A pair of letting agents have been expelled from the industry by the Property Ombudsman (TPO). Isleworth company Madisons had mishandled the deposits from tenants, while it was also guilty of failing to pass on rents to landlords. Torbay Residential Lettings of Torquay broke a number of TPO regulations, including the one stating that all [...]
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Letting Agents expelled from industry
Online Letting Boom amongst the gloom!
Landlords and tenants, what do you think of 2011 so far? After the festive period, January and February can be a pretty depressing time for everyone. New Year’s resolutions can often go by the wayside after a couple of visits to the gym while anything we’ve decided to abstain from such as chocolate or ‘drink’ [...]
Agent fined for letting property without HMO licence
A Nottingham letting agent has claimed that a clerical error was behind a failure to obtain a licence for a student property. Thomas James Lettings was handed a £6,400 fine and told to pay £3,932 in costs after it did not apply for a housing of multiple occupancy (HMO) licence for a home in Lenton, [...]
LHA Tenants should be given the choice to pay the landlord direct
Tenants should be given the option to make Local Housing Allowance (LHA) payments directly to their landlord. According to the National Landlords Association (NLA), the government has already promised to tackle this problem, with rent arrears waste totalling millions of pounds. Public affairs officer at the NLA Vincenzo Rampulla stated that it would be an [...]
“No more red tape” for Letting Agents or Landlords says Shapps
Housing minister Grant Shapps will not license either letting agents or private landlords, promising them ‘no more red tape’. Speaking in Parliament, Shapps said the private rented sector was already governed by a well-established legal framework and that the Government has no plans to introduce any further regulations. The announcement delighted landlord organisations, but both [...]
Rents on the rise
he amount of money letting agents receive in rents is beginning to increase, according to new research. According to the latest buy-to-let index from LSL Property Services, rents in England and Wales rose to an average of £658 per month in February. This is an increase of 0.3 per cent from the previous month. David [...]
TDS price hike for Letting Agents
Letting agents will find out the full extent of a price increase in their subscriptions to the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS) this week. Eddie Hooker, chief executive of pay-as-you-go deposit protection scheme mydeposits.co.uk, said the 23 per cent price increase had raised eyebrows among letting agents. He said: “I believe this new two-fee instalment model, [...]
Office of Fair Trading welcomes ruling over unfair Foxtons terms
Hopefully, landlords will be able to breathe a sigh of relief when it comes to tenancy renewal fees charged by Letting Agents. In a recent legal case brought against Foxtons Ltd by the Office of Fair Trading under the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999 (UTCCRs), it was ruled by the High Court that [...]
Overseas landlord – how do I manage my rental property?
According to the Office of National Statistics, every year, over 200,000 of us Brits choose another life abroad and with an outlook for 2009 looking pretty grim, don’t be surprised if the next set of statistics looks even higher. The big question is, “what do we do with our house when we move abroad?” Traditionally, [...]
Rightmove shares sold by Connells
The Estate Agent Today have written an interesting article on the sale of Rightmove shares by one of the Nation’s largest estate agency chains, Connells. The revelation came only 12 hours after Rightmove announced that it has renewed its agreement with Connells, for it to continue listing on the portal until 2012. Connells, one of [...]
Online Letting Agents
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Landlords, protect your pipes from freezing
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My tenant has stopped paying rent, what should I do?
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Is a tenancy agreement legally binding if it is not in writing?
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Tenants on Housing Benefit are turning to Private Landlords
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Office of Fair Trading welcomes ruling over unfair Foxtons terms
