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The number of cohabiting couples (not married or in a civil-partnership) submitting joint mortgage applications in 2020 rose by 60% compared to 2019.
As house prices continue to rocket, buying a first home is more challenging than ever. Small wonder that many first-time buyers are choosing to buy with family or friends.
Buying a home with someone else means making legally-binding choices. There are options when structuring the joint ownership of a property. Making the wrong choice could lead to costly problems if you decide to separate, sell the property or remortgage.
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The Government guidance on the new Rental Mediation Service for landlords and tenants undergoing possession proceedings has been updated.
This service was piloted in February to provide support for landlords and tenants affected by the covid 19 pandemics. The purpose of the scheme is to avoid evictions due to rent arrears wherever possible and also to negate the need for face-to-face court hearings.
This service will be free to use for both landlords and tenants.
Under the initiative, landlords and tenants will work with a trained, neutral mediator, independent from HM Courts and Tribunals Service. The mediator will help to identify issues and will try to agree a suitable resolution.
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Breathing space for tenants
On the 4th May 2021 the Debt Respite Scheme (Breathing Space Moratorium and Mental Health Crisis Moratorium) (England and Wales) Regulations 2020 - which will be more commonly known as breathing space, came into effect.
This new piece of legislation includes debts accrued before or after 4th May 2021, enabling a person who is in debt to seek a temporary suspension of any action being taking against them.
It is paramount for landlords and professionals working in the property industry to have an understanding of this legislation, as the debts covered under the debt respite scheme include mortgage & rent arrears.
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As a sale agent, I have recently been asked on many occasions by buyers, "Does the property have EWS1 (External Wall System) Cert?" and often, I find the answer to that question is a NO. This then creates a headache for the home seller and agent. However, when looking at the RICS guidance, most properties will not require one yet; the issue is coming from the lenders themselves who have strict criteria's different from the guidance set out by RICS. Let us look at the guidelines.
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Due to the volume of new legislation that has been drafted by the government within the property sector over the past year or two, you could perhaps be forgiven for not being up to date on the various changes. However, one piece of legislation which could prove to be extremely costly for those unaware, is the fact that tenants can now take landlords to court to seek compensation for disrepairs. In addition to compensation being payable, If the claimant is successful landlords will also have to pay their legal costs, which could total to thousands of pounds. Regrettably, we our having our...
