Tenant referencing is becoming increasingly important for private rental sector landlords in the UK with a reported rise in tenants in severe arrears. In the first quarter of 2013 severe rent arrears rose by 4,000 to 94,000 and is the fourth highest figure on record, according to Paul Shamplina, founder of Landlord Action. “The highest…

One of our founders, Simon Fice, has had a baby boy! Luca James Richard Fice was born at 6.48 this morning, weighing in at 8lbs, 2 oz. Congratulations to Simon and his wife, Fiona, from all of the team at The Online Letting Agents

Housing benefit to be withdrawn for unemployed under-25s Young unemployed people will lose their housing benefit and jobseekers allowance entitlements, David Cameron announced. The party floated a similar idea in June 2012 but a Liberal Democrat veto stopped it in its tracks. The previous proposal was aimed at reducing public spending and would apply to all under-25s,…

Mark Prisk has been asked to leave, following a year in the position.  He announced on his Twitter account yesterday than he has been asked to ‘step aside’ Mr Prisk wrote: “Been asked to step aside from housing for a younger generation. Disappointing but it’s been a great eleven years on frontbencher.” Prior to taking over from…

The Association of Independent Inventory Clerks (AIIC) has warned that property owners are failing to protect themselves by not accurately recording the condition of a home at the start of a tenancy and not making it clear to tenants what constitutes a neutral colour. AIIC chair Pat Barber commented: “Lots of disputes are presented where…

As a landlord looking to rent out your property, chances are that you are looking to charge a realistic price mindful of what others in the area are asking for. If you are looking to get a bit more, you need to make your property more attractive to a larger group of prospects. One mean…

The UK buy-to-let market is currently thriving, however new research by AXA Business Insurance has revealed that thousands of UK landlords have left themselves and their tenants exposed through lack of adequate insurance protection and many have very little financial back up should the worst happen. Data from the AXA Business Insurance survey suggests that…

We are proud to announce that we have been selected to be finalists at this years landlord and letting awards for the categories of both Customer Service and Letting Agents.  Wish us luck!! The Online Letting Agents has been shortlisted as a finalist for 2012/13 in both the Letting Agent and Customer Service category of…

We are often asked how to value a property’s rental income potential. The quick and easy way to work out how much rent you can realistically charge for your property is to take a look at what everyone else is asking. Simply visit one of the major property portals, such as rightmove or zoopla, and…

HM Revenue & Customs has launched a campaign to encourage buy-to-let landlords to own up to unpaid tax on rental income. It is estimated that there is around £500m of lost tax from landlords with buy to let investment and holiday properties. The Let Property Campaign will run for 18 months and will offer discounted penalty…