Universal Credit – Benefit Payments To Be Made Directly To Landlords In Scotland
Earlier this month the Scottish Social Security Minister Jeane Freeman MSP announced that people in receipt of Universal Credit will have the choice of making the housing element directly payable to their landlord. The measure will be available to both tenants who let property from private landlords and those in social housing. Furthermore, new applicants […]
Police hunt AirBnB tenant who posed as landlord to fleece victim of £1,600
A man is being sought by police in connection with an Airbnb rental scam in London. Detectives say the victim was conned out of £1,600 after responding to a listing on the Gumtree website for a property to let in Dulwich. The man was shown around the property in Clive Road on September 18 last […]
Can the landlord forfeit the deposit if he agrees to let the tenants leave early?
From the Landlord Law Blog This is a question to the blog clinic from Simon (not his real name) who is a tenant. I have been renting a flat with minimum 6 months contract with private landlord. Unfortunately I had some family issues(we have all proofs like medical papers and death certificates or the […]
Lenders Should Support Longer Tenancies
Lenders are being called upon by landlords to support longer term tenancies, following a refute from the Council of Mortgage Lenders regarding political criticism over tenancy length. In December, Conservative MP and former property lawyer Will Quince had argued that the CML contributed towards blocking tenancies of over a year long. He said: ‘The stumbling […]
Buy-to-let rates set to rise
Buy-to-let mortgage rates were largely unaffected by a sharp increase in swap rates in the final quarter of 2016, but this is unlikely to remain the case in 2017, as higher rates are eventually passed on to buy-to-let landlords, a leading mortgage exert has predicted. The Q4 2016 results of Mortgages for Business’ Buy to […]
Tougher times ahead for buy-to-let investors
If 2016 was the year the government decided to act decisively against buy-to-let (BTL) property investment, it ended with indications that the death of the BTL market had been greatly exaggerated. In his swan song as chancellor, George Osborne slapped 3 per cent additional stamp duty on properties bought for investment, on top of the […]
Housing benefit claimants increasingly shut out of private rental market
Campaigners say growing instances of ‘No DSS’ are problematic. It used to be “No blacks, no Irish, no dogs”, now it’s “No DSS, no pets, no children”. Check out the rental listings on websites such as Rightmove, or press your nose against the window of your local lettings agent, and you will often see “No […]
Landlords warned of dangers of ignoring new electrical regulations.
A property management firm has urged Scottish landlords to take electrical safety legislation seriously. Ross and Liddell says that landlords who fail to comply with changes to the Housing (Scotland) Act 2014 could seriously endanger the lives of their tenants. Private landlords operating in Scotland are now responsible for ensuring that electrical safety inspections are […]
What Are The Main Legal Responsibilities For Landlords?
There are around 150 laws now that apply to a landlord when they come to let a property. Here we highlight some of the key areas of legal responsibilities that landlords must adhere to in order to let their property. Gas safety Landlords are legally responsible for the gas safety of their properties. They must […]
Government announces consultation on lettings fee ban
During a debate in the House of Lords this morning, it was made known that the consultation on the ban on letting fees charged to tenants will be in March/April. Baroness Grender, who introduced the Renters’ Rights Bill, tabled a question asking about the “steps to implement a ban on lettings fees announced in the […]