September 2017

New civil penalty regulations give local authorities powers to fine landlords up to £30,000 for breaching housing rules. The RLA is encouraging landlords to make sure they are familiar with new rules to ensure they are meeting their responsibilities – and to avoid potentially hefty fines. Take our quick quiz to test your knowledge. QUIZ […]

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Letting agents are being warned to act with caution, as fraudulent ‘buyers’ have been targeting agents with a computer virus scam. The warning comes from The Property Ombudsman (TPO), which was alerted to a case by a member agent who received emails from a potential buyer in China. The individual emailed the branch several times […]

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More than a third of private landlords with tenants receiving Universal Credit say they are owed rent, up by over 10 percentage points since last year. According to a recent RLA survey of almost 3,000 landlords, of those with Universal Credit claimants as tenants, 38 per cent reported experiencing tenants going into rent arrears. In […]

The post Universal Credit forcing PRS tenants into rent arrears appeared first on RLA Campaigns and News Centre.

The RLA has given evidence to the Work and Pensions Select Committee on the troubled roll out of Universal Credit. RLA senior policy officer Natalie Williamson asked the committee to recommend halting the roll out of Universal Credit until more work is done with PRS landlords to iron out the glitches and snags they are […]

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A landlord contacted us recently regarding a problem tenant, who has been living in their property for the last three months. The tenant had gone into prison, and was behind paying their rent. The landlord was keen to know what their options were regarding the property. We advised the caller that there are two options […]

The post Call of the week-possession options for tenant in prison appeared first on RLA Campaigns and News Centre.

The RLA has secured a £1.5m funding pot from energy company E.ON to install energy efficiency improvements in members’ properties – the only funding dedicated exclusively to work on Private Rented Sector (PRS) homes. From April 2018, unless a valid exemption applies, landlords must have an EPC rating of E or above to let homes […]

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Rain and high winds have been battering the country over the last few days – with gales of up to 75mph set to hit the UK this week. Earlier this year Storm Doris saw 94mph winds rip off roof tiles and fell trees – with insurance companies seeing claims rocket by 300%. The RLA is […]

The post Severe weather warning – are your tenants safe? appeared first on RLA Campaigns and News Centre.

MPs have debated the proposed lettings fee ban – with a glimmer of hope for landlords as even those backing the move raised questions about capping deposits. Kevin Hollinrake MP outlined his support for the letting agent fee ban, during yesterday’s debate in Westminster Hall, saying it is the right thing to do, despite the […]

The post Glimmer of hope as MPs say they must ‘look at’ deposit cap plan appeared first on RLA Campaigns and News Centre.

Almost one in five landlords is now less likely to rent to European nationals as a result of the immigration checks they are expected to make. Confusion over how landlords will be expected to identify which EU nationals will and won’t be able to reside in the UK after Brexit is being blamed for the […]

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The Government needs to do more to better enforce existing rules over letting agent fees before looking to ban them outright. That’s the call being made by the RLA as MPs today debate plans to ban fees. Since May 2015 the law has compelled letting agents to publish details of the fees they charge. Agents breaking […]

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