InventoryBase Blog

Scotland favours the landlord

More than four times as many English landlords are investing in Scottish buy-to-lets than six years ago. In 2012, just 260 new landlords from England registered deposits with SafeDeposits Scotland for rental properties. In 2017, this had increased to 1,388 new registrations. Already this year, the trend is continuing with an increase of 226% compared […]

May 7, 2018

Councils should have powers to seize homes from criminal landlords

Local authorities should have the power to seize homes from rogue or criminal landlords who are letting their tenants live in dangerous, damp or freezing conditions, a powerful parliamentary committee has proposed. The MPs said that better protection should be given to vulnerable tenants. They said these tenants are too scared to speak out about […]

May 4, 2018

New type of landlord is emerging

Landlords are getting younger, more professional and feeling optimistic, according to a new survey. New legislation, tax changes and stamp duty increases have brought a lot of changes to the private rental sector. This includes the type of landlord who has responded to these changes – and seen opportunities. A survey by Simple Landlords Insurance […]

May 3, 2018

Britain needs a thriving rental sector

Britain should shift its focus away from property ownership and look at ways to boost the rental sector instead, many housing experts argue. For many years, the UK has guided its housing policy towards home ownership. It was almost like a rite of passage that you grew up, found work and took out a mortgage. […]

Does bigger mean better in the buy-to-let sector?

The landscape of the rental sector in the UK is slowly shifting, with big investors and developers finding the market of interest here. Many people rent from small private landlords or the so-called accidental landlords, who are letting property as they don’t want to sell up. Now, corporations and landlords with impressive portfolios are providing […]

May 1, 2018

Meet the new rental kids on the block

Developers are reaching for the skies as they build purpose-built apartment blocks to meet the demands of tenants. The most impressive to date is the newly-built apartment block by Canadian company, UNCLE, which has 279 chic one and two-bedroom apartments in the 45-storey tower – officially the UK’s tallest apartment block for rentals. The aim […]

April 27, 2018

Can blockchain unblock property searches?

Proptech continues to redefine the way that properties are searched for, bought, sold and rented out. People can search for properties online, visit them virtually or via video, negotiate prices, draw up contracts and seal deals using their computers or smartphone apps. Trends in the past couple of years have included apps to organise your […]

April 26, 2018

Right to rent policy comes under fire

The government’s controversial Right to Rent policy, which has meant landlords acting as immigration officers, has systematically failed to achieve its objectives, according to David Bolt, who is the independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration. Landlords and associations connected to the rental industry slammed the policy as soon as it was announced, and now […]

New energy standards will cost landlords £420 million

Buy-to-let property investors could face a bill of £420 million between them to meet new energy standards, according to new research by the UK Green Building Council. With around 300,000 rental properties expected to be below the new standards, that works out at an average cost of £1,400 per property for works to bring it […]

April 25, 2018

Top spots to invest in buy-to-lets

While some commuter towns are faring poorly as buy-to-let investments, Colchester is top of the list of best places to invest in buy-to-lets. Its ranking is based on growth in capital value, volume of sales, and rental price, as well as rental yield. According to the latest LendInvest index, Colchester showed a 9.98% capital gain, […]

April 24, 2018

Council given new powers to fine landlords

Local authorities are being given even more powers to oversee licensed multiple occupancy homes, with fines of up to £30,000 for landlords found flouting the rules. From October, the new legislation will mean councils can set minimum bedroom sizes and introduce limits on the number of people who can occupy each bedroom in licensed HMOs. […]

April 23, 2018

Tenants prefer freedom of renting to home ownership

Home ownership is losing its appeal for many people in the UK, who prefer the freedom that renting offers. Whilst it’s true that many households cannot afford to buy because high property prices mean getting a mortgage is nigh-on impossible, others are making the lifestyle choice to rent. These are some of the findings from […]

April 20, 2018

Britain should be more like Germany in its rental sector

Britain’s attitude towards rental properties is very different to some of its European neighbours – and not in a positive way. Whilst many Britons have the mindset that buying your own property is a laudable ambition, it is not shared by their counterparts in Germany, for example. Now that the dream of home ownership is […]

April 19, 2018

Landlords taking the long-term view on buy-to-let investments

Tax hikes and changes in stamp duty, as well as increased rules and regulations, have meant that landlords, particularly those on tight profit margins, are seeking alternative investments. While some are selling up, others are taking a more long-term view of the situation. Many landlords are not unduly affected by many of the tax changes […]

April 17, 2018

Landlords need to be aware of buy-to-let mortgage changes

Around one in three buy-to-let investors is not aware of the regulatory changes which will affect buy-to-let mortgages if they are planning to borrow to invest in more properties or refinance existing ones. These changes to buy-to-let mortgages were brought in last September and make it harder for investors with four or more properties which […]

April 16, 2018

More housing to be built for tenants

More purpose-built homes are to be provided for tenants following the government agency Homes England’s announcement that it is putting further funds into the Real Estate Investment Trust to invest in much-needed new builds in the private rental sector. The PRS Real Estate Investment Trust raised £250 million when it was floated in May 2017 […]

April 13, 2018

Get ready for changes to energy-efficiency regulations

Many landlords are seemingly still unaware of the new minimum energy efficiency standards (MEES) which come into force on April 1 in England and Wales. Landlords who have older properties on their portfolios are more likely to be caught out, as newer homes are generally more energy efficient. Basically, any property with an Energy Performance […]

April 12, 2018

Tenants find it tough to raise money for rental deposits

Tenants apparently do not have enough money in savings to even pay for their rental deposit. New figures from Dlighted, which offers deposit-free renting, show landlords and letting agents across Britain are asking for £1,507 on average for a deposit in the larger cities. However, one in four families only has an average of £95 […]

April 11, 2018

New gas safety rules give landlords more flexibility

Similar to a car MOT, landlords will now be able to conduct gas checks up to two months ahead of time, while retaining the current renewal date. The aim of this change is to prevent landlords and letting agents falling foul of the law when they experience difficulties in arranging access to properties and the […]

April 10, 2018

InventoryBase Academy launches to provide training and continuous learning to inventory clerks and property managers

Industry leaders in Property Inspection Software, InventoryBase, to launch online training academy for Inventory Clerks and Letting Agents throughout the UK With a wealth of knowledge within the Lettings Industry – InventoryBase launch their online learning platform, ‘InventoryBase Academy’ this month. InventoryBase Academy is an online training portal, designed to provide guidance & training for […]

April 9, 2018

Property rental sector must adapt to technology to meet tenant demand

There has been a recent surge in the use of property technology for back-office processes in the housing industry, but it has been discovered that a surprisingly high number of landlords and letting agents are still using paper and spreadsheets to manage their properties. A recent report outlined just how vast the divide is between how […]

Landlords and agents must check their rental properties’ EPC Ratings

Investigating the EPC rating for a rental property is a generally simple process that can be completed by any landlord or agent online. Providing an Energy Performance Assessment was completed on the property within the last decade, the information is ready to be viewed on the MHCLG website (https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-housing-communities-and-local-government) EPC Assessments last for a ten […]

April 6, 2018

HMO licensing set for extension in October 2018

Housing Minister, Alok Sharma, has announced that mandatory HMO licensing will be extended, to be in place from 1st October 2018, once approved by Parliament. It has been over two years since the Government first consulted on the issue, and the Government is now seeking Parliamentary approval on regulations, and also hopes to implement rules […]

April 5, 2018

Private Landlords intend to increase rents

Prime Minister, Theresa May, has launched an amended National Planning Policy Framework, reiterating the importance of private landlords in the housing market. She claimed that the proposed planning rules would boost the building and development of new homes for rent. The Government’s current taxation policy for the private rental sector contradicts this. The Government brought […]

April 4, 2018

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