Nottingham Letting Agent Property Blog

Latest statistics from the government show the number of repossessions rose during the last quarter, increasing by more than 5% annually to reach 142,088. Significantly, some 25% of courts processing claims by landlords and letting agents, and which resulted in an order for possession have increased by 20% compared to last year. Areas seeing the highest increases in repossessions include the South East and East. Chelmsford has been the worst affected, with an increase of 65%, with Ilford seeing an increase of 36%. With statistics like these it is hardly surprising that one of the biggest fears of private landlords is...

The buy to let market is still being forecast to grow, with more landlords adding to their portfolios, while growing numbers of first-time investors are predicted to enter the market. According to a survey from buy to let specialists, Paragon, first-time investor’s account for 23% of all buy to let business. Some 39% of their business came from existing landlords, and 31% was due to remortgages, demonstrating their confidence in the market The news comes as first-time buyers continued to struggle to get mortgages, and increasing numbers of lenders cut back on cut-price loans.During the first three months of this year...

A nationwide survey has found 54% of landlords think deposit schemes favour tenants, and 35% think neither party benefits from the scheme. Letting agents agree with this assessment with just 20% thinking schemes favour landlords, while 52% think they favour tenants. Some 22% thought the deposit schemes didn't favour either the party. New rulings mean landlords have to register a tenancy deposit with a recognised scheme within 30 days; otherwise they'll face fines of up to 3 times the amount of the deposit. Anyone incurring such a penalty will be unable to evict tenants using a section 21 notice until the...

An article by the Association of Residential Letting Agents has highlighted the changes recently made to HSE Legislation regarding the private rental sector. The recent changes mean that all owners of private residential rental property, and who are responsible for the water systems in the premises must now have a Legionnaires' risk assessment carried out. Many landlords are already aware of this responsibility, but others may not know about these changes.Legionella is a bacterium which is commonly found in rivers and lakes and artificial water systems. Whenever you hear about an outbreak of Legionnaires ’ disease it's usually in larger facilities...

Property prices have risen by 4.9% since the beginning of the year, and according to Rightmove this is the largest Q1 increase since 2004. House prices increased by an average of 1.6% in March to reach £236,939. Prices rose in the majority of England and Wales, with East Anglia enjoying the largest monthly increase of 3.9%, while Yorkshire and Humberside saw prices increase by 3.3%. There was also a 16% increase in the number of people looking for a new property, and experts are hopeful this year could see a more robust property market.However there are still concerns that this jump...

A new survey by the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA), suggests the number of long distance landlords in the private rental sector is increasing, and the trend is especially prevalent in the capital and Scotland. ARLA thinks this trend is likely to continue as more owners may be forced to, or will choose to rent out property when moving to another part of the country. There is also an increasing trend for parents who have bought a property for their children to use while at university, to continue renting it out after the child has graduated.ARLA points out that being...

Accidental landlords are being warned to tell lenders about that change of circumstances as otherwise they could be breaching the terms of their contract. These are landlords who have been forced to rent out their home due to the stagnant property market. The trouble is that some lenders are taking advantage of the situation and are putting householders onto more expensive buy to let mortgage rates. Policies can vary from bank to bank, but most will charge a slightly more expensive rate. Before the financial crisis things were a lot more relaxed and most banks were reasonably happy over allowing householders...

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors is urging landlords to be cautious when buying older properties, and to arrange a full survey so they know exactly what they are letting themselves in for. It can be quite tricky finding the perfect buy to let property, especially as there aren't that many homes on the market, and many landlords are choosing to buy properties which need work. The trouble is that many of these older properties could need substantial work to make them suitable for rent, and typical structural faults could include fractured support beams and subsidence, dry rot, rising damp and...

The government originally set up an emergency bank to oversee mortgages from Bradford & Bingley and Northern Rock, but it's being alleged that this bank is treating landlords unfairly. UK Asset Resolution is apparently being somewhat heavy-handed, and this is leading to tenant evictions and the sale of properties at below market value. The bank’s purpose is to wind down £77 billion worth of mortgages which it took on when Northern Rock and Bradford & Bingley failed, with the aim of reclaiming as much of the money used in bailouts as possible. This might seem laudable but there are claims the...

It’s good news for landlords and letting agents in Nottingham, as a recent survey by FindaProperty has found more people are becoming comfortable with the prospect of renting a home for the longer term. Their research found that 38% think owning a property isn't that critical, while 26% said they had no problem with renting a home long-term. Around 50% don't expect to buy a property until they reach middle age.Although rental rates increased substantially in many parts of the country over the last year or so, just 54% of those surveyed regarded owning their own property as being important. While...

According to an insurance company, the number of fraudulent tenants could be increasing. Apparently more potential tenants are filling out application forms fraudulently, and have no intention of continuing to pay the rent as they are constantly moving from property to property. Such tenants often give false information as to their previous address to try to prevent letting agents and referencing companies from tracking them down. Unfortunately these types of people also seem to have substantial knowledge of the legal system which makes it very difficult to evict them quickly.Anyone thinking of letting out a property is advised to have a...

Last year HM Revenue & Customs set up a task force to target tax evasion amongst landlords and small businesses. This task force initially focused on the North-West of England and North Wales, but it looks likely that it will expand to the rest of the country. Apparently HMRC is taking on around 90 new members of staff to help conduct these investigations so many more small business owners can expect a knock on the door.The purpose of the spot checks is to ensure records are being kept correctly and that they back up tax returns. Anyone found to be keeping...

Research carried out by the Association of Residential Lettings Agents (ARLA) shows an increase in the number of people being forced to rent out their homes in certain parts of the UK as they are unable to sell them. A survey carried out during the third quarter of last year showed that 47% of ARLA member agents had seen an increase in the number of reluctant landlords who have been forced to turn to the private rental sector, either because they are able to sell their property or because they are reluctant to sell at current prices. At the beginning of...

It's the New Year and price predictions for 2012 show property in London faring the best while the rest of the country is expected to suffer price falls. Unsurprisingly the North is expected to suffer the worst price falls as these areas are more likely to be dependent upon the public sector for employment. Knight Frank is predicting prices could fall by up to 6% in northern England and Scotland, while property prices in London could rise by up to 5% during 2012. Savills predictions are a little more favourable, showing price falls of up to 4% for property outside London...

If you are currently trying to rent out your property you might have noticed that things are a little slower at the moment, and this fact is borne out by research which shows this time of year generally suffers from a market slowdown as people concentrate on festivities rather than searching for a new home. According to Findaproperty.com, rental prices dropped by 1.5% last month, and look set to fall again until the New Year is underway. Earlier on in the year rental prices reached new highs at £890 a month for an average sized property, equivalent to half the average monthly...

It’s the sort of figure most landlords can only dream of, as according to the Daily Mail, Pamela Anderson is renting out her Malibu beachfront house for an incredible $75,000 a month. Apparently Pamela is renting out a home as she is spending much of her time in her native Canada, but she is well known to have had debt problems in the past, not least for building this home, and at one point owed more than $1 million to construction companies which she claimed was down to disputes over work completed.Whatever the real story it's certainly a stunning property as...

A new report from Connells showed the number of valuations carried out last month increased by more than a third compared to August, and during the third quarter there were 11% more valuations than during the second quarter. If these figures are assessed annually, they appear far more impressive as the annual growth was 63% compared to September 2010, although during that month mortgage lending was at its lowest level since 2000.According to Connells the mortgage market has improved over the past few months in spite of continuing economic troubles, and it expects the remainder of the year to prove reasonably...

It looks as if the buy to let mortgage boom could finally be coming to an end as banks have canned dozens of cheap loans, and around 50 buy to let mortgage deals have vanished recently, just when many investors are looking to increase their portfolios due to continuing strong demand for rental property.There were over 2,600 mortgages granted each week to landlords between April and June, and there are now around 1.3 million buy to let loans which is a new high. However large mortgage lenders are now withdrawing their best rates, as last week the Post Office withdrew its...

A recent survey by Findaproperty.com found that many would-be tenants are facing problems over their four-legged friends. According to the survey one in six pet owners has been turned down by a landlord because they own a pet, while another 5% have had their deposit withheld. Just 2% have been evicted over ownership of a pet, but another 13% have broken the rules and kept an animal even though it isn't allowed.However some have been forced to give up their furry friends and Battersea Dogs and Cats home have reported an influx of animals from owners suffering from housing problems. Some...

The property market has changed substantially over the last couple of years or so, and whereas in the past people would expect to be able to sell and buy a new property on the same day, nowadays many are finding this somewhat tricky to achieve. Increasing numbers are choosing to look for short-term rental accommodation, rather than lose a sale. Buyers are often able to dictate the terms, and many more are changing their minds at the last moment and pulling out. A recent report by a conveyancer found that one in three property sales fell through during the first six...