Not everybody has the luxury of wealthy parents to help them buy their first home and with house prices usually going up faster than wages, the government has stepped in to help first time buyers and to a certain extent, house builders. There are currently two schemes available, equity loans
The Government has hit landlords hard over the past 12 months with changes to the tax they pay and can claim back. Here we outline the tax rules which landlords need to consider. Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) From 1 April 2016 anyone purchasing an additional residential property (that is
Home identity scams are becoming more frequently reported in the mainstream media, with multiple prominent cases recently coming to light. In a recent high profile property fraud case, Laylah De Cruz and her mother, Dianne Moorcroft, duped property professionals into a fraudulent application for a £1.2 million bridging loan on
Rightmove has released its latest analysis of the 2016 rental market and what they expect in 2017 to look like. In 2016, outside of London recorded rental increases of 3% with inner London seeing a 5.2% drop in asking prices and outer London seeing a more modest 2.5% decrease in
“Tax doesn’t have to be taxing” was the strapline for an advertising campaign run by Her Majesty’s Revenues and Customs (HMRC) not so long ago. Unfortunately for many of us around this time of year it is taxing both financially and mentally. With around two weeks left to go until
George Osborne left several gifts for landlords before vacating the treasury. The first has already come into force which is the increase in stamp duty for the purchase of a buy to let property. The second is a reduction of tax relief that landlords can claim against mortgages. As it
In April this year, it came into law that tenants can request landlords carry out improvements to a property’s energy efficiency which a landlord must not unreasonably withhold. In the not too distant future, it is going to become law that properties with a low energy performance will not be
Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards Landlords to Provide Tenants As part of the Energy Efficiency Ratings Regulations of 2015, from 1st April 2016 tenants may request landlords carry out improvements to a property’s energy efficiency which a landlord must not unreasonably withhold. Tenants whose homes are an F or G rated
Landlords to Conduct Right to Rent Checks on New Tenants As part of the Immigration Bill of 2015/2016, from February 2016, landlords must ensure all new tenants have the right to reside in the UK before letting their properties to them. Evidence must be seen, copied and held for 12
The section 21 notice is a notice served on tenants requiring possession of your property back and gives no cause or reason as to why (such as for rent arrears or antisocial behaviour which is a section 8). A section 21 can lead to a mandatory order for possession and
“Holding onto anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned” – Buddha The fact that retaliatory evictions have been legislated on as part of the Deregulation Act (2015) shows that there are some landlords out
The government has introduced the Smoke Alarms and Carbon Monoxide Regulations (2015) to ensure that smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors are installed at the start of each new tenancy. This took effect as of 1st October 2015. The law applies to all landlords letting a property to a tenant
