Rents in April increased to the highest level since November 2012, according to the latest Buy-to-Let Index from LSL Property Services plc, which owns the UK’s largest lettings agent network, including national chains Your Move and Reeds Rains.

The average rent in England and Wales has risen by 0.2% since March, to £736 per month. Continued growth leaves rents in April 3.9% higher than a year ago, almost as fast in March when rents were 4.2% higher year-on-year. Continue reading →

The number of agreed new tenancies rose 13% in March and are up 19% on a year ago as ‘Generation Rent’ takes hold – London tenancies are up 12% on the month and 20% over the last year.

London rents remained flat at £1,375 but still almost twice the national average. Londoners seeking to rent undertake an average of 11.3 viewings per let property, 33% more than the country as a whole (8.5)

Stephen Nation, Head of Lettings at Sequence, owners of Barnard Marcus, William H Brown and Fox & Sons and other leading brands, comments:

“We have seen a strong seasonal uplift in Continue reading →

Simple solution 1:

Empty properties and extensive periods of void are among the biggest worries listed by new landlords. However, in the currently buoyant rental climate, a well-presented property that is marketed correctly (and at the right price) shouldn’t be empty for very long…

“At Belvoir we ensure that each property is marketed correctly on many property portals, with detailed descriptions and internal photos,” says proprietor of Belvoir Bedford Zoe Bywater. “We also advise landlords to give themselves adequate time to find a tenant by advertising the property 4-6 weeks before they want it let as tenants normally look about a month before Continue reading →

The relatively inexpensive  property prices in Blackpool, Hull, Manchester and Nottingham mean that these four Northern areas make up the rest of the top 5, offering strong returns for BTL investors with yields of 7.81%, 7.77%, 7.60% and 7.55% respectively. In sixth place, Coventry is the only other city offering returns above seven per cent with a yield of 7.13%.

Despite the high proportion of private rentals in the capital, London does not score highly in terms of rental yields due to the comparably high property prices.

The top performing borough in the capital, Southwark, is 13th overall while the affluent London boroughs Continue reading →

In absolute terms, the number of tenants in severe arrears rose by 4,000 to 94,000 in the first quarter. This leaves the quarterly figure the fourth highest on record, only 10% below the record set in Q3 2012.
 
On an annual basis, the number of tenants in severe arrears remains down marginally, by 2.9%. However, the level of severe arrears over the last twelve months is now 20% above the long-term average. Such tenants represent 2.3% of tenancies in England and Wales, up from 2.2% in the previous quarter.
 
While severe arrears cases have worsened, there was a wider Continue reading →

This can only be attributed to the fact that supply is now outweighing demand, and unless landlords ensure their properties are presented in immaculate condition, as well as being realistically priced, they will not attract tenants.
 
“We’re currently seeing a relatively equal split of nationalities across the West End of London market with 26% of tenants originating from the UK, 36% from the EU and 39% non EU. Previously, we have always seen a greater majority coming from abroad – the numbers have slightly diminished due to fewer foreign students this year and because some banks are recruiting fewer Continue reading →

However, the policy remains set to come into force in April, and the Scottish Government has already made extra funding available to help provide advice and support for those who will lose out.

The Minister has now also written to landlords across Scotland to encourage them to consider the example of Dundee City Council, which is protecting tenants who genuinely cannot make up the shortfall in rent caused by the bedroom tax, which comes into force in April.

The Council has committed that, where the Director of Housing is satisfied that affected tenants are doing all that can be reasonably expected to in Continue reading →

"It is an increasing problem, particularly in larger cities and university towns where many of the people subletting are foreign students who find these rooms through the internet.

"Unethical in every sense, these tenants pay no tax on the income they earn so as well as defrauding their landlord they are also defrauding the Inland Revenue."

There isn’t unfortunately a lot that a landlord can do from a protection point of view but Rushbrook said that however difficult it was to avoid this situation, there were steps that could be taken which may deter scammers and landlords should be aware of these.

Rushbrook said: Continue reading →

The survey of 4,300 private renters – the biggest of its kind ever conducted – also shows the knock-on effect rising rents are having on family life.
1 in 3 renters are cutting back on birthday and Christmas presents.
1 in 4 renting families are visiting family and friends less.
1 in 7 renters have used a credit card to pay their rent.
1 in 12 renting parents have borrowed money from their children to pay the rent.
 
The study also revealed 6% of renters, the equivalent of almost 515,000 people, had been forced to move home because of Continue reading →

Despite the monthly drop at a national level, rents grew on a monthly basis in half the regions. The strongest monthly rental inflation was a 1.8% rise in Wales, followed by the North East where rents were 0.9% higher than in January. London’s rents also returned to growth – rising by 0.5%. The fastest falls were in the North West, at 1.3%, followed by a 1.1% drop in the East of England and a monthly fall of 0.7% in the South West.

Only one region saw rents fall on an annual basis; the average rent in the South West is now 1.2% Continue reading →