An Edinburgh landlord has lost possession of his two properties in a case that has been described by a Scottish newspaper as a ‘first of its kind’. Following a recent court case, the local authority is now in charge of the properties and will act as temporary landlord for the next twelve months.

Anti-social Behaviour and Rowdy Tenants
The so-called ‘party flats’ in Grove Street, Edinburgh, have been the subject of numerous complaints about anti-social behaviour and noise for months. The landlord had been renting them out to stag and hen parties and was charging £800 per flat for revellers to stay there for two nights. Unfortunately the flats are located in a quiet residential area and local people were not amused at being woken up every night by the sound of shrieks and rowdy behaviour.

Council Enforcement Notices Ignored
Despite being slapped with several enforcement notices, the landlord failed to see the error of his ways. He was eventually caught out when council officials posed as stag and hen organisers. Once they had enough evidence, he was taken to court and the council’s application for a management control order was approved. It hasn’t been decided exactly what responsibilities the council will have over the two properties, but they have assured local residents that stag and hen parties will no longer be welcome. Existing bookings may still be honoured, but this won’t include large groups.

A spokesman for Edinburgh Council was quoted as saying: “I hope this court ruling sends out a clear message to landlords.”

The numbers of people renting instead of buying has never been higher, but with reports of landlords and letting agents placing unnecessary restrictions on tenants, according to the Guardian, many of them are not taking this lying down. All over the country, tenants are joining forces and going on the warpath in an attempt to restore the balance of justice in their favour.

The Rise of Tenants’ Groups
The cost of renting homes in the UK is now at an all-time high. The average tenant pays more than £750 per month. Yet despite this many tenants are being forced to pay unfair fees and live in badly maintained properties run by rogue landlords. As a result it is hardly surprising that tenants feel the need to set up support groups and campaign against unfair fees and retaliatory evictions.

Landlord Ratings
One such group is called the Tenants’ Voice—its members are people who came together to share their experiences of the letting industry, both good and bad. The group is still in its infancy, but already they have a huge following on Facebook and are planning a ‘trip advisor’ style ratings website where tenants can leave feedback about landlords and letting agents.

Tenants’ Coalition
And they are not alone: there are other tenants’ groups springing up all over the UK where tenants in the same area have formed a coalition in order to seek redress against rip-off letting agents and dodgy landlords. As an individual, their voice was faint, but as a group, they are able to wield a lot more power.

Landlords: how do you feel about tenants’ groups? Let us know in the comments.

When the bedroom tax was first introduced, lots of housing charities were up in arms. They said that the controversial tax would cause enormous hardship to vulnerable families living in rental accommodation. Anyone in receipt of Housing Benefit who had a spare room would be affected by the changes and some families stood to lose up to £100 per week from their Housing Benefit, which is a not inconsiderable amount in these tough times.

Benefits Claimants Back to Work
The whole point of the so-called Bedroom Tax was to give people an incentive to go back to work. Well in this instance it seems to have worked because according to the Daily Mail today, a recent survey undertaken by a Tory councillor has revealed that 11% of benefits claimants in areas governed by a Tory council have stopped claiming benefits.

Work Really Does Pay
Instead of enjoying a lifestyle funded by the state, these people have taken the decision that work really does pay. However, there does appear to be a wide variance across different areas of the UK. For example, in Tower Hamlets, London, 32% of Housing Benefit claimants came off benefits whereas in Liverpool only 2.5% decided to look for work.

Labour Pledges to Reintroduce the Subsidy
So despite the claims from housing charities and the opposition, it would appear that a lot of hard up families have chosen to get a job rather than lose their more spacious rented home. But if Labour comes back into power, they have pledged to reintroduce subsidy (although how they intend to fund this remains unclear).

Landlords – let us know if the bedroom tax has affected you and your tenants!

On Wednesday the government announced plans for a crackdown on rogue landlords
who harass and rip off their tenants.

The Government Plans to Protect Tenants
Letting agents will be forced to join a redress scheme so that disgruntled
tenants are able to complain about poor service and hidden fees. And if the
complaints are subsequently upheld, they will then be able to claim
compensation.

Hitting Rogue Landlords Where It Hurts
Landlords in the private sector will also be affected by the government’s
plans to protect tenants living in rental accommodation. Plans are being drawn
up to introduce a code of practice for private landlords, which will lay out a
series of minimum standards landlords are expected to reach. The details have
yet to be finalised, but it is possible that landlords who let out sub-
standard properties may be required to repay rent if a property is found to be
dangerous. Landlords may also be asked to repay Housing Benefit.

Eric Pickles Speaks
As part of a statement published on Wednesday in the Independent, Eric
Pickles, the government’s Communities Secretary, said was quoted as saying:

“This Government is on the side of hard-working people and the last thing we
want to do is hurt tenants and kill investment by increasing costs and
strangling the sector with red tape. But tenants deserve better value for
money and dodgy landlords should be under no illusion they can provide a
shoddy service with impunity.”

The government hopes that these reforms will improve the private rental sector
by driving up standards and pushing out the rogue landlords.

One Lincolnshire council is hoping that the introduction of a new landlord
licensing scheme will help to reduce the number of incidents of anti social
behaviour in rental properties.

Antisocial Behaviour and Criminal Landlords in Boston 
Anti social behaviour and problem tenants are a real problem in Boston,
Lincolnshire. Figures indicate that there are around one and a half more
recorded incidents in Boston than anywhere else in Lincolnshire, which is why
the council is determined to deal with the issue. A lot of the incidents
originate in HMOs where larger properties have been sub-divided up into small
bedsits. If a responsible landlord does not properly manage the property
properly, noise and excessive rubbish soon become a problem for people living
in the same neighbourhood.

Annual Licensing Scheme for Landlords
Boston Borough Council believes that there is a strong link between antisocial
behaviour and poor property management. By regulating landlords through an
annual licensing scheme, the council thinks that rogue landlords will be
driven out of the city and the number of nuisance tenants in residence will
fall. Landlords will be charged £490 per year. The license fee for HMOs will
be higher at around £800 per year.

The Misery caused by Bad Tenants
Noisy and irresponsible tenants can cause untold misery for their neighbours.
Quite often problems get worse over time when landlords fail to step in and
deal with problems early on. As a result, the council is warning bad landlords
that their properties will be blacklisted if they don’t come up to scratch.

National Trust properties are eagerly sought after by more discerning tenants,
but according to a recent BBC report, increasing numbers of tenants are
unhappy at the treatment being meted out by their National Trust landlord.

Short Term Contracts
Pretty stone cottages and historic farmhouses in idyllic locations are a dream
home for many people but, unfortunately, an awful lot of these people are not
getting a fair deal.

The problem many National Trust tenants have is the lack of security caused by
short-term tenancy agreements. The government has recognised this as being an
issue in the private sector and introduced changes in its new ‘Tenants’
Charter’. Tenants can request longer tenancies, but only as long as the
landlord agrees. Unfortunately, many disgruntled National Trust tenants are
being moved on unreasonably early, despite being given assurances at the
beginning of their tenancy that they would be allowed to stay long term.

Busy TANT Helpline
The Tenants Association of the National Trust (TANT) has a helpline for
tenants. It is reporting a growing number of issues related to tenancy
disputes, bodged repairs and rising rents. One family were told that as long
as they were ‘good tenants’ a long-term tenancy in their National Trust
property would be no problem at all. So they spent money on the place—new
kitchen and flooring—only to be told their tenancy would not be renewed after
twelve months and they had to move out. The family are understandably
devastated.

Sadly, it would appear that although the National Trust is great at conserving
historic buildings, it isn’t so great at being a caring landlord.

When the government first revealed plans to make UK landlords responsible for checking the immigration status of tenants, there was a largely negative response from many quarters. Unfortunately, the proposals look set to become a reality by next year.

Unhappy Landlords
The RLA carried out a study amongst its members and found that an overwhelming majority (82%) were deeply unhappy about being asked to verify whether potential tenants are allowed to be in the country. Most felt that such a proposal would be very damaging to landlord-tenant relationships. The NLA also expressed a great deal of concern about the proposals.

Passport Controls
The final details have not yet been established, but the RLA says that landlords will probably be expected to check tenants’ passports and keep a copy of it on file. However, one of the fundamental problems with this proposal is that not everyone has a passport. Many poorer people living on benefits can’t afford to apply for a passport let alone travel abroad, so the situation becomes a lot more problematic. As such, the RLA are very critical of the government’s plans to deal with the immigration problem.

“For a Government committed to reducing the burden of red tape it is ironic that they are now seeking to impose a significant extra burden on landlords making them scapegoats for the UK Border Agency’s failings.”

Government Support for Landlords
The government is expected to provide some support for landlords to help them achieve compliance. This is likely to include a telephone support line and email service, plus a fast-track option so migrants can obtain the necessary documentation for landlords.

Recent figures released by property website, Zoopla, show some interesting
patterns in student property lets. The data took the average asking prices for
four-bedroom homes in popular student towns and cities and compared these
figures with the average student rents in the same area. The end result is the
gross yield, which tells us what landlords can expect to earn from student
properties.

Gross Rental Yields

You might be forgiven for thinking that student landlords down south would be
achieving the best gross yields on their properties, but in fact the opposite
is true. The top three areas are actually up north:

1. Glasgow – 4.95%

2. Hull – 4.80%

3. Manchester – 4.59%

London is only number 10 on the list, despite the high numbers of students
living in the capital, which contradicts previous research carried out by
different property firms.

Why Are Rental Yields Higher Up North?

The most obvious reason for the significant north-south divide is down to
property prices. The property market has remained fairly stagnant in many
northern cities whereas property prices are soaring in London and the
southeast. This, combined with the increase in demand for rental properties,
has had a big effect on average gross rental yield.

Why Let to Students?

Student investment properties are not as lucrative as some other types of
rentals, but they do have a number of advantages. Students are a steady source
of income and as long as you buy a property in a popular area, you won’t ever
be short of tenants. Students are also more likely to pay their rent up front
—sometimes up to a year in advance.

Landlords are being warned to watch out for councils adding on illegal charges
for HMO licences. HMO and tenancy deposit lawyers are concerned that some
local authorities are illegally charging landlords with HMOs extra fees for
administration costs and inspections when all they are allowed by law to
charge is the cost of the actual HMO licence.

Widespread Problem

Councils are not averse to adding on extra fees wherever they can get away
with it, as a recent High Court case has proven. A group of shop owners
objected to being charged extra fees that were not related to their original
licence application. Thankfully for landlords, the ruling from that case also
affects them, so if you have recently received a bill from your local
authority in respect of an HMO licence application, you should look at it
carefully.

Property Tribunal Decision

Oxford City Council has already had a go at illegally charging landlords extra
fees. One landlord in the city was so incensed at being asked to pay a licence
fee variation charges that he consulted a lawyer. The lawyer tried to recover
the fees from the council, but they refused to backtrack. So the lawyer took
matters further and the case was heard in front of a Residential Property
Tribunal. The landlord won and the council was informed that their fees were
illegal.

Unlawful Fees

So if you were charged any extra fees when you applied for a licence from your
local council in order to operate an HMO property, the charges may be
unlawful.

The government made an announcement yesterday regarding a new code of conduct
for landlords and tenants. Speaking at the Conservative Party conference in
Manchester, Communities Secretary, Eric Pickles, unveiled the new ‘Tenants’
Charter’.

Raising Standards in the Private Sector

The Tenants’ Charter has been designed to encourage long-term, family friendly
tenancies in the private rental sector. Mr Pickles believes that the new
government reforms will help tenants get a better deal when renting a home in
the private sector. A model tenancy agreement has been drawn up to help
landlords, which is designed to set a benchmark within the industry.

What’s Included in the Tenant’s Charter?

Tenants can request a longer tenancy as long as the landlord agrees. The new
tenancy agreements will include a probation period and break clauses so both
parties have the option to end the tenancy early. This will help reduce costs:
landlords won’t have to pay letting agents for renewing contracts as
frequently. The Tenants’ Charter will also give tenants better information
about their tenancies and where to go if something goes wrong.

Helping Hard Working People in the UK

Mr Pickles says the new initiatives will help hard working families budget
better for the cost of living, as well as ridding the sector of rogue
landlords.

“The last thing we want to do is hurt hard-working tenants by increasing costs
and strangling the sector with red tape. But families deserve stability for
their children, and all tenants deserve a good and transparent service from
their landlords and lettings agents.”