Quick News Updates

From today, leaseholders will no longer be required to have owned their property for a minimum period of two years before being able to make a statutory lease extension claim of a flat.

New Acres provides 1034 homes across 18 buildings next to Wandsworth Town Station, making it L&G’s largest Build to Rent (BTR) scheme to date.

Housing minister Matthew Pennycook yesterday signed regulations to remove the two-year ownership rule for leaseholders of flats and houses to extend their lease or buy their freehold.

Kieran Parker returned to his flat late one night to find the locks changed and his belongings later dumped outside the front door.

The Government is to effectively end the Right to Buy scheme by substantially tightening the eligibility criteria.

Tourism minister Chris Bryant says initial set-up work is now complete and that only ‘technical matters’ on how scheme will run need to be sorted out before a launch.

It has now gone to the House of Lords with the second reading scheduled for 4 February.  Read our report on the report and third reading debate:

Daniel McAfee of Lawhive, looks at the Renters’ Rights Bill and its potential to transform landlord-tenant dynamics.

Leading lettings expert and Past President of ARLA Propertymark, Maxine Fothergill outlines the changes and offers advice on how to prepare

The NRLA says the Government is taking away an assurance to landlords, that tenants can afford the rent ahead of a tenancy starting.

Councils will be given more power to force landlords to rent out vacant residential properties as part of the government’s English Devolution white paper.

New guidance from the Government reveals that councils will no longer have to seek Whitehall approval for selective licensing schemes of any size.

The tribunal has found in favour of a £250 fee for a mid-tenancy change of tenant.

The sentencing comes after a three-bedroom bungalow located in Egham, Surrey, was found to have been turned into a 15-room unlicensed HMO.

Find out more and a consultation:

After that date, physical documents will no longer be acceptable as evidence for Right to Rent verification.  However, there are serious concerns about the eVisa system.

Data collected from Councils shows that more than 100 authorities say that they have not prosecuted any landlords at all in half a decade.

Matthew Pennycook has made the promises within a statement within which he said commonhold will soon become ‘default’ tenure.

Regulations have been laid in the UK Parliament which means the reporting obligations will apply to all letting agency work and not just in relation to lettings where there is a monthly rent of €10,000 or more.

Nick Lyons shares some hard lessons from his nightmare experience of discovering a full-blown cannabis factory in one of his properties.

A Georgian oligarch’s daughter is suing vendor for £36m for moth ‘plague’ in home that was not disclosed.

The CIEH wants MPs to scrap the 24-hour notice period that councils must currently give to landlords before entering a rented property.

At this year’s National Residential Landlords Association 2024 Landlord Conference, he confirmed that he wants to work with landlords and does not want them to exit the market.

Three West Northants landlords have together been fined a total of £452,796 for a series of unlicensed and unsafe HMOs.

The CIEH, sponsoring the amendment, says licensing schemes should be put on a more permanent footing.

Up to one in seven rental homes owned by Prince William’s £1.3bn Duchy of Cornwall estate have F or G-rated EPCs

Safety information for consumers – and tenants!

Matthew Pennycook has committed to implementing the Regulation of Property Agents working group proposals that the Tories failed to implement.

Landlords face an ongoing buy-to-let investment challenge as a new report reveals that a third of all homes for sale in Britian have an EPC rating below a C.

Propertymark says members of the Welsh Parliament’s housing committee have agreed with many of its recommendations.

In an attempt to preserve social housing.

Many landlords, letting agents and tenants are unaware of the support available from local councils.

The Radix Big Tent Housing Commission urges the Government to stop treating landlords as the part of problem.

A property which lay empty for six years has been compulsorily purchased by Haringey in its drive to bring back empty homes into use.

A rogue landlord has been ordered to hand back nearly £34,000 to five tenants after failing to license his mouse-infested HMO.

Read our report on the debate.

Although this might be an issue with a limited life span, if the Renters’ Rights Bill comes into force in the first half of next year.

The Department of Energy and Net Zero is to launch a consultation

Recently published

Consultation will launch “as soon as possible”, according to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Minimum energy efficiency standards for private and social rented homes to be EPC rating C by 2030.

A summary of the measures in the Renters’ Rights Bill which was introduced to Parliament on 11 September 2024.

Stating “Landmark reforms to give greater security for 11 million renters”.

From Anthony Gold solicitors.

An Upper Tribunal appeal of a rent repayment order. Was Mr Kumar the direct landlord of the tenants?

More than 100 other council landlords teamed up at an event held in Westminster yesterday to jointly publish five solutions.

Nearly Legal Blog considers reports of poor standards at Labour MP and landlord Jas Athwal’s properties.

Grieving families say the cost of preserving the tower was emblematic of the fact that “nothing” was being done to offer closure to those affected.

The various ways in which you can provide information used for Local Housing Allowance and statistics on private rent levels.

Company taken to Tribunal for failing to register house as an HMO with Camden Council.