters warned not to leave personal documents behind

Left behind

Clothes were found to be the top thing that renters leave behind at the end of tenancy agreement, closely followed by toys and, unbelievably, animals! Landlords have reported finding ferrets, snakes and live pet sea monkeys!

The top ten items most commonly left behind by a tenant were found to be:

  1. Clothes (14%)
  2. Toys (14%)
  3. Animals (11%)
  4. Exercise equipment (10%)
  5. Furniture/bedding (10%)
  6. Mail and important personal documents (8%)
  7. Electrical items including kettles, fridges and TVs (7%)
  8. Food (7%)
  9. Cars and car parts (6%)
  10. Gardening/plants/tools (6%)

Other surprising items found left behind were the ashes of a dead relative, 14 car tyres, 20 bikes, four sunbeds, a drum kit and a prosthetic leg!

Jim Conning, Managing Director of Data Services at the Royal Mail said, ‘it is interesting-and worrying-to see the range of items that tenants leave behind when moving on from a property. We would always advise renters to not only think about the items they can see when they are moving but also the external services that are linked to the property in their name.’[1]

[1] http://www.royalmailgroup.com/fraud-warning-renters-mail-revealed-one-most-common-items-left-behind-move

 

Buy-to-let alterations will lead to a ‘hike in rents’

Published On: February 10, 2016 at 11:20 am

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Categories: Landlord News

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One of the most respected rental sector analyst’s in Britain has warned that tax changes for landlords could backfire on the Government.

Kate Faulkner believes that upcoming alterations in Stamp Duty and second home surcharges will come back to haunt George Osborne.

Changes

The Chancellor is bringing in both measures with the intention of improving opportunities for first-time buyers, which could otherwise be purchased by buy-to-let investors.

Other onlookers feel that these measures aim to encourage institutional Build To Rent investors, in an attempt to improve the quality of Britain’s private rental sector.

Faulkner however believes that while the upcoming policies may get a small number of would-be buyers onto the ladder, there are large downsides.

Buy-to-let alterations will lead to a 'hike in rents'

Buy-to-let alterations will lead to a ‘hike in rents’

Ignorance

‘Those who need to rent-students, overseas, people in debt, those waiting for social housing-are likely to see a hike in rents. And If buy-to-let reduces, the tax expected to be raised from the increases may not be then able to fund the first time buyer initiatives,’ she stated.[1]

‘So why on earth is George Osborne ignoring the money that investors could put into building instead of buying existing homes? Many landlords with £100,000-plus could help to create new homes. So where are the mini Build To Rent sector initiatives for smaller landlords who are established and want to continue to expand their portfolio?’ she went on to ask.[1]

[1] https://www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2016/2/top-lettings-analyst-says-buy-to-let-tax-changes-may-mean-higher-rent-less-stock

 

Annual rental prices up in 11 out of 12 UK regions

Published On: February 10, 2016 at 10:08 am

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Residential rents rose year-on-year in 11 out of the 12 regions of Britain, with the most prominent rises in the South East of England and the East Midlands.

Overall, the typical rent in Britain, with the exception of Greater London, is now £740 per month. In London, average rents stand at £1,510 per month, according to the most recent rental index from HomeLet.

Slow progress

The data indicates that only the North West of England has seen a fall in rental prices over the last twelve months. Prices here fell by 3.4% from £646 per month to £624.

However, rent costs for new tenancies in Greater London are increasing at the slowest rate seen for nearly two years. The January index shows that Greater London prices are 6.2% higher for the three months to January 2016, in comparison to the same point in 2015. This is the least amount of growth seen in the capital since March 2014.

By contrast, rent prices in other regions continued to increase. The South East of England recorded rises in rent prices of 7.2% in the three months to January 2016. The East Midlands also saw a significant rise of 6.8% in rental prices in the same period.

Annual rental prices up in 11 out of 12 UK regions

Annual rental prices up in 11 out of 12 UK regions

Monthly differences

On the other hand, monthly data gives a different outlook. Rental prices in the UK, excluding Greater London, were 0.2% greater in the three months to January 2016, than in the three months to December 2015. In Greater London, rents have slipped by 0.9% over the same timeframe.

In all, six out of the twelve British regions recorded rises in rental prices during the three months to January 2016.

Martin Totty, chief executive officer of Homelet’s parent group, Barbon Insurance Group, said,’ it’s notable that there has been a further fall in the rate at which average rents in the Greater London area are rising. In recent years, the capital has seen much faster rates of increase than the rest of the country, but it may be that an affordability ceiling has now been reached in London and that rents will now track other parts of the UK more closely.’[1]

‘The fact that UK wide average rents in the private rented sector continue to show sustained upwards growth reflects there is still strong demand for rental properties, driven mainly by the impact if the long term structural imbalance in supply and demand of property,’ he added.[1]

Concluding, Totty said, ‘landlords achieving higher average rents over time also suggests that tenants starting a new tenancy are proving they can afford higher average rents. With demand outstripping supply, some would-be tenants may be able to outbid rivals for properties, which could drive higher rents.’[1]

[1] http://www.propertywire.com/news/europe/uk-rental-price-index-2016021011539.html

 

RLA warns landlords of SDLT avoidance con

Published On: February 9, 2016 at 11:18 am

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Categories: Landlord News

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Landlords are being warned not to be conned into a scam scheme ahead of the changes to Stamp Duty tax in April.

The Residential Landlords Association is urging private investors to avoid schemes that allegedly claim to help them avoid the 3% Stamp Duty surcharge.

Careful

RLA Policy Director David Smith, who has met with the Treasury to talk about the new measure. He said that the Government has worked tirelessly to fill in any loopholes.

Smith said that, ‘landlords should be very careful about making plans for their property purchases until after the budget. Any property purchases must be completed before April 1 if the buyers want to avoid paying the new levels of Stamp Duty Land Tax. The Treasury has made it abundantly clear that anyone offering schemes to get around the changes is talking nonsense.’[1]

RLA warns landlords of SDLT avoidance con

RLA warns landlords of SDLT avoidance con

Restrictions

Mr Smith continued by noting that the Treasury has made it clear that the new legislations will be greatly restrictive. Additionally, he said that no further guidance would be available until after the Budget in the middle of March. The Budget will announce alterations to the implementation following the official consultation process on the additional homes issue.

In addition, it has been revealed that investors purchasing 15 or more properties would be exempt from the surcharge. However, this would only apply to buyers purchasing all 15 properties on one contract and in a single transaction.

[1] https://www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2016/2/warning-against-falling-for-stamp-duty-surcharge-avoidance-scam

 

 

Neighbours make good friends…don’t they?

Published On: February 7, 2016 at 10:37 am

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Categories: Property News

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Wouldn’t it be nice to get on with my neighbours?

Well, yes, according to a new survey by Ocean Finance, which suggests that millions of Brits have issues with people living in close proximity to them.

51% of those who encounter a nuisance neighbour feel stressed or depressed and 24% said they wanted to move to a new region. 20% said that they don’t sleep well as a result, with 18% saying that they do not feel safe in their property.

Neighbours make good friends...don't they?

Neighbours make good friends…don’t they?

Typical Troublesome Traits

Troublesome neighbours come in many forms but Ocean Finance has recorded a list of the top-ten most annoying traits. Can you label your neighbour as one of these?

  • The chatters-You know the types. You just want to make the short journey to your car or the dustbin and they are there. Waiting. To talk. About nothing.
  • Bin thieves-Everyone knows one of these-neighbours who, despite the fact that it has your house number emblazoned on the front, steal your dustbin. Which leads nicely onto…
  • Wrong bin dumpers-Do you remember ordering pizza last night? No? Because you didn’t, but there is still a pizza box in your bin. And the bloke next door put it there.
  • Parking police-The family who have 4 cars but 3 residents and who still moan about not being able to park their surplus vehicles outside their house..
  • WIFI grabbers-A teenager at number 26 is having a great time online, using your WIFI.
  • Noisey Nigel-The man living in the attached property who has no concept on TV remote volume control or a regular bedtime
  • Litter louts-Mmm lovely, takeaway boxes, containing part of a kebab, just outside your front gate
  • The curtain twitchers-There’s always one person on the street who sees everything, before seeking sanctuary behind their curtains. This is before gossiping to anyone who will listen about what so-and-so was up to last night
  • Scrapheap challengers- Those neighbours who could hold a car-port sale with the amount of rubbish in their back garden
  • The ‘Eastenders’- More at home on the Jeremy Kyle show, these people argue with themselves on an hourly basis. And you have a front row seat.

‘Good neighbours really can be good friends are a vital part of a vibrant community,’ said Ian Williams. ‘But most Brits will recognise at least one of these less welcome neighbours too-and sadly for some people a problem neighbour can make their lives a misery.’[1]