Why allow pets in rented properties?
A loved pet is like a member of a family for many pet owners. Many tenants will happily pay extra for pet cleaning services at the end of their tenancy just so they can live with them.
We work with PetScore, which is a pet referencing agency. This means that pet owners can show their landlords and agents, their pets are well-behaved.
This means ‘sneaked in’ and ‘abandoned’ pets are minimised.
Did you know that on average, pet renters stay 28 months longer in a property! Want to find out more about PetScore? Check out www.petscore.com
Why allow pets in rented properties?
One of our co-founders, Boj, has been pushing himself to new boundaries. He has been challenging himself and throwing himself into new activities, he says:
'if you had asked me 2 years ago, I would be climbing up mountains, I would have thought you were mad! I am competitive by nature and I am looking forward to my next challenge!'
In this series of lockdowns, we have all been forced into unknown territories, and finding new activities and sports has been a helpful distraction for many. Just look at the amount of walkers! Research shows that connecting with nature allows better mindfulness, and it soothes an active mind.
Don't get caught out like this landlord!
The housing action group called ACORN has been making this landlord's life a misery.
The dispute involves Mrs Rafique’s refusal to return a £300 deposit to a woman who signed up for a room last December but then changed her mind.
The tenant enlisted the support of ACORN Sheffield. They initiated a systematic campaign against the landlord. One of these was:
An advent calendar, filled with notes demanding the return of the £300 deposit, was sent to Mrs Rafique, and neighbours have received leaflets describing her as a ‘dodgy landlord’.
The landlord claims ACORN has posted defamatory social media posts about the landlord and has left 46-year-old Mrs Rafique frightened to leave her house in Millhouse's as a result of a ‘campaign of intimidation’ which has included demonstrations outside her family home.
Government support for first time buyers
The housing action group called ACORN has been making this landlord's life a misery.
The dispute involves Mrs Rafique’s refusal to return a £300 deposit to a woman who signed up for a room last December but then changed her mind.
The tenant enlisted the support of ACORN Sheffield. They initiated a systematic campaign against the landlord. One of these was:
An advent calendar, filled with notes demanding the return of the £300 deposit, was sent to Mrs Rafique, and neighbours have received leaflets describing her as a ‘dodgy landlord’.
The landlord claims ACORN has posted defamatory social media posts about the landlord and has left 46-year-old Mrs Rafique frightened to leave her house in Millhouse's as a result of a ‘campaign of intimidation’ which has included demonstrations outside her family home.
Why do asking prices keep rising?
Courtesy of Rightmove
It might seem pretty odd to hear that house prices keep rising, especially during a global pandemic. But that’s exactly what we’re seeing right now, and this month, asking prices are at a record high in all countries and regions across Great Britain.
For the third consecutive month, the national average has been pushed to a record high of £336,073. You can find our latest House Price Index with more details here.
If you’re thinking of moving, all of this can feel pretty overwhelming. So we want to make sure you know why the housing market is so busy and what’s behind the price growth.
Why asking prices are rising
A record number of people are looking to move
The demand for homes is outstripping the number of properties available to buy. More than 180,000 new properties have been listed on Rightmove since the start of last month, but it’s still not enough to meet demand. Homes are selling faster than ever before, and not only that, a record number are being sold at or above asking price.
Countryside and coastal relocators
Lots of people are moving from more expensive city areas to the countryside or the coast. This is pushing up prices in towns and villages in the most in-demand regions, including Wales and the South West.
Our property expert Tim Bannister says: “Buyer demand is up by 44% in Wales, compared to a year ago, which is the highest increase of any part of Britain. Average prices are well below the national average, offering good value as well as beautiful rural and coastal surroundings.”
In the South West, homes are selling at the fastest rate ever recorded in England, with 28% of properties selling within a week of being listed on Rightmove.
You can find out what’s happening to asking prices in your region here.
Stamp duty savings
Stamp duty tax savings and record low interest rates have helped many to afford higher prices, so they can find a new home that suits their changing needs.
The temporary reduction of stamp duty tax rates in England and Northern Ireland has offered buyers a potential saving of up to £15,000, so many buyers are racing to move before the deadline. You can find out more about the stamp duty changes here.
Record low interest rates and 95% mortgages
Ultra-low interest rates have also helped more people to get on the property ladder, or to upsize to bigger and more expensive homes.
Also, a government-backed mortgage guarantee scheme launched in March, offering buyers with small deposits access to 95% mortgage loans. Many high loan-to-value mortgages were withdrawn by major high street lenders in the past year or so, but many have returned to offering 90% and 95% mortgage products.
What’s the forecast for the rest of the year?
At Rightmove, we track what’s happening to prices and levels of buyer demand before anyone else. A very early indication of demand is the number of people sending enquiries to estate agents, which is still up by almost 40% on the same period in 2019, despite the stamp duty holiday tapering out.
However, we are seeing early signs of the market cooling. The number of sales agreed is still growing, but available properties are in short supply.
Our property expert Tim Bannister says: “Higher prices combined with a lack of homes coming to market are reducing some buyers’ ability or desire to move, and while we expect the market to remain robust, there are early signs of a slackening in the incredible pace of activity that we’ve seen over the last year.
“This super-charged activity cannot go on forever, but we expect the market to remain vigorous for at least the remainder of the year.”
Right to Rent checks
Right to Rent changes came in on the 1st July, when landlords will need to start checking the immigration status of all adults before they let a property, regardless of their nationality.
EEA citizens and their family members now need immigration status in the UK, in the same way as other foreign nationals, and can’t rely on an EEA passport or national ID card to prove their right to rent.
Most will have applied to the EU Settlement Scheme and already have digital evidence of their UK immigration status.
The government has reassured landlords they won’t need to evict a tenant who doesn’t have settled status unless issued with a ‘Notice of letting to a disqualified person’ by the Home Office.
It has also confirmed that retrospective checks on existing EU, EEA or Swiss tenants won’t be required.
Discriminatory
But landlords will be held to be discriminatory if they only check people who they think are not UK citizens – all tenants must be checked regardless of their status.
Tenants with settled status can evidence their right to rent by sharing their immigration status digitally using the online Right to Rent service on GOV—UK, which includes their photograph and personal details. Landlords can also make hard copy checks using a newly updated property documents list.
During Covid, landlords have not had to inspect Right to Rent documentation or conduct checks face-to-face.
Full document checks had been due to return on 21st June but, following the government’s decision to delay the full suspension of Covid restrictions in England, this has now been extended until the end of August meaning that scanned or videoed documents are still acceptable
Do you think about your tenants?
There are many property investors and landlords out there. It is all great and well, to calculate yields and profits, but this will only happen in a traditional buy-to-let if you get the right tenant.
If your tenant is an afterthought and is part of a blockchain chain, what will this mean for your investment?
It will mean that they feel undervalued, uncared fo,r and will ultimately neglect your property. Issues with tenants can cause long-term grief, and all the yields we talk about will never come through.
We undertake Impact investment, and we are an ethical property management agency covering just South Yorkshire.
We provide tenancy support so your tenants stay in your property longer and you have fewer voids. We provide tenancy support to all our tenant, despite their backgrounds (we believe everyone deserves TLC - tender loving care). We have all suffered through Coronavirus long enough and even the hardiest of all has been affected by mental health.
We have a proven track record.
Being landlords and investors ourselves, we know what you are going through.
Interested? Give us a call on 07434 671465
We are not pushy salespeople and are always happy to have a chat
ICO registration
Landlords are being reminded by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) to check whether they need to register and pay a fee if they have not already done so.
The reminder comes as the ICO has announced they will be writing to the ‘real estate sector’ as part of a campaign to remind those in the sector that they may have a legal responsibility to register with the ICO and pay a fee.
As a landlord, you will hold a significant amount of personal data about tenants, guarantors and prospective tenants. As you are responsible for the collection and the use of this information, this makes you a ‘data controller’. It is the responsibility of the data controller to ensure that personal information is used in line with the principles of GDPR.
It is important that you identify any records which contain personal information and assess whether you are complying with the GDPR principles.
The ICO has also developed a self-assessment tool for people to use to check if they need to pay a fee, and the answers to some frequently asked questions can also be read on the ICO website - link in comments.
Make sure you check this out - it applies to Deal Sourcer's as well as landlords and ensure your legally compliant.
What our tenants say about My Landlord Cares
Erick Daniel had been a tenant with us for 3 years. When he needed to move (due to work) he referred his friends to us. He is not the exception but the norm.
Did you know? 80% of our tenants recommend the next tenants to us. This is not just a COVID-related stat, but one that has been consistent throughout the years we have been landlords.
Erick was ace, and we managed issues very quickly; we even helped him get settled by helping him move furniture in. He personally recommended his friends and became their guarantor; there is no better recommendation.
Erick has since been back in touch, he wants us to be his landlords again! All our properties are full, and we need more landlords to work with us in South Yorkshire.
We love the people side of things to properties, by combining great customer service, we can get landlords the best returns on their investments and increase social value.
We can minimise voids by providing great service, and our tenants are more likely to look after your house! What more does a landlord want?
Need help? Drop us a message or email info@mylandlordcares.co.uk
EU tenants post Brexit
EU Settled status rules have come into effect, and if you have tenants from Eastern European backgrounds, you may be worried about Right to Rent checks. If you don’t comply,y there are fines of up to £3k.
As of 1st July, if a tenant can’t produce evidence of their continued right to rent, landlords must make a report to the Home Office to maintain their statutory excuse – or face a civil penalty. If a tenant can’t produce any documents or have an appeal, landlords need to request a Right to Rent check from the Landlord Checking service. If the response is positive, this document will establish a statutory excuse, and if this is negative, landlords will need to make a report to Home Office.
Remember you can get an unlimited fine or be sent to prison for renting your property to someone who is not allowed to stay in the UK for more information check out https://www.gov.uk/check-tenant-right-to-rent-documents/how-to-check
There are three steps involved in establishing and maintaining a statutory excuse against liability for a civil penalty:
1. Conduct initial right to rent checks before authorising an adult to occupy rented accommodation
2. Conduct follow-up checks at the appropriate date if initial checks indicate that an occupier has a time-limited right to rent,
3. Make a report to the Home Office if follow-up checks indicate that an occupier no longer has the right to rent.
Following the introduction of ‘The Immigration (Residential Accommodation) (Prescribed Requirements and Codes of Practice) (Amendment) Order 2020’, landlords can conduct a Home Office online right to rent check to establish a statutory excuse against a civil penalty. Landlords can do this by accessing the Home Office online right to rent checking service ‘Check a tenant’s right to rent’ on GOV.UK. Not all prospective tenants, or tenants, will have an immigration status that can be checked online. The online service will be available on GOV.UK from 25 November. Currently, the Home Office online checking service supports checks in respect of those who hold:
• a current biometric residence permit;
• a current biometric residence card; or
• status issued under the EU Settlement Scheme
• status under the points-based immigration system
While the landlord may choose to encourage use of the Home Office online checking service and may support individuals in doing so (e.g. by providing access to hardware and the internet), they are not permitted to mandate online checks. If an individual does not wish to demonstrate their right to rent using the Home Office online checking service, even if their immigration status or documentation is compatible with the service, the landlord should conduct the manual check.
The service works based on the prospective tenant first viewing their own Home Office right to rent record by using the ‘Prove your right to rent to a landlord’ service. They may then choose to share this information with the landlord by providing them with a ‘share code’, which, when entered along with the individual’s date of birth, enables the landlord to access the information. The prospective tenant or tenant may provide this to the landlord directly, or they may choose to send this via the service, in which case the landlord will receive an email from right.to.rent.service@notifications.service.gov.uk.
Landlords must access the service using the landlords page on GOV.UK, entitled ‘Check a tenant’s right to rent’ in order to obtain a statutory excuse. It is not sufficient to view the information provided to the tenant, or prospective tenant, when they view their profile using the tenant’s part of the Home Office online right to rent checking service. Just doing this will not provide the landlord with a statutory excuse.
We know this is all complicated but get in touch with us to make sense of it all www.mylandlordcares.co.uk