Shelter is asking Grant Shapps, the Housing Minister, to keep the Government’s promises in their Housing Strategy in November 2011: to ‘deal with rogue landlords’ and ‘tackle dangerous and poorly maintained homes’. Despite the Government’s assurances, Shelter says that rogue landlords are still cashing in on the high demand for rented homes, and trapping families…

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has published a report which reveals that most sale and rent back (SRB) transactions were either unaffordable or unsuitable, and should never have been sold. Firms in the SRB sector faced floods of complaints for offering last-chance below market value deals to home owners facing bankruptcy and repossession. The firms…

With the cold weather upon us, it is time to consider how to protect your buy to let investment against weather damage. If your property has a tenant in situ, you can begin by arranging a mutually convenient time to visit, and make checks both internally and externally. Pipes and tanks in the loft should…

Mydeposits have released a step-by-step checklist to help landlords and letting agents in disputes with their tenant over the return of a deposit. The checklist gives advice on what to do at all stages of a tenancy, in order to ensure that you have the right evidence available, should a dispute arise. Although formal disputes…

Orbit chief executive, Paul Tennant, has been elected as the new Vice-President of the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH), following a ballot by its members. His appointment follows a candidacy campaign against experienced interim manager, Jan Taranczuk. The election was held over a three week period in January, from Monday 9th January to Monday 30th…

A new tenancy deposit protection scheme for private sector landlords is being launched this week by the Tenancy Deposit Scheme, in association with the Residential Landlords Association. The TDS, which protects more deposits than any other scheme, has been primarily available to regulated letting agents. The new scheme, DepositGuard, is being marketed by the RLA,…

A recent study by Haart estate agents shows that Peterborough is the best place in England to invest in rental property. Their research investigated the average price of a property in different areas of England, both in terms of sales and lettings.  The best rental yields are achieved from 2 bedroom apartments in Peterborough, where…

Buying a house is now much cheaper than renting, according to mortgage lender Halifax, and the wheels of change may be beginning to turn in the housing market. Halifax calculates that the monthly cost of buying the average three-bed home in the UK is now £600.  To rent the same type of property would cost around…

As a landlord, you are legally responsible for the safety of your tenants in relation to gas safety. By law you must: Repair and maintain gas pipework, flues and appliances in safe condition Ensure an annual gas safety check on each appliance and flue (CP12) Keep a record of each safety check (for 2 years)…

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