Posts with tag: rental accommodation

Private Rental Sector Moving Towards Hotel-Style Rentals

Published On: September 20, 2016 at 9:15 am

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The private rental sector is moving towards hotel-style rentals, as the proptech industry develops and caters to the needs of private tenants.

Hoteliers have begun to expand the idea of short-term, furnished accommodation to the private rental sector, reflecting the increasing need for efficiency and technology in the housing market.

Private Rental Sector Moving Towards Hotel-Style Rentals

Private Rental Sector Moving Towards Hotel-Style Rentals

Gerard Greene, the co-founder of Yotel, has launched Society, a property provider that offers rental homes across the UK.

Greene explains: “To find an apartment, there is a lengthy process where you have to send your passport and various other forms of ID, pay different fees to different people before you are moved into an apartment block – and then you never hear from them again.”

He plans to reduce the moving in time by making use of digital technology, allowing tenants to move into a new home in as little as 48 hours. A smartphone app will be used to manage the property.

Space efficiency is another key feature of the Society homes, which use furniture that can be collapsed and hidden in the floor or on walls.

This move into short-term, hotel-style rentals challenges traditional lettings models, which usually feature arduous paper applications, identity and credit checks, and year-long leases.

Greene believes that tenants’ needs have evolved to a faster pace, and the housing and proptech industries are starting to react. As people’s lives become increasingly centred around technology, business are adapting to cater to their needs.

And Greene isn’t the only hotelier to invest in short-term rentals. Richard Born and Ira Drukier, of BD Hotels, have unveiled plans to lease one and two-bedroom furnished apartments in New York City, at Pod Times Square. The Pod Pads can be leased from as little as one month up to a year, and will include cable, electricity and wifi. The apartments will range from 400-800 square feet.

Another proptech pioneer is Imfuna, whose suite of mobile inspection apps have been used in the lettings sector since 2009. The tools are used to increase efficiency, facilitating ultra-fast turnaround times, which can be cut by 75%.

Founded by Jax Kneppers, Imfuna has revolutionised the system of reporting on a range of property needs, from rentals to construction. The apps record the condition of a property using the phone’s camera and offer transcription to convert voice notes into written text. The information is then compiled into a shareable PDF report.

With new hotel-style rentals and proptech pioneers, it looks like the property industry is beginning to change. But is it for the better?

Majority of UK landlords are part-time with one property

Published On: August 16, 2016 at 9:02 am

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Categories: Landlord News

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New research has revealed that the typical British landlord still believes their role to be part-time, with the majority owning just one rental property.

In addition, a higher number of landlords manage their portfolio as a private individual.

Trends

The investigation from the Council of Mortgage Lenders also suggests that there is a growing trend towards larger portfolios. This is despite rents making up less than half of a landlords’ overall income.

Rental income however is becoming a very significant form of cashflow for many part-time buy-to-let landlords.

This year, 87% of landlords questioned in the survey said they managed their portfolio as an individual or a couple. This is fairly unchanged from the 89% recorded in 2010.

For those reporting operations as a group or company, the figure stood at 14%, from 11% 6 years ago.

A huge 95% said they do not consider buy-to-let investment to be their main occupation, up from 92% in 2010.

Majority of UK landlords are part-time with one property

Majority of UK landlords are part-time with one property

Larger

While most landlords surveyed own just one rental property, a trend towards investing in larger portfolios is growing. Between 2010 and 2016, the proportion of people managing one property slipped from 78% to 63%.

During the same period, buy-to-let investors managing between two and four properties increased from 17% to 30%.

Rental receipts

Further data from the report shows that rental income makes up less than half of a landlord’s total income. 90% of investors questioned said that this was the case, almost unchanged from 2010’s results.

The total of landlords receiving no rent, mostly due to a property being unoccupied, has fallen sharply from 21% to 5% during the last six years. In the same timeframe, the number of landlords receiving around a quarter of their overall income through rents rose by 7%.

The report certainly seems to reveal to that typical landlord is an individual running their business on the side. Given the ever-growing demand for rental accommodation, the gradual expansion of these businesses highlighted should come as little surprise.

Crowdfunding site to help tackle rogue landlords

Published On: July 25, 2016 at 12:39 pm

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A new crowdfunding campaign has been launched today, in order to raise money that will help to tackle the problem of rogue landlords in Britain.

The scheme is looking to raise £200,000 through Crowdcube to not only seek out rogues, but improve the standard of rental accommodation available in the UK.

Launch

This new campaign has been launched by Peter Ramsey, founder of student property portal Movem. The move comes ahead of plans to expand the website into the residential lettings market, as an alternative to existing property portals.

Movem, which compares itself to Airbnb for residential landlords and letting agents, states that it already has hundreds of private landlords pre-registered to let their properties through the platform. In addition, the portal says it has hundreds more letting agents seeking to advertise their portfolio as soon as it launches.

Crowdfunding site to help tackle rogue landlords

Crowdfunding site to help tackle rogue landlords

Mr Ramsey said, ‘Movem is offering an unprecedented level of transparency in the housing industry and offers tenants a smarter way to rent property.’[1]

What’s more, Ramsey said that hundreds of people have already pledged to invest in the crowdfund. Many students have already rallied behind the website, ‘to stand for better accommodation, more accountability for rogue landlords and ultimately a fairer way to rent property.’[1]

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2016/7/new-crowdfunding-mission-to-crack-down-on-rogue-landlords

79% of tenants happy with their landlord

Published On: March 10, 2016 at 10:24 am

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A new survey of over 800 Private Rented Sector tenants has returned pleasing results for buy-to-let landlords.

According to the investigation by BDRC Continental, 90% of those questioned said that they felt their rental accommodation is their home.

Satisfied

Further data from the survey indicates 79% of tenants are satisfied with their current landlord. 13% replied that they had rented from a rogue landlord in the past, down from 15% in the previous quarter.

Surprisingly, average rents decreased amongst respondents, sliding from £660 in quarter three of 2015, to £607 in quarter four.

As a result, those believing their rent to be either good or very good value increased from 18% and 48% in quarter three to 20% and 49% respectively n quarter four of last year.

The average length of time tenants are staying in the sector for has also risen, from 12 years in quarter three of last year, to 14 in the final quarter. Respondents to the survey were found to have spent an average of 9.5 years in their present rental properties.

79% of tenants happy with their landlord

79% of tenants happy with their landlord

Changing demographic

John Heron, Director of Mortgages at Paragon, noted, ‘our latest tenant survey data highlights the way in which tenure distribution in the UK is continuing to change. In common with the most recent English Housing Survey we are seeing greater numbers of families living the in the PRS and for longer periods of time. This has coincided with improved levels of satisfaction and better value, it is clear that many tenants in the PRS regard the sector as their long term home.’[1]

‘This latest data highlights more clearly than ever, the vital role the PRS now plays in housing Britain and housing policy needs to be applied carefully, to reflect this fact and to avoid impacting those who rely on the PRS for a home,’ Heron added.[1]

[1] http://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/property/90-of-tenants-consider-their-rented-property-to-be-their-home.html

 

Supply of rental accommodation slips further

Published On: February 25, 2016 at 11:51 am

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A worrying new investigation by the Association of Residential Letting Agents suggests that the supply of rental accommodation is at its lowest level since records began.

What’s more, demand for accommodation was up slightly in January.

Decline

Supply of rental accommodation slips further

Supply of rental accommodation slips further

After months of steady decline, January saw the number of properties registered per letting agent branch slip by 5%. The total currently stands at 172 properties, down by 10 on December 2015.

However, renters north of the border have much more choice, with 280 properties registered per member branch in Scotland. In London however, demand for property is being driven up by lack of supply, with just 116 properties available per registered branch.

Rising demand

Demand for rental property rose in January, following a lull in December. One average, 31 would-be tenants registered per member branch during the last month. This is still lower than in January 2015, when 38 tenants were registered per branch.

Growing demand was underlined by the number of agents reporting rent hikes in January. 30% reported a rise in rental values, the largest since September 2015.

‘Supply of housing continues to be a problem and tenants bear the brunt of this with more people competing for properties at higher prices,’ noted David Cox, managing director of ARLA. ‘The majority of tenants find that it is impossible to save very much at the end of the month to put towards buying their own home. Our recent Cost of Renting report found that a fifth of those renting in the UK do not expect to ever be able to afford to buy a home and unless we act soon to build more properties, this number will only get higher,’ he continued.[1]

Reforms

The upcoming stamp duty changes on buy-to-let and second residential homes is causing concern in the sector. 63% of ARLA members believe the Chancellor’s reforms will drive landlords out of the market. This in turn will lesson supply still further, with 58% of ARLA members believing that reforms will also push up rental costs.

Mr Cox went on to say, ‘a few weeks into the new-year and the April deadline for the stamp duty surcharge is looming and interest from buyers looking to invest in buy-to-let properties and beat the deadline is ramping up. The final details of the new tax will be revealed at the Budget in March but we are not expecting to see the Government back down on this policy.’[1]

‘The findings from our members echo our concerns that efforts to penalise buy-to-let will ultimately impact those entering and currently in the rental market, as by increasing rents landlords will seek to recoup their costs. Rent costs are already rising exponentially and tenants are feeling the strain of a crowded marketplace. We just need more houses; it’s a simple as that,’ he concluded. [1]

[1] http://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/landlords/where-have-all-the-rental-properties-gone.html

 

 

Tenants prefer short-term lease agreements

Published On: February 25, 2016 at 10:13 am

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New research has revealed that nearly four out of five tenants would like a rental lease that lasts between six months and two years.

Further data from the report by online letting agent PropertyLetByUs.com shows just one in five tenants preferred leases of between two and five years.

Just over half of tenants said that they hoped to move further up the rental ladder when they could afford to do so.

Homely

The survey found that the majority of tenants want their rental accommodation to feel like home, even if they are letting for a short period. 60% of tenants said they would like to redecorate their property and over 50% said they wanted to alter the carpets or flooring.

23% of tenants expressed their desire to install decking, 18% wanted to install a hot water tub and 13% wished for a patio.

‘Clearly tenants don’t want long leases,’ observed Jane Morris, Managing Director of PropertyLetByUs. ‘For many, longer than two years does not give them the freedom and flexibility they need. They may find a job, then move on to another one, start out living with friends and then want to move in with a partner. However, landlords like longer leases-they get charged fees each time their agent needs to find new tenants. Landlords can save money by using an online lettings agent instead of a high street lettings agent.’[1]

Tenants prefer short-term lease agreements

Tenants prefer short-term lease agreements

Aspirations

Morris said that her company’s research, ‘shows that many tenants do aspire to owning their own home and a large proportion of them want to redecorate their rental accommodation.’ She feels, ‘this can cause a major headache for landlords, with many facing redecorated properties at the back end of the lease, with no prior approval secured by the tenant. The latest Tenant Deposit Scheme report shows that redecoration is a major cause of dispute, taking 32% of the share.’[1]

‘We have seen properties with walls painted in bright colours, despite landlords specifying that the décor must be a neutral and standard lettings property colours, from off-whites and beige to magnolia,’ she continued. ‘One tenant decided to decorate the whole house black and white; removed all the carpets/lino downstairs and upstairs; and painted all the floors/ceilings/kitchen/bathroom tiles in a beautiful shade of black! She did keep the walls white. Another tenant chose a dark burgundy for all the walls, throughout the property.’[1]

Inspections

Concluding, Morris said, ‘even when a tenant repaints in the correct or authorised colour scheme, there are still problems. We have seen instances of bad paint application, patchy walls, paint spills on carpets, curtains, fixtures and fittings, all of which the tenants will be responsible for at the end of the tenancy.’[1]

She stresses that, ‘it is vital that landlords carry out mid-term property inspections and ensure the inventory and check-in stipulates the colour and quality of the decoration. If tenants do want to decorate, they should be given colour swatches to choose from and clear instructions on what can be painted and how.’[1]

[1] http://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/landlords/majority-of-tenants-want-short-term-leases.html