Posts with tag: tenants

Three-quarters of UK tenants are happy renting, Landbay research shows

Published On: October 23, 2019 at 8:41 am

Three-quarters (75%) of UK tenants are happy to rent, according to new research from Landbay, the buy-to-let focussed marketplace lender.

Of this 75%, a third (33%) said that they are happy to rent forever. This study questioned 2,000 private renters in the UK, offering insight to landlords on the wants and needs of their tenants.

The survey looked into men’s and women’s preferences for renting over homeowning and found very little difference between the two genders. 36% of men are to be happy renting forever and 31% of women made the same response.

Looking at the age ranges of those who took part in the survey, nearly two thirds (64%) of those aged 55+ are also happy to remain tenants. In comparison, Landbay highlights that less than a third of 35-54-year-olds chose this response and that they are more likely to want to own a home.

Only 17% of those living in London are happy to stay renting, compared to 46% of Welsh tenants.

Of those who aim to buy a property, the average length of time tenants are prepared to wait is 4.1 years, with men content to wait 4.6 years and women 3.8 years.

The top three reasons for why these tenants remain to rent are:

I don’t want to/can’t make the financial commitment of buying a home – 46%
I have fewer responsibilities than an owner (i.e. my landlord is responsible for most issues) – 40%
I like the flexibility of renting – 33%

John Goodall, CEO of Landbay, comments: “Renting affords significantly greater flexibility than homeownership and, at a time when house price growth is uncertain, remains the best option for a significant number of people. It’s clear from this data that those who choose to rent are happy doing so, and indeed would like to continue doing so forever.”

“The financial hurdle of homeownership is for many too great a stretch and frankly they don’t want to make the commitment. The reality is owning a home isn’t the right choice for many, which is why the private rental sector needs to be supported properly if we are to house this growing portion of private sector tenants.”

Life insurance for renters next step for letting agents to beat the fees ban

Published On: October 22, 2019 at 9:48 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Lettings News

Tags: letting agents,life insurance,Tenant Shop,tenants

Life insurance for renters is becoming increasingly a necessity to close what is known as the ‘Protection Gap’, according to Tenant Shop.

The ‘Protection Gap’ refers to the lack of cover many long-term renters have in place due to having so far missed out on the traditional life insurance trigger when taking out a mortgage.

Glenn Seddington, Managing Director of Tenant Shop, says: “We have listened to the feedback from our agents and they are telling us that this is something renters care about and something that they are looking to introduce to their customers.”

Tenants are worried about lack of cover

Research released by Sainsbury’s Bank earlier this year has revealed the extent of this problem.

It revealed:

Only 26% of tenants are likely to have a life insurance or critical illness policy, compared to 41% of homeowners.
Despite this, 54% of tenants are more concerned than homeowners (48%) about the financial implications, should they pass away before old age.
21% of renters said they worry about this scenario on a weekly basis, compared to just 16% of homeowners.

Seddington says: “There is a clear appetite among tenants to get the life insurance and critical illness policy they need, but they appear not to have the same level of access as homeowners.

“Whether renting or buying, moving home is a key life event and the perfect opportunity to arrange cover.

“Therefore, while renters are considering the best options for their broadband, energy tariff and contents cover, they should also be thinking about life insurance too.”

Beating the fees ban should remain a priority

Despite the Tenant Fees Act being introduced over four months ago, it still poses a challenge to letting agents. Therefore, they should continue to explore ways in which they can limit its impact.

Tenant Shop points out that agents are often being advised to look at their business processes and consider the overall offering to tenants.

Seddington explains: “Access to additional revenue routes will be a key component in this new landscape that we find ourselves in. Products like income protection, life insurance and critical illness cover will become increasingly valuable to agents as renting becomes a lifestyle choice for many families and older people.”

Another line of business for letting agents

Tenant Shop has highlighted that online life insurance for renters can be offered by their letting agents.

Seddington comments on Tenant Shop’s own product, Cignpost Life: “Busy tenants’ need for quick and simple life insurance is greater than ever before and this should now be a solution offered by all the best modern letting agents.”

Best areas in UK for renters saving property deposits revealed by MoneySuperMarket

Published On: October 21, 2019 at 8:58 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Tenant News

Tags: deposits,house prices,MoneySuperMarket,rent prices,tenants

MoneySuperMarket, the UK price comparison website, has revealed data that shows which locations provide the best financial opportunities for renters looking to save up and become a property owner in the UK.

This research took into account take-home salary and deducts the cost of living in order to identify just how long it would take renters saving property deposits, based on a variable deposit. It also looked at different locations around the UK.

MoneySuperMarket has highlighted that 57% of Brits feel like getting on the property ladder is out of their reach according to a survey from OnePoll. As such, it has created an interactive tool that shows you where you can simultaneously rent and save for a deposit, without feeling like you need to save for the next ten years.

MoneySuperMarket has provided the following table of top locations looking to get onto the property ladder:

Location	Average House Price	Average Annual Salary	Median Monthly Rent	Monthly Saving (per two adults)
1. Paisley	£120,754	£24,996	£351	£1,855.93
2. East Kilbride	£129,340	£24,592	£385	£1,776.14
3. Stoke-on-Trent	£113,191	£22,082	£418	£1,462.05
4. Hartlepool	£115,696	£22,297	£377.00	£1,470.28
5. Armagh	£120,699	£22,083	£475.00	£1,522.07

Rachel Wait, consumer affairs spokesperson at MoneySuperMarket, commented: “While Paisley has proven to be the fastest place to raise a deposit, there are options across the country that won’t take a lifetime to save up for – even in London, where Croydon couples can buy a house within seven years of saving.

“Saving money for a home can be daunting, even where mortgages are more affordable. But you can take control of your finances more easily than you might think, by planning out how to save and looking at ways to cut back – as well as considering whether you could save up faster by moving somewhere with a higher salary or a lower cost of living.”

Over half of UK private tenants happy to remain renting

Published On: October 1, 2019 at 8:28 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Tenant News

Tags: homeowners,tenants

New research shows that only 42% of private tenants in the UK are interested in buying a home in the near future.

This information comes from a study from Landbay, the buy-to-let focussed marketplace lender. Involving 2,000 private renters in the UK, it provides insight to landlords on the wants and needs of their tenants.

The study also looked at age ranges, when it comes to the prospect of purchasing a home. Unsurprisingly, older renters are the least interested. Only 13% of over 55s are considering buying a home in the near future.

46% of those aged 35 to 44 said they are considering homeownership. However, as expected, the majority of interest goes to the 25 to 34-year-olds, with 64% stating that they are keen to buy in the future.

The area containing the most renters hoping to move to homeownership is London at 48%. Northern Ireland is a close second at 47%.

The least likely area is the South West and Wales, with both receiving results of 37%.

When those happy to remain renting were asked why, 25% replied that the flexibility of renting proves too tempting to resist. 6% attribute their plan to move to a new country, and 5% plan to move to a new city or a new job.

John Goodall, CEO of Landbay comments: “This research suggests the UK’s enthusiasm for homeownership may be waning. Conversations around the private rental sector often assume the bulk of renters are simply biding their time until they can buy a house.

“However, the changing face of employment and a thirst for flexible living mean renting is more attractive than ever, and landlords should reflect this in their interactions with tenants.

“It’s crucial that investment in the private rental sector becomes a priority. What use is Labour’s ‘right to buy’ policy if renters have no interest in doing so? Instead, the government must focus on encouraging purpose-built rental properties and cease its penalisation of landlords.”

The most annoying neighbour behaviours revealed

Published On: September 30, 2019 at 9:06 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Property News

Tags: tenants

More than one in ten (11%) Brits have reported an annoying neighbour to the police, new research has revealed. Good Move conducted the study by asking 1500 adults what they thought of their neighbours, which habits they find annoying and the action(s) they’d take in response.

Nearly two thirds (59%) said they found their neighbours annoying, with the top reasons being:

Playing loud music – 59%
Leaving rubbish outside of your house – 55%
Illegal activity (e.g. drugs) – 51%
Hosting lots of parties – 50%
Not cleaning up after pets – 44%
Leaving pets outside making lots of noise – 42%
Parking in your space – 40%
Having loud arguments – 40%
Stealing your bins – 39%
Leaving cigarettes lying around – 39%

It would appear that the age-old belief that northerners are more friendly continues, with Sheffield residents being the most pleasant people to live next to, but neighbours in Bristol and London being the most complained about.

In response to annoying neighbours, most people (30%) would directly confront them; 15% would deliberately replicate the annoying behaviour; 11% would call the police; and 4% have gone as far as taking their neighbours to court.

Ross Counsell, Director at Good Move, said: “Neighbourly disagreements are a part of life, but our research has highlighted the lengths that Brits are willing to go to in order to get them resolved.

“We found that young adults are the most likely to find their neighbours annoying, but that they are also the least likely to know those who live around them. Perhaps if people made more effort to talk to their neighbours, then they would get along better and be more tolerant of certain behaviours.”

RLA: Pay Universal Credit Directly to Landlords to Stop Rent Arrears

Published On: September 24, 2019 at 8:31 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Landlord News

Tags: rent,tenants,Universal Credit

RLA: Pay Universal Credit Directly to Landlords to Stop Rent Arrears

The Residential Landlords Association has come out in support of the position that tenants receiving Universal Credit (UC) should have the right to choose whether the housing element of the benefit is paid directly to their landlord. They agree with the findings of a Smith Institute report commissioned by Southwark Council.

Southwark was at the forefront of the rollout of full service UC, and therefore has a longer period of data to back up the findings of the report. The reports found that there is ‘a noticeable decrease’ in the levels of rent arrears for those claiming UC in 2018 when compared to 2016 and puts this change down to the earlier and increased use of alternative payment arrangements (APAs).

The report adds: “Originally designed to apply to a handful of cases, more than 40% of Southwark tenants claiming UC have now entered into APAs with the council to help manage their finances”.

Under current rules, landlords may apply for an APA, but only after two months of rent arrears have accrued.

David Smith, Policy Director the Residential Landlords Association, said:

“Our own research finds that over half of landlords with tenants on Universal Credit have seen them fall into rent arrears in the last year.

“Today’s report demonstrates that arrears are lower under direct payments to landlords and supports our call for the Government to give all tenants on Universal Credit the ability to choose to have the housing element paid directly to their landlord.

“Many tenants feel more comfortable with managing their finances knowing that their rent is paid and it should be up to them to be free to make that decision.”