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jeremy's  Personal Profile View my company profile

jeremy clarke
jeremy clarke
Director
12660  Profile Views

About Me

Over 30 years as an agent

my expertise in the industry

managed large chain flagship office and now run my own business

jeremy's Recent Activity

jeremy clarke
Nothing to do with standards, all to do with property Mark's profit margins! Perhaps now they could start focusing on working for their members rather than their pockets and bonuses?

From: jeremy clarke 24 April 2024 07:15 AM

jeremy clarke
Remind me again how many tenants pay an annual membership fee to this useless bunch! They certainly do nothing positive for those who do pay membership!

From: jeremy clarke 23 April 2024 07:17 AM

jeremy clarke
Poor headline, huge difference between earning £100,000 and a turnover of £100,000! Another pupil from the Diana Abbott school of economics?

From: jeremy clarke 18 April 2024 07:41 AM

jeremy clarke
Local council, loans, rental properties, what could possibly go wrong?

From: jeremy clarke 14 March 2024 07:19 AM

jeremy clarke
Please don't let Property Mark near this! They have let down agents over tenant fee ban, section 24 and renters reform bill. Their only interest is lining their own pockets.

From: jeremy clarke 07 March 2024 09:35 AM

jeremy clarke
For goodness sake Property mark, start acting for your members, not your own pockets! Fight the crazy RRB especially periodic tenancies and strengthening Ground 8.

From: jeremy clarke 05 March 2024 07:24 AM

jeremy clarke
Why are comments closed on the Shelter article, censorship??

From: jeremy clarke 26 February 2024 12:54 PM

jeremy clarke
All this article amounts to is an advert for 2 organisations, still, at least property mark has moved forward from writing a letter!

From: jeremy clarke 26 February 2024 08:21 AM

jeremy clarke
Polly and her lazy commie friends need to grow up and shut up! They got the PRS into the mess we are in now by interfering with a system that worked well for landlords and well behaved tenants. They need to learn that not all landlords are bad and concentrate their efforts on supporting the good ones rather than campaigning on behalf of bad tenants. Nowadays it seems that anyone who doesn't like something protests rather than trying to sort their own lives out.

From: jeremy clarke 26 February 2024 08:18 AM

jeremy clarke
Don't worry polly bleat will house them!

From: jeremy clarke 30 January 2024 12:39 PM

jeremy clarke
As an agent of 35+ years, I have never undertaken an inventory or taken photographs when taking over a previously landlord managed property. Firstly it would be almost impossible and secondly, it wouldn't represent the property at initial move in. Landlords have to take responsibility at the outset of the tenancy, it is, after all part of managing a tenancy, if Landlords cut corners at the beginning they deserve to lose out at the end of tenancy.

From: jeremy clarke 26 January 2024 11:45 AM

jeremy clarke
As usual property mark showing their impotence. Why only canvas member agents, what about the thousands of other agents? If I was in government and an organisation came to me with a survey of c600 agents, I would ask what about the other thousands and ignore the results. What are we paying membership for other than for PM to promote their "training " programme to get agents licensed?

From: jeremy clarke 25 January 2024 07:27 AM

jeremy clarke
If there are any landlords out there reading this, be very careful about signing new terms with Romans Leaders. I have a landlord who did, now wants to change and the terms stipulate equivalent of 2 years rent to cancel the contract! Rent on her 3 properties amounts to c£2600 a month, Leaders Romans are demanding £6270 to allow her to leave!!

From: jeremy clarke 23 January 2024 11:31 AM

jeremy clarke
More free advertising

From: jeremy clarke 12 January 2024 08:44 AM

jeremy clarke
Just another advert for his company, why is this allowed on this platform?

From: jeremy clarke 02 January 2024 07:21 AM

jeremy clarke
Can we please stop supporting the anti landlord brigade by using the term no fault eviction? If we as an industry stick to using Section 21, it may help our cause!

From: jeremy clarke 21 December 2023 08:02 AM

jeremy clarke
As a business we supported Crisis for many years. We stopped last year when Downie showed his true colours as anti landlord. At the time I wrote him a lengthy email explaining how he and other "charities " were adversely affecting the PRS, he couldn't even be bothered to respond! We continue to support local charities.

From: jeremy clarke 19 December 2023 07:28 AM

jeremy clarke
Oh it must be Christmas, polly's got the begging bowl out using a survey of about 5 people, a lot of bu**@#*t and her usual denial that shelter caused this to get people to donate money so her salary gets paid.

From: jeremy clarke 01 December 2023 08:05 AM

jeremy clarke
Horse bolted?

From: jeremy clarke 24 November 2023 09:48 AM

jeremy clarke
What on earth is a senior research fellow at the Centre for Housing Policy? Just another made up title for someone with very little common sense and to many "ologies" I suspect? Re agents policing properties, as an agent why would I take on any property that was substandard, it would take up a disproportionate amount of my time? re Section 21, has this woman been sleepwalking for the past few years??

From: jeremy clarke 20 November 2023 12:58 PM

jeremy clarke
A further survey of the same 2,400 tenants discovered that 99.9% would prefer that all groceries, fuel and gym memberships were free! Who comes up with these crazy surveys, perhaps they could get a job working in government?!

From: jeremy clarke 20 November 2023 12:55 PM

jeremy clarke
Ah, they've written a letter! Does property mark do anything other than write a letter every few months after the horse has bolted?

From: jeremy clarke 13 November 2023 15:19 PM

jeremy clarke
7 staff listed to manage 200 properties! We manage c150 properties with 2 full time and 1 part timer, ABC must be costing the council tax payers a fortune assuming average rent is c£1200 pcm; 10% (+VAT!!) = £120 a month per property x 200 £24,000 income pcm to ABC before costs.

From: jeremy clarke 01 November 2023 13:43 PM

jeremy clarke
How many councils have now tried this, poured thousands of tax payers money into a project that was doomed to fail from day 1? The problem with all councils is that all the staff are unaccountable and the money isn't theirs; if they had to run a business, they would be broke within weeks!

From: jeremy clarke 26 October 2023 09:15 AM

jeremy clarke
If gove said this "Rents in the private rented sector should be agreed between landlords and tenants, and it is not for government to intervene in this" then why on earth do government persist in the interference of the PRS?

From: jeremy clarke 25 October 2023 08:18 AM

jeremy clarke
Perhaps we ought to encourage tenants to send "thank you " cards to polly and her staff along with the idiots at generation rent? Without their intervention and pressure on government, rents would not be as high as they are!

From: jeremy clarke 05 October 2023 08:40 AM

jeremy clarke
There are far more properties in the social sector and under home ownership that need to meet E before attacking the relatively small PRS.

From: jeremy clarke 02 October 2023 07:57 AM

jeremy clarke
Insulting walls! Best yet Gibbons!

From: jeremy clarke 29 September 2023 07:37 AM

jeremy clarke
Yet again a fine for not belonging to the club, no mention of anything wrong with the property?

From: jeremy clarke 21 September 2023 07:55 AM

jeremy clarke
This is a good start, a return to Conservative values? Next job will be to scrap Gove, his department and renters reform bill. May then have a slim chance of keeping liebor out of number 10 next year. If liebor do get in, they'll just tear everything up to impose their crazy tree hugging policies like khan and draxford have already done in their kingdoms.

From: jeremy clarke 21 September 2023 07:53 AM

jeremy clarke
Conservatives being conservatives? Whatever next?

From: jeremy clarke 18 September 2023 08:28 AM

jeremy clarke
Billy, why on earth book 20 viewings???! Simple questionnaire prior to booking any viewings allows us to limit viewings to max 4 and set up a reserve list. If you show 20 people that's 19 that you have to say no to, we are only telling a few people = less abuse!

From: jeremy clarke 12 September 2023 09:27 AM

jeremy clarke
Yes, more enquiries per property but fewer properties available means that actually about the same level of work.

From: jeremy clarke 12 September 2023 07:29 AM

jeremy clarke
Nuaires do work, no doubt , but tenants do have to still learn how to live in property. Nuaires, in my opinion are part of the solution, tenants still need to adhere to rules.

From: jeremy clarke 11 September 2023 10:23 AM

jeremy clarke
Is this the same police force that is completely impotent when it comes to dealing with real criminals wielding knives, robbing watches and storming through shops? if so, then landlords have nothing to worry about!

From: jeremy clarke 30 August 2023 13:17 PM

jeremy clarke
I tun a lettings agency and would say that 80% of our enquiries mow come from people who have been given notice by landlords selling up.

From: jeremy clarke 19 July 2023 11:39 AM

jeremy clarke
I agree with fedup landlord, the properties belong to the landlord, they must be able to choose who lives in that investment. Normally the choice is made due to suitability, significant that the lady interviewed was not asked some key questions such as income, employment etc? What we are seeing is an ever increasing number of applicants who are enquiring about properties that are unsuitable but fall into their price range e.g. families with 2+ children enquiring about small 2 bedroom properties - these are the tenants that need social housing not charity from the PRS!

From: jeremy clarke 05 July 2023 12:22 PM

jeremy clarke
Searching court judgements is a waste of time as few landlords take things that far. A simple system that records tenants full names plus an identifier such as national insurance number along with possibly photo id would suffice along with a description of the misdemeanor e.g. unpaid rent, evidence of deposit claims or court order for possession. Records must be fully available to all interested parties such as agents, landlords, local authorities.

From: jeremy clarke 28 June 2023 08:06 AM

jeremy clarke
Beggars belief as to how poor the management at that agency must have been!

From: jeremy clarke 26 June 2023 14:02 PM

jeremy clarke
Periodic tenancies from day 1 from tenants is the most worrying, especially in areas like here, on the coast. It will be cheaper for people to rent a flat for 6 months and give notice as soon as they move in than to stay in a hotel for 2 weeks!

From: jeremy clarke 14 June 2023 08:37 AM

jeremy clarke
An hour with a dog and a cat in Parliament does not equate to a dog or cat living in a house for 2 years! What is this obsession with allowing animals everywhere, cannot even have a meal out now without dogs yapping?

From: jeremy clarke 13 June 2023 09:56 AM

jeremy clarke
Signed, but so far less than 1000 signatures, this needs to be publicised! If every letting agent sent the link to every one of their landlords, it would soon get the numbers required!

From: jeremy clarke 12 June 2023 09:32 AM

jeremy clarke
So glad that gen rent are happy with something! What they fail to express happiness over is the fact that the tenants that they are trying to "protect" are now paying more rent as a result of this "Happy Situation" and other measures that gen rent will, no doubt, soon express happiness about!

From: jeremy clarke 09 June 2023 12:10 PM

jeremy clarke
Really? I would have thought that organisations such as property mark would be much better utilising their resources to fight the Renters Reform Bill on behalf of their members, agents and landlords in general rather than an issue which I have never encountered in 35 years of letting property!

From: jeremy clarke 08 June 2023 09:43 AM

jeremy clarke
Cheaper for councils to build!

From: jeremy clarke 01 June 2023 08:33 AM

jeremy clarke
And government reckon tenants will buy pet damage insurance? Pigs will fly first!

From: jeremy clarke 01 June 2023 08:32 AM

jeremy clarke
Oh look property mark are writing a letter! All organisations who supposedly represent agents and landlords have let us all down by giving in to organisations like shelter who have so much influence with government. Too little too late again!

From: jeremy clarke 23 May 2023 07:16 AM

jeremy clarke
How about encouraging people to work? When I was younger you either worked for what you wanted, had something cheaper or didn't have at all!

From: jeremy clarke 15 May 2023 11:34 AM

jeremy clarke
And, I hear, only vegetarians will be able to buy fruit and vegetables under a liebor government!

From: jeremy clarke 11 May 2023 12:45 PM

jeremy clarke
It seems, that to become ceo of a charity that most people assume houses people but it doesn't, indeed it contributes to homelessness, you do not need to have even a basic grasp of economics! In fact you can push governments to adopt your crazy policies and then blame the result on someone else completely. All that for a salary of just £200,000 pa! Where do I sign?

From: jeremy clarke 11 May 2023 08:00 AM

jeremy clarke
Just another advert disguised as editorial!

From: jeremy clarke 10 May 2023 07:21 AM

jeremy clarke
Has common sense prevailed?

From: jeremy clarke 09 May 2023 19:49 PM

jeremy clarke
Which book are you reading? Deposits were required to be protected from April 2007

From: jeremy clarke 24 April 2023 11:53 AM

jeremy clarke
We all await the headline - "hundreds of social housing units built from proceeds of additional council tax!"

From: jeremy clarke 05 April 2023 13:12 PM

jeremy clarke
Can someone at Letting Agent Today please contact me and advise how my business gets a free advertorial in the publication? It seems that some companies get them fairly regularly!

From: jeremy clarke 30 March 2023 07:54 AM

jeremy clarke
Could buckle under pressure? From what I hear and read, it has already buckled and would likely go into meltdown!

From: jeremy clarke 29 March 2023 11:11 AM

jeremy clarke
Do MP's share a brain cell or do they have their own? Incredible that a so called conservative MP has made a statement about something being bad that his party have caused to happen in the first place!! Take a look in the mirror Mr Liddall- Grainger, therein lies the problem!

From: jeremy clarke 27 March 2023 14:00 PM

jeremy clarke
Does anyone support private landlords nowadays? Pets, loads of kids, what next?

From: jeremy clarke 23 March 2023 08:02 AM

jeremy clarke
Usual incompetence from some civil servant probably working from his kitchen table. Brewery organise couldn't a up in p**s a!

From: jeremy clarke 17 March 2023 13:20 PM

jeremy clarke
Ah, diddums, polly is upset :( But, she has at last seen that all her efforts to cause rents to rise are causing homelessness!

From: jeremy clarke 16 March 2023 08:16 AM

jeremy clarke
Is this what to expect from the Housing Courts? It seems that everything that gov touches related to housing turns to dust and costs millions!

From: jeremy clarke 07 March 2023 10:48 AM

jeremy clarke
How is it that our flat which we own and care for doesn't suffer mould, yet previous tenants complained regularly about mould? Ah yes, the difference is the words "care for". This means that we take responsibility rather than expecting others to come running!

From: jeremy clarke 03 March 2023 08:33 AM

jeremy clarke
Are these the same local governments that have all the tools to legislate their local landlords but cannot be bothered and would rather just ask for more red tape?

From: jeremy clarke 02 March 2023 10:22 AM

jeremy clarke
Usual bunch of unwashed lefties will turn up. Just enough time for them to overpaint their placards and learn the words to their common chant, instead of "what do we want?" "More pay" "When do we want it?" "Now!" Substitute "no section 21" for no pay and they're off!

From: jeremy clarke 24 February 2023 11:33 AM

jeremy clarke
More useless numbers implying that all landlords are evil? No mention of how many of these evictions were in the social sector! Until the numbers make sense, the lunatics will continue to vilify the prs.

From: jeremy clarke 10 February 2023 07:10 AM

jeremy clarke
If half the population cannot sleep because they worry about paying the bills, half the population need to look in the mirror and ask themselves why they overstretched themselves in the first place!

From: jeremy clarke 09 February 2023 10:54 AM

jeremy clarke
In over 30 years on the business I can honestly say that allowing pets, dogs especially, into a rental property rarely ends well. No amount of cleaning gets rid of the smell, hiding places in gardens and bins for dog poo prove costly to clear. As a landlord I would want to choose based on my preferences not because a dog owner looked responsible.

From: jeremy clarke 08 February 2023 07:41 AM

jeremy clarke
Nothing to see here, move on...

From: jeremy clarke 02 February 2023 07:59 AM

jeremy clarke
It looks as if the energy suppliers will be operating the scheme for the bill payers. Unless the tenants are prepared to put some effort in to get the improvements, how will the landlords benefit? We already have issues with tenants failing to attend contractors appointments, including a tenant who reported the property to local council without advising us as agents; the issue was condensation, we arranged for loft insulation and tenant was " too busy" to be home for the appointment!

From: jeremy clarke 31 January 2023 08:50 AM

jeremy clarke
David, let's assume you own a business, a greengrocers maybe. You rent your premises and buy your stock with a view to making a living. Then someone in government comes along and tells you to give away the stock. You still have overheads, but now no profits, would you remain as a greengrocer or give up?

From: jeremy clarke 30 January 2023 08:16 AM

jeremy clarke
Today's liebor review = tomorrow's conservative policy! No mention of involving landlord or agents = socialism! Who on earth will anyone be able to vote for at the next GE?

From: jeremy clarke 28 January 2023 16:04 PM

jeremy clarke
When will investors learn that these online companies are just excuses for huge cash burns and even larger payouts to the directors before they pack up and disappear into the sunset??

From: jeremy clarke 26 January 2023 08:16 AM

jeremy clarke
Unless there is a concerted effort by landlords with support from landlord organisations it doesn't seem to matter what is said in consultation, councils just go ahead and introduce the money spinning schemes anyway!

From: jeremy clarke 25 January 2023 11:26 AM

jeremy clarke
If 3% in 12 months is permitted then I expect every landlord will apply the increase including those who hadn't intended to impose an increase. Yet more from a clueless government.

From: jeremy clarke 20 January 2023 08:11 AM

jeremy clarke
Do councillors all attend the school for the stupid? If the garages need demolishing and they have money to build, why are they not building 2 and 3 bedroom houses for those on the housing list? If I was paying council tax to that council I would be furious!

From: jeremy clarke 20 January 2023 08:07 AM

jeremy clarke
I bet my gas boiler creates less emissions in it's lifetime than 1 politician does attending a save the world climate conference. Why not do those meetings by zoom rather than thousands flying to attend?

From: jeremy clarke 17 January 2023 08:23 AM

jeremy clarke
Why did you not serve notice on the estate? S21 if periodic or use Section 8 for rent arrears, nothing that the solicitor could have done under S21 and if Section 8 could have paid arrears or given possession.

From: jeremy clarke 06 January 2023 11:50 AM

jeremy clarke
Living Rent Commission! Sounds like a typical local government "we are important" committee set up to serve nobody except those who sit on the committee and to spend the tax payers money on jollies, irrelevant surveys, expenses and salaries for people with titles that sound like something out of a novel!

From: jeremy clarke 12 December 2022 11:18 AM

jeremy clarke
What is needed is a firm of no win no fee lawyers to get on board and advertise to all PB tenants that they may be in line for a pay-out, that way we will see how much will be paid out!

From: jeremy clarke 09 December 2022 11:12 AM

jeremy clarke
Tenants on low income get all sorts of support by way of universal credit, subsidised Council tax, cost of living allowances, fuel allowances. Indeed those who work and earn just above limits are much worse off, how is that fair? I shall be doing staff reviews this week I have good staff but to be frank they would probably be better off not working and being subsidised by those who do; if everyone did that though where would the money come from??

From: jeremy clarke 09 December 2022 08:05 AM

jeremy clarke
I recently tried to report 7 letting agents to trading standards for not displaying fees, impossible to do! I was redirected to citizens advice who, after 2 weeks, emailed me to say not within their remit as I had not spent money?

From: jeremy clarke 08 December 2022 12:26 PM

jeremy clarke
More crap from polly bleat and her sheep! Even in this poorly researched article it says 25% affected in private tenancies which means 75% must be in other tenancies eg social housing. Shut up woman!

From: jeremy clarke 29 November 2022 08:33 AM

jeremy clarke
Thank goodness that I no longer fund this gravy train! How insensitive can they be whilst all are struggling, they pack their suitcases and jolly off to Florida? The final paragraph A lot of new and emerging technology is originating in the US, says it all, this should have been a remote meeting, apart from anything else, I'm guessing that thousands of delegates did not walk to the USA to protect the planet which, unless I'm mistaken was something spouted recently by the same organisation?!

From: jeremy clarke 25 November 2022 12:33 PM

jeremy clarke
Turkeys and Christmas!

From: jeremy clarke 25 November 2022 07:52 AM

jeremy clarke
Not my Conservative Party! Too late to change now, would be interested to know how many CP members have resigned in teh past year!

From: jeremy clarke 21 November 2022 10:41 AM

jeremy clarke
The statement "While many landlords and estate agents make big profits". Just shows how out of touch these organisations are with the real world. Perhaps if they had real jobs instead of relying on payment from government funded by our taxes they might just understand basic economics?

From: jeremy clarke 14 November 2022 07:47 AM

jeremy clarke
Misleading headline really because surely it will be the tax payers of the borough that will be funding this not the council?

From: jeremy clarke 09 November 2022 13:24 PM

jeremy clarke
Surprised any politicians can walk the number of times they shoot themselves in the foot!

From: jeremy clarke 07 November 2022 08:09 AM

jeremy clarke
With 130 properties over 3 offices/sites, clearly he didn't have many. With less than 45 properties per office/site clearly not making any money either!

From: jeremy clarke 01 November 2022 09:38 AM

jeremy clarke
The question is, why would it take 10 days let alone 22 days to return a deposit? I want them sorted and off my desk asap, we give outgoing tenants good advice on how to vacate, we have accurate ingoing and outgoing inventories so often turn deposits around in 24 - 48 hours, what's the problem?

From: jeremy clarke 01 November 2022 09:36 AM

jeremy clarke
Should there not be a minimum standard that an MP has had to attend school before standing for election? Basic economics dear, crazy policies reduce supply, demand continues to rise = increase in price.

From: jeremy clarke 01 November 2022 07:45 AM

jeremy clarke
Been there long enough for his pay off I expect. The whole company appears to be in a mess, surely it cannot last much longer? Once it's gone, perhaps agents can get back to charging a viable fee rather than trying to compete with the cheap fee brigade?

From: jeremy clarke 28 October 2022 07:59 AM

jeremy clarke
Is this a sign that the conservative party are growing some b***s and trying to become The Conservative Party again?

From: jeremy clarke 11 October 2022 09:18 AM

jeremy clarke
The solution is to allow the owners of the property to decide, not some mandarin in Westminster!

From: jeremy clarke 07 October 2022 15:14 PM

jeremy clarke
Just another bunch of out of touch politicians trying to run the country without a clue as to how the real world works. 100 day plan to destroy the PRS, how many social houses can they build in 100 days?

From: jeremy clarke 28 September 2022 08:09 AM

jeremy clarke
The way things are going with truss and kamikaze, perhaps we as agents, landlords and our various organisations ought to start negotiations with liebor now rather than waiting until they have the keys to number 10?

From: jeremy clarke 27 September 2022 07:26 AM

jeremy clarke
Damage can be measured and quantified what cannot be is the lingering smell of wet dog, the worry that flea eggs will hatch once new tenants have moved in and discovering that special corner in the garden that the tenants used to stash the dog poo!

From: jeremy clarke 26 August 2022 08:03 AM

jeremy clarke
And the hatred of the private landlords continues in Westminster! Surely amongst the hundreds if MPs and thousands of civil servants there must be a number who are landlords, have they all lost their tongues?

From: jeremy clarke 24 August 2022 09:31 AM

jeremy clarke
Alternatively polly bleat at shelter could use the millions they get every year to do something constructive rather than spending it on expensive lawyers, vilifying landlords and lobbying government to continually ruin the PRS.

From: jeremy clarke 17 August 2022 07:51 AM

jeremy clarke
Yet again pointless numbers, to make any sense we need a breakdown of PRS and social landlords. I was in court for the first time for 15+ years recently and on the court bulletin board I would say 90% of the cases were social landlords seeking possession!

From: jeremy clarke 09 August 2022 13:39 PM

jeremy clarke
The chairman of JRF spent years at shelter spouting nonsense and vilifying private landlords before polly bleat took over the role there and made things worse for the private landlords.

From: jeremy clarke 08 August 2022 08:01 AM

jeremy clarke
Noel, I have seen exactly the same here on the south coast, lowest stock levels ever and highest rents ever with no sign of change. Without doubt all the changes we have seen have been the result of Government interference driven by their desire to keep organisations such as shelter and generation rent on their side, the more "Ideals" Government come up with the more landlords will leave. As a result I predict a "black market" of sub-standard landlords dealing with sub-standard tenants i.e. a group serving the needs of those who are not on the radar and cannot fit the mould of a tenant in the real world.

From: jeremy clarke 26 July 2022 11:33 AM

jeremy clarke
Somebody needs to show the new housing minister or minister for laying down or whatever his new title is this article. To me it proves 2 things, firstly that the existing legislation doesn't need changing, just needs enforcing and secondly that if the existing legislation is changed, more landlords will resort to similar behaviour to get their properties back!

From: jeremy clarke 20 July 2022 16:09 PM

jeremy clarke
So, the students saw this agreement and 7 months ago but opted to sign it anyway. Now they want to make a fuss? Moral or not on the landlord's side, the tenants put themselves in this situation which could have been avoided 7 months ago by not agreeing to the contract. Scary that these tenants at university may one day be in important positions!

From: jeremy clarke 15 July 2022 08:14 AM

jeremy clarke
I'm fairly certain that this survey would have come to the same conclusion if undertaken at any time over the past 75 years. Why are politicians and others so obsessed with home ownership? Rather than looking at wheezes to get ownership up, they should be concentrating on making renting more acceptable. Building more homes where they are needed for the rental market and ensuring that these properties remain for rental only will alleviate the pressure on the PRS, allow more people to afford to live and take the pressure off those who are not able to buy.

From: jeremy clarke 11 July 2022 07:48 AM

jeremy clarke
Eve K Kay has left the building.

From: jeremy clarke 24 June 2022 10:46 AM

jeremy clarke
More bull from people who don't understand the real world. Magic parking spaces?

From: jeremy clarke 14 June 2022 07:26 AM

jeremy clarke
Have I got this right? Tenants are using the utilities which landlords are paying for yet the supporters of the great unwashed want the rebate from government to go to the tenants not the bill payers! Why?

From: jeremy clarke 13 June 2022 08:31 AM

jeremy clarke
During the 2 years of lockdowns, few of our landlords increased rent, they absorbed inflation. Now they have to increase, many increases are below the figures had rents increased each year.

From: jeremy clarke 10 June 2022 08:04 AM

jeremy clarke
Lost count now of how many times this conservative (?) government has said categorically something will not happen and then goes ahead and does it!

From: jeremy clarke 08 June 2022 13:25 PM

jeremy clarke
Deputy director of Generation Rent? this chap doesn't appear on GR latest accounts or at companies house, delusions of grandeur?? Incidentally those latest accounts make interesting reading! Year end March 2020 are the latest filed accounts according to GR website link, they show total income of £162,000 all from grants and donations with staff costs of c£117,000 (72% of income!) The accounts show just 3 employees for the year end of 31 March 2020, that equates to a cost per employee of some £40,000! The latest accounts at Co House are restricted from last year end March 2021 showing reserves held of £75,000. Make what you will of it.

From: jeremy clarke 08 June 2022 13:12 PM

jeremy clarke
Just look at what liebor is doing in Wales, once landlords cotton on to the fact that they are losing control of their own property, they will leave in their thousands. Next step will be complete gov control.

From: jeremy clarke 06 June 2022 18:44 PM

jeremy clarke
Last week I attended court on behalf of a landlord for a possession hearing, the first we have had to go through since 2005 as I find that tenants generally leave without too much fuss. We have always used S21 whatever the reason the landlord wanted the tenants out, last year 4 were served by this office, in all other cases the tenants left of their own volition so cases are the minority. back to last week, the S21 notice expired 22 February, the tenant had appealed and the court insisted on a sitting. The earliest available after 22nd February was 24th May. The tenant, single mum who moved in with 2 young children 5 years ago had managed to have 3 more kids whilst in the flat, wear & tear was off the scale. The landlord will be returning to the UK later this year and looking at our reports of the condition chose to give notice to try and protect his asset. On arrival at the court, the tenant was accompanied by Citizen's Advice staff and was offered the services of a Shelter interview which was in a private room at the court with a shelter member of staff and shelter retained solicitor. When we sat in front of the judge, shelter asked for a postponement as they felt that the deposit was incorrectly dealt with at the outset, the deposit had been paid by the tenant's father, he denied in the shelter interview having ever received the prescribed information! All paperwork had been submitted to the court obviously so the judge was able to see that it included a copy of the prescribed information signed by the tenant and her father to prove receipt! I had done my job right! Even with this spurious last second appeal possession was given by the judge but deferred for 6 weeks until 5th July. Notice was originally served mid December meaning it has taken 7 months to get to a possession date! Crazy system that needs a complete overhaul!

From: jeremy clarke 31 May 2022 10:38 AM

jeremy clarke
Even Citizens Advice gives the correct advice, i.e. that rent must not be withheld by a tenant for lack of repairs. If the tenant choses to withhold rent it should be kept in a separate account and ready to pay over to the landlord when the dispute is resolved. In the meantime with rent & repairs being completely separate, a tenant withholding rent may find themselves subject of a possession by their landlord for rent arrears,

From: jeremy clarke 30 May 2022 11:36 AM

jeremy clarke
Whatever happens I hope that (a) Property Mark are not allowed near any of the qualifications etc. and (b) that all landlords have to go through the same process as letting agents. This happened in Wales and, apart from having a liebour gov in Wales who try and trip all landlords and agents up along the way, it has been proven that a system can be put in place that is workable.

From: jeremy clarke 27 May 2022 13:45 PM

jeremy clarke
Misleading headline! Belvoir franchisees make their own choices, Belvoir UK have struck deals with many companies and organisations. To say that all 360 have signed up is untrue, if I choose to pay to sign up to this latest deal I can, if I don't, I won't.

From: jeremy clarke 16 May 2022 08:02 AM

jeremy clarke
An absolute disgrace that a publicly funded organisation such as shelter can produce such a one-sided video. No balance, no mention of where to find good agents/landlords just the usual spouted by polly and the rest of her sheep. Government could fund something useful rather than tipping money into this disgrace of an organisation!

From: jeremy clarke 09 May 2022 13:12 PM

jeremy clarke
All we need polly and shelter to do now is to leave the PRS alone and refuse any further funding from Government for their vilification of landlords!

From: jeremy clarke 03 May 2022 15:10 PM

jeremy clarke
So a survey that only asks one side of the equation a question! Can I suggest that the next survey asks the same audience a question along the lines of "would you prefer to stay in your rented property without paying rent?" I suggest that most of us could predict the response but, if you ask landlords, again we could predict the results.

From: jeremy clarke 29 April 2022 07:51 AM

jeremy clarke
The fact is that ground rents and leasehold charges will never be abolished completely on existing leases as many freeholds are held by pension companies. Imagine trying to "sell" that one to shareholders! No more charges = less in the pension pot = less to pay out to pensioners, bit like turkeys voting for an extra Christmas each year, ain't going to happen!

From: jeremy clarke 26 April 2022 10:50 AM

jeremy clarke
Oh my goodness, I bet her parents are proud of her, she hates everything and campaigns against everything. Happy enough it would seem to take "the king's shilling" and be funded to spout her rubbish at Goldsmith University!? Just search her name and Goldsmiths

From: jeremy clarke 25 April 2022 13:40 PM

jeremy clarke
More fluff and hot air without a single fact in sight. When will these so called activists get jobs and join the real world rather than living in their bubble of hate?

From: jeremy clarke 25 April 2022 07:28 AM

jeremy clarke
And how long before the insurance companies decide it isn't viable? It will take a few years during which time policy costs will rise as this is going to be a high risk area. Who pays the premium, cannot ask tenants to pay, will landlords be expected to absorb yet another cost? As I say every time, it needs to be trialled by penny shelter and the MPs who are promoting it for 5 years before going live.

From: jeremy clarke 19 April 2022 15:45 PM

jeremy clarke
How many times do we hear of council's pouring council tax payer's money and resources into becoming letting agents only to find it's not as easy as they thought. What generally happens is that they give up after a couple of years having made zero headway because they just are not very good at it! in that period they have burned through many thousands of pounds but are simply unaccountable to anyone!

From: jeremy clarke 30 March 2022 14:56 PM

jeremy clarke
As an agent, as far as I'm concerned Chestertons can have all the let's with pets! My property manager has wasted hours this week after another stinking dog was allowed by a landlord. The vacating tenant's cleaning was second rate anyway which he didagreed with but the worst part is that lingering dog smell! We have a top notch ingoing inventory and check out report which will help landlord to get cleaning and damage covered but that landlord is left with no choice other than replacing all the carpets and floor length curtains. Even if we had an extra month's pet deposit it would not cover the costs! Luckily, a shortage of property and high demand means that tenants with pets don't get a look in but what to do about tenants that lie or just go ahead and buy a dog once in?

From: jeremy clarke 29 March 2022 08:21 AM

jeremy clarke
Remember the car scrappage scheme? How about a house scrappage scheme, landlords get a new house for each older inefficient one and the old one is renovated by government to make it more efficient before the builder who gave the new one away gets the sale revenue from the newly refurbished house! If government is so convinced by their crazy green agenda they should walk the walk!

From: jeremy clarke 28 March 2022 08:00 AM

jeremy clarke
10 minutes, wow! What am I going to do with all this extra time in my life?

From: jeremy clarke 24 March 2022 10:14 AM

jeremy clarke
More hand holding, next we'll be signing pledges to wipe tenant's backsides!

From: jeremy clarke 17 March 2022 07:16 AM

jeremy clarke
How many times have we seen local councils trying to run businesses using our money? How many have failed, it seems a regular occurrence? Unaccountable, subsidised, no training, self-policed, often drafted in from other departments, it should not be allowed!

From: jeremy clarke 03 March 2022 07:13 AM

jeremy clarke
Disruptor or innovator? Free for tenants? Long time since tenants have had to pay anything. Tough market? Everyone I talk to is desperately short of property and has a glut of enquiries.

From: jeremy clarke 24 February 2022 10:57 AM

jeremy clarke
Why do none of these disruptors not think why agents operate a fee structure? It's because we agents know what it costs to run our businesses and make a profit, proven over many years. Hopefully investors will soon learn that anyone offering to disrupt the market is the place not to invest!

From: jeremy clarke 22 February 2022 17:16 PM

jeremy clarke
Sign me up for the £1750 per let please. Where do these figures come from?

From: jeremy clarke 14 February 2022 07:53 AM

jeremy clarke
If only government would listen Dorian rather than ignoring us professionals and listening to the likes of shelter, rent a mob and the other luvvies who are intent on destroying the PRS!

From: jeremy clarke 10 February 2022 07:45 AM

jeremy clarke
How on earth do managers not notice?

From: jeremy clarke 08 February 2022 07:10 AM

jeremy clarke
As we have found, even well behaved dogs leave houses smelling awful, a smell that no amount of cleaning eradicates. The only solution is replacing carpets, curtains and redecoration, that's a good enough reason to say no at the outset. Not yet met a dog owner happy to absorb those costs!

From: jeremy clarke 08 February 2022 07:09 AM

jeremy clarke
As long as ARLA and Property Mark are not allowed anywhere near any policing we should be okay, local authorities have neither the money nor the level of staff to enforce any new legislation so, nothing will change.

From: jeremy clarke 03 February 2022 15:16 PM

jeremy clarke
Don't let Boris see this report, he'll adopt it as conservative policy along with all the other leftie ideas!

From: jeremy clarke 11 January 2022 11:43 AM

jeremy clarke
Unbelievable that governments which created the problem with policies that we as agents and landlords said would create a housing problem have just noticed and now want to blame everyone except themselves!

From: jeremy clarke 11 January 2022 11:41 AM

jeremy clarke
Any agent undertaking proper due diligence would surely already be declining non compliant landlords? If not then they only have themselves to blame when it all goes wrong!

From: jeremy clarke 31 December 2021 15:32 PM

jeremy clarke
Another muppet with his head up his a**e! Many tenants either cannot afford or don't want to buy property, take away the PRS and where do these people live? The rental market does need reform, it needs councils to build properties so that tenants can choose whether they want to live in social housing (which can never again be sold off), private rental or buy their own property. Government needs to invest in all 3 areas in huge volumes to satisfy demand.

From: jeremy clarke 30 December 2021 09:39 AM

jeremy clarke
Not an article, just more free advertising. Tell me, how do us mere mortals get these free advertising slots, should I just send some copy in to promote my business?

From: jeremy clarke 20 December 2021 07:42 AM

jeremy clarke
Again, unless I am missing something, no figures on council/housing association/social housing, always the assumption that all repossessions are by private landlords?

From: jeremy clarke 06 December 2021 13:09 PM

jeremy clarke
Thinking of setting up a pop up shop at the venue to sell rotten fruit and tomatoes 🍅.

From: jeremy clarke 09 November 2021 07:43 AM

jeremy clarke
One of our let only landlords just got property back from tenant who paid no rent for 9 months despite receiving full payment from council. That same council is now more interested in rehousing the rogue tenant than helping a landlord with over £7000 of arrears!

From: jeremy clarke 08 November 2021 07:43 AM

jeremy clarke
Whoever coined the phrase no fault eviction? In over 30 years in the business, my experience of S21 is that in many cases there is an underlying reason that landlords use S21, usually for the certainty.

From: jeremy clarke 03 November 2021 13:57 PM

jeremy clarke
It's a myth that smart meters save money! A smart meter shows the customer their usage, unless they monitor the usage and change their habits they will make no savings. Most properties that we visit have the display meters tucked away in cupboards where nobody can see them making it impossible to view and monitor. The only savings made in the majority of cases are by the energy companies who employ fewer staff and get huges government grants for every meter they install.

From: jeremy clarke 18 October 2021 08:13 AM

jeremy clarke
Tell all that to one of our landlords, proper ingoing and outgoing inventories. Carpets stink of wet dog but government legislation of 5 weeks maximum deposit leaves us just £1500 to deal with the issues. No cleaning will remove smell, Carpets will have to be replaced, cost to landlord over £6000. He will never allow pets again!

From: jeremy clarke 14 October 2021 07:43 AM

jeremy clarke
If only these do gooders such as polly had to be landlords for say 5 years before they spouted all the rubbish that they spout! Lobbying government from a position of zero experience is crazy, would polly have the same view if she had a tenant who she couldn't move out?

From: jeremy clarke 01 October 2021 07:47 AM

jeremy clarke
The temporary £20 increment given to many for no reason should have been used for emergency only, not counted as part of their income.

From: jeremy clarke 20 September 2021 08:09 AM

jeremy clarke
Good, this takes the pressure off ordinary landlords who can continue to choose tenants that best suit the properties that THEY own. Let's see how keen these build to rent guys are after the first tenants move out leaving behind that familiar wet dog smell!

From: jeremy clarke 20 September 2021 08:07 AM

jeremy clarke
Doesn't mention whether they wrote a letter?

From: jeremy clarke 15 September 2021 08:10 AM

jeremy clarke
I bet everyone in government is shaking in their boots!

From: jeremy clarke 09 September 2021 11:57 AM

jeremy clarke
So many councils have tried and failed. The issue is that they keep pouring public money into ventures like this, they lose thousands without accountability and then just disappear.

From: jeremy clarke 03 September 2021 09:10 AM

jeremy clarke
And how do you mandate the insurance? We insist on it but know that tenants stop it as soon as they move in! Leave the choice to landlords and do not cap deposits £5000 deposit should be enough.

From: jeremy clarke 02 September 2021 08:19 AM

jeremy clarke
Whilst government continues its campaign against the PRS, more landlords including myself will change to short term let's. The answer is for government to support private landlords and encourage more to enter the sector.

From: jeremy clarke 01 September 2021 07:57 AM

jeremy clarke
As an agency we have started physical mid term visits again and already have discovered that a number of tenants have introduced cats dogs and other pets during lockdown without landlord's consent. Most landlords have reacted badly wanting the pets out but what can we do? Already 2 check out inspections have left us with houses smelling like wet dogs, the landlord of a 3 storey town house faces a bill of over £7,000 to replace carpets within a week before new tenants move in. The law needs changing urgently to make tenants 100% liable for all damages caused by their pets. If we know about pets we insist on insurance but that can be cancelled at any time and doesn't cover the disgusting smell that is left behind !

From: jeremy clarke 01 September 2021 07:50 AM

jeremy clarke
Why on earth would anyone wate so much time showing that many people around any property? Pre qualify applicants, arrange 2 or 3 viewings and let to best candidates. Assuming the property accommodated 6 people, it would mean 70 plus disappointed viewers if you showed so many people around, madness!

From: jeremy clarke 23 August 2021 17:39 PM

jeremy clarke
Just more proof that the lunatics are taking over the asylum!

From: jeremy clarke 23 August 2021 09:09 AM

jeremy clarke
Another letter!

From: jeremy clarke 19 August 2021 13:53 PM

jeremy clarke
These fools need to be lobbying government to build more housing and make it more attractive for landlords to remain in the PRS. At the same time they should refuse to holiday in any property in the UK with their families! I wonder how many activists have enjoyed a week in Cornwall?

From: jeremy clarke 18 August 2021 07:53 AM

jeremy clarke
Have I missed something, cannot see the word disruptor in the article?

From: jeremy clarke 12 August 2021 08:32 AM

jeremy clarke
That's a bit rich from a member of the party that have spent years driving landlords away from the PRS!

From: jeremy clarke 03 August 2021 07:54 AM

jeremy clarke
Who undertakes these surveys? Throwing numbers like 64 per cent of households were homeowners in 2003 compared to just 57 per cent now, in isolation means nothing. The UK population in 2003 was estimated at just under 60 million, today it is estimated at just over 68 million, an increase of 13%. 64% of 60 million = 38.5 million, 57% of 68 million = 38.7 million, an increase of 200,000 or just 2%?

From: jeremy clarke 30 July 2021 11:51 AM

jeremy clarke
No problem if the housing stock is all nice and modern but it simply is not! The victorians were great house builders but gave little thought to energy efficiency yet this housing stock makes up much of the UK housing. Set aside the cost, in many cases there are physical barriers to making certain properties efficient. Is the aim to leave thousands of properties empty or pull them down to start again? Given the UK cannot build new homes fast enough,what chance is there of redeveloping?

From: jeremy clarke 20 July 2021 07:52 AM

jeremy clarke
S24? If this shower are meant to know their stuff, this makes them look complete idiots!

From: jeremy clarke 19 July 2021 07:48 AM

jeremy clarke
The main problem with pets is that some issues eg fleas and ticks take months to come to life. Tenants and their pets may leave the property clean and tidy leaving the landlord to give a good reference but what happens 6 months later when the new tenants kids have flea bites on their ankles? Let landlords decide whether they want pets.

From: jeremy clarke 06 July 2021 07:53 AM

jeremy clarke
Careful now ARLA, writing all these letters to government!

From: jeremy clarke 29 June 2021 08:12 AM

jeremy clarke
Oh dear ARLA, didn't have time to write a letter?

From: jeremy clarke 28 June 2021 08:37 AM

jeremy clarke
Oh look, a government page with direct link to shelter, the enemy of the private sector landlords! No surprise as huge government and taxpayer grants to ensure that the ceo polly neate continues to be paid £200,000 a year to run a charity that the public believes houses the homeless! They do nothing of the sort, most money goes on staff salaries and employing lawyers to fight landlords.

From: jeremy clarke 25 June 2021 08:08 AM

jeremy clarke
"None of the cases involved the agent or landlord trying to charge a fee explicitly banned by the Act, such as administration, inventory, referencing or renewal". If that was the case why are they even getting to tribunals?

From: jeremy clarke 18 June 2021 16:06 PM

jeremy clarke
Once tenants are in situ and cancel their pet insurance,what can landlords do about it? Answer is absolutely nothing, cannot be enforced, maybe unable to evict tenants so what's the point. Imho if tenants want pets then the deposit must cover the cost of replacing carpets all through the property plus an amount for damages. All too often it is months after the tenants have gone that new tenants complain about the smell and suffer flea bites. Let landlords choose, not politicians.

From: jeremy clarke 17 June 2021 07:48 AM

jeremy clarke
Getting into bed with the enemy, this organisation have not represented landlords or agents for years now, time they admitted that they just follow the money.

From: jeremy clarke 16 June 2021 13:58 PM

jeremy clarke
So, tenants who have had lots of gov support but still fail to pay their way will be given mediation which could take weeks to come to fruition during which time the debt rises. What makes gov think that tenants who haven't paid or engaged with landlords are suddenly going to start talking?

From: jeremy clarke 16 June 2021 11:01 AM

jeremy clarke
Mega landlords? Most landlords I know have 1 property either purchased or inherited that they have in place of a pension. It's not like being an MP where there is a guarantee of a mega pension on retirement, most ordinary folk cannot rely on state provision for retirement.

From: jeremy clarke 02 June 2021 08:06 AM

jeremy clarke
Meanwhile, shelter ask 5 people in their office how many evictions they expect then multiply that number by ninety billionty, add pollys age, divide it by the number of labour mps subtract the price of a glass of prosecco and announce that approximately 60 million households will be evicted over half are vegans, 75% only eat white meat and the remaining 35% identify as non specific gender!

From: jeremy clarke 25 May 2021 07:47 AM

jeremy clarke
It is well past the time that these left wing organisations such as shelter and citizens advice had all gov funding withdrawn. They are completely ruining the PRS but to what aim? We are seeing a desperate shortage of property to rent, landlords are baling out rather than looking to expand BTL and it's almost exclusively down to a weak government that has an ear to all the crazies who without exception believe that private landlords are all evil. The country needs a PRS unless these lefties have a magic housebuilding plan to build and give everyone a house!!

From: jeremy clarke 19 May 2021 15:54 PM

jeremy clarke
The perfect storm that we as agents predicted when government started to interfere with the PRS and make scapegoats of landlords. Having bitten the hand that feeds, how is government going to resolve this problem? I currently have 6 families under notice as landlords sell and in 9 weeks none has managed to secure property. The choice for tenants is simply homelessness or eviction!

From: jeremy clarke 17 May 2021 14:33 PM

jeremy clarke
Could it be that some of the members of this feckless organisation are now fearing that they too may soon be homeless for following their own advice? There has been so much support for tenants in difficulty with central and local government providing financial assistance, it is difficult to understand why so many may be in debt through non payment if rent. What this mob need to be doing is campaigning for more social housing, not disrupting the PRS.

From: jeremy clarke 13 May 2021 08:07 AM

jeremy clarke
ARLA and listen in the same sentence, hmmm??!! Listen they may, then they will write a letter and then they will bow down to Gov and all the tree huggers, it's what they do every time, they represent themselves, not the industry!

From: jeremy clarke 12 May 2021 10:02 AM

jeremy clarke
Lifetime deposits! At what point could this possibly work? What if tenants have damaged property or are in arrears or haven't cleaned on day of vacation? Who will lose out, current landlord with losses or new landlord with no money left over for deposit? Time for polly to step up and underwrite all deposits, after all she seems to think that all tenants are good and all landlords are the devils.

From: jeremy clarke 12 May 2021 07:59 AM

jeremy clarke
The point is that the properties were built to be let out and therefore no issues with existing leases and existing owners. In most flats if you try letting to someone with a dog, the lease would probably not allow it and if the lease did allow it, how long before the block busybody was on the phone complaining about dog barking and dog s**t? It just isn't worth the hassle.

From: jeremy clarke 10 May 2021 11:09 AM

jeremy clarke
How will they ever get on in life? Going to be a huge shock finding out that they have to pay for things and nothing is free!

From: jeremy clarke 16 April 2021 07:45 AM

jeremy clarke
Yesterday we encountered a couple who wanted to view a flat priced at £650 pcm. His salary £19,000 pa, hers £6500 pa no dependants yet also claiming £600 a month universal credit! His salary alone would suffice so why all this assistance? No reason why tenants cannot afford to pay rent!

From: jeremy clarke 13 April 2021 07:45 AM

jeremy clarke
And thanks to the do gooders at organisations such as shelter, tenants have less choice!

From: jeremy clarke 08 April 2021 08:15 AM

jeremy clarke
We insist on insurance but, once the tenants are in and if they choose to stop paying premiums or they cancel the policy, what can we do? Nothing! Easier to just say no. Damage is one thing but I'm sure that it won't cover ongoing issues such as smell, dormant fleas or allergies. These organisations need to get real whilst there is still a PRS!

From: jeremy clarke 30 March 2021 13:23 PM

jeremy clarke
Indefinite tenancies are available, it's called public sector housing! More drivel from an organisation that does more harm than good to the PRS.

From: jeremy clarke 29 March 2021 08:42 AM

jeremy clarke
In this area with a desperate shortage of property to let, it is all very well vendors saying that they will decamp into rented but, when the crunch comes 3 months down the line and there is nowhere to rent.... I would take with a large pinch of salt any vendor who says that they will vacate.

From: jeremy clarke 26 March 2021 08:32 AM

jeremy clarke
I think that this article went wrong at proof reading when they failed to notice the word landlords had been substituted with the word tenants!

From: jeremy clarke 22 March 2021 07:53 AM

jeremy clarke
Any regulations for training and qualifications that do not include private landlords would be crazy. Either all in the PRS or none! Wales has managed to get their house in order by insisting all in the sector are regulated so can England.

From: jeremy clarke 19 March 2021 07:51 AM

jeremy clarke
An appeal for more money to fight landlords and drive them out of business. If anything, shelter should be promoting the fact that they vilify the PRS and do not provide shelter for the homeless which is what the general public thinks they do! Time all gov funding was withdrawn from a so called charity.

From: jeremy clarke 17 March 2021 07:50 AM

jeremy clarke
Another meaningless "survey" from a gov funded so called charity, no mention of how the numbers were calculated? Did they ask 10 tenants or 10,000 or did they just guess?

From: jeremy clarke 16 March 2021 07:48 AM

jeremy clarke
Good transport links, London Waterloo in 2 hours but other destinations, Southampton, Winchester basingstoke all accessible within an hour.

From: jeremy clarke 15 March 2021 07:49 AM

jeremy clarke
Same here in Christchurch with many out if area enquiries from folk wanting to live by the seaside. They get quite aggressive when told we won't arrange viewings because they have no need and we are still in a lockdown. Some get quite devious using friends addresses to appear local!

From: jeremy clarke 12 March 2021 07:47 AM

jeremy clarke
In 30 years in the letting business I have never known a landlord serve notice to tenants for no reason. There is always a reason and landlords must be able to retain the right to get their property back.

From: jeremy clarke 11 March 2021 09:05 AM

jeremy clarke
So, someone who considers rent arrears is not a reason for a landlord who probably relies on rent, to ask her to leave? I ask said person, if you walked out of Sainsbury's with a trolley full of items would you feel able to start a petition against prosecution?

From: jeremy clarke 23 February 2021 07:58 AM

jeremy clarke
There's a very simple solution really, if all these commie party members and the great unwashed of generation rent are so concerned, let them bale out the feckless tenants by paying the landlords directly from their own pockets. Let's see how they like it!

From: jeremy clarke 15 February 2021 07:40 AM

jeremy clarke
Have ARLA written a letter to government, that's their normal approach?

From: jeremy clarke 10 February 2021 07:44 AM

jeremy clarke
Oh look ARLA have written a letter! That's sure to make government sit up and take notice.....

From: jeremy clarke 04 February 2021 08:02 AM

jeremy clarke
It seems to me that some people spend too much time with their heads up their a***s and then want their hands held when a deadline approaches that they have failed to act upon! This deadline has been published for what, 2 years? If you cannot manage to get this right, should you really be in business?

From: jeremy clarke 02 February 2021 15:51 PM

jeremy clarke
As I have commented many times, ARLA are not only ineffective, their "fights" are always too late and too weak, but they are ignored. The thought of this inward looking bunch of idiots being put in charge of any licensing or industry training scheme is unthinkable.

From: jeremy clarke 25 January 2021 07:48 AM

jeremy clarke
Mark Wilson, I manage an agency with over 150 tenancies, since March we have had 2 tenants who have experienced payment difficulties. I have encouraged tenants to talk to us as early as possible and worked with them to ensure they receive as much help and guidance as is available, as of today just 1 tenant in arrears. regular outbound contact from us has ensured that others experiencing difficulty have been able to access help when needed. Talking to colleagues who are experiencing issues with tenants not paying rent, the majority of those not paying were either in arrears before Covid or, are just refusing to pay knowing that landlords can do nothing.

From: jeremy clarke 15 January 2021 08:24 AM

jeremy clarke
Yet more spurious claims, is there a department for making up numbers that these idiots refer to? Let's see some facts rather than finger in the air guesses, how many landlords on this site are planning to evict tenants due to covid arrears? I suspect that many facing eviction are won't payers rather than can't pay.

From: jeremy clarke 15 January 2021 07:54 AM

jeremy clarke
Transferable lifetime deposits?! Every day we see more proof that government simply doesn't want to understand or help the PRS. What happens to the landlord left with rent debt and dilapidations if the tenants leave and the deposit goes with them? Is government going to stump up the cash? Politicians just get worse, supported by the feckless organisations like shelter and the won't pay our rent brigades!

From: jeremy clarke 14 January 2021 08:01 AM

jeremy clarke
If you don't pay a mobile phone bill, the service is withdrawn, if you miss payments on a car, it will be taken away. If you miss mortgage payments, you will lose your home, if you walk out of the supermarket with a trolley full of goods without paying, you will be stopped and prosecuted. All the above have consequences yet this thrown together bunch of fools think that being a tenant who has stolen from their landlord should not have consequences? If you can't afford something, for whatever reason, you should either not try and get it, give it back or have it legitimately taken from you!

From: jeremy clarke 11 January 2021 08:28 AM

jeremy clarke
Unless tangible and enforceable penalties are put in place for tenants who do not engage, how can mediation work? A feckless tenant will never change unless a real threat against them exists and whilst organisations baying for landlords' blood and encouraging the wiping of tenant's debts are allowed to spout such nonsense I cannot see government sharpening their teeth at all!

From: jeremy clarke 11 January 2021 08:21 AM

jeremy clarke
Absolutely criminal without any word on how landlords recoup their losses or on criminal charges against the feckless tenants taking advantage.

From: jeremy clarke 08 January 2021 13:31 PM

jeremy clarke
Councils have ample legislation to enable them to act against bad landlords without resorting to licensing. Instead of publicising their failures this council should concentrate their efforts in prosecutions. Councils are infamous for their ability to waste public money, licensing schemes are just another way for councils to penalise the prs and more money for them to collect and waste. They need to employ enforcement staff who know what they are doing, wages would soon be covered by successful prosecutions without licensing.

From: jeremy clarke 07 January 2021 07:46 AM

jeremy clarke
Whilst we are in cuckoo land, why not make the occupiers of the property responsible and liable for making the property energy efficient? In some areas property stock is of an age that the cost would be prohibitive for landlords, another crackpot idea!

From: jeremy clarke 16 December 2020 07:42 AM

jeremy clarke
While they are about it perhaps these feckless people should try a mobile phone & pay to view TV strike? Do let us know how they get on with zero penalties and not paying Vodafone Netflix and Sky!

From: jeremy clarke 08 December 2020 07:54 AM

jeremy clarke
The loss of tenant fees when incompetent gov ignored the industry by changing a business model that worked has had a huge effect on the industry. The problem is exacerbated by agents that slashed landlords fees to get business. When I came into the business 20+ years ago it was common to see landlord fees at 15+% a month but very low tenant fee. Agents dropped landlord fees to attract business and hiked tenants fees to compensate, when tenant fees went many tried to survive without reverting landlord fees to previous levels, a recipe for disaster.

From: jeremy clarke 03 December 2020 08:23 AM

jeremy clarke
Hybrid? They have an office and a website, on that basis surely now every agent is a hybrid agent whatever that means?

From: jeremy clarke 02 December 2020 07:56 AM

jeremy clarke
So tenants think that they can just break a contract when they feel like it irrespective of the consequences? What if the landlords had tried the same, would the tenants have just said that was fine and walked away? Suggest that the tenants try the same with Sky and Vodafone and see how they get on, I hope the agency gets every penny and actually believe that the landlord should receive full compensation.

From: jeremy clarke 26 November 2020 08:16 AM

jeremy clarke
Whilst the great unwashed are being shouty perhaps they could consider 3 things? 1. Shouting at tenants to learn to budget. 2. Shouting at tenants to move somewhere cheaper. 3. Shouting at the chancellor to pay my mortgage as I can't be arsed?!

From: jeremy clarke 25 November 2020 08:06 AM

jeremy clarke
Never fails to amaze me how many companies trying to sell their products want us to believe that by buying said products tenant arrears will go away. Tenant choice and management reduces arrears not fancy charts and flashing lights. If a business owner is unaware of arrears, he needs a new career not new software!

From: jeremy clarke 20 November 2020 07:50 AM

jeremy clarke
Couldn't agree more but then again whilst our taxes are keeping them in I phones, Costa coffee and bento boxes from Waitrose why would they bother?

From: jeremy clarke 19 November 2020 09:03 AM

jeremy clarke
Nationwide just joined my list of companies along with B & Q as companies to avoid because of their blind support for the lefties at shelter!

From: jeremy clarke 06 November 2020 11:03 AM

jeremy clarke
Have one landlord trying to transfer 2 properties to us after 5 years with countrywide having had lots of issues. Countrywide want 3 months notice and the equivalent of 24 months management fees to allow the transfer! No wonder they are losing business if this is how they treat clients,

From: jeremy clarke 23 October 2020 09:07 AM

jeremy clarke
I suspect that this shower has used the same formula as before to make up their numbers, asked 3 tenants and multiplied that number by 11 billionty using Abbott's abacus. Complete and utter rubbish as with everything else they spout!

From: jeremy clarke 23 October 2020 09:03 AM

jeremy clarke
What is it with UK governments and private property, are we becoming a communist state by stealth? rather than steal an owner's property, why not help fund the owner to bring the property into use?

From: jeremy clarke 20 October 2020 09:32 AM

jeremy clarke
How do these people ever get to become MPs? Most seem to have nothing between their ears apart from fresh air and some sort of device that makes them spout complete rubbish. I'm guessing that this particular clown has never been a landlord, never had to deal with neighbours complaining about dogs barking, never had to replace flea ridden shredded carpets?

From: jeremy clarke 16 October 2020 10:40 AM

jeremy clarke
Last year I had a landlord who came to me to find tenants as his tenants of 7 years were moving on. In all that time he had never visited the property, in all that time he had not reviewed the rent, in all that time he had not spoken with his tenants. When I visited the house, the tenants had "decorated" made alterations including adding electrical sockets themselves, they had replaced carpets and intended to take the new carpets with them. They were paying £900 for a 3 bedroom house, in the same road we let a house 4 years ago at £1100 pcm and with annual reviews the tenants are now paying £1375 pcm. The landlord cited our fees as being the reason that he didn't use an agent yet we would have communicated issues with decor and carpets, we would have visited the property and discussed anything with all parties, the fact that rents were not reviewed during the whole term probably meant that the landlord missed out on at least £2000 each years 2 & 3, £3000 in years 4 & 5 in lost rent and for the past 2 years maybe c£5000 pa making a total of c£20,000 in lost rents! Over that period our fees would have accounted for less than half of that figure meaning a landlord has lost out by over £10000! The landlord spent £9,000 putting the house in order, we now manage that property! It will get annual reviews, visits once Covid permits and we will protect his investment.

From: jeremy clarke 12 October 2020 11:21 AM

jeremy clarke
Please, someone tell polly and all the opposes that a S21 is not an eviction notice!

From: jeremy clarke 25 September 2020 08:43 AM

jeremy clarke
At last, common sense may be prevailing. For too long these facist mobs have been spreading spurious claims and have never been held to account.

From: jeremy clarke 23 September 2020 08:17 AM

jeremy clarke
Why would there be any need to defend a tenant who hasn't paid their rent or a tenant where the landlord wants his own property back? Sounds like a money spinning scheme for lawyers to me!

From: jeremy clarke 22 September 2020 08:04 AM

jeremy clarke
The key words are due to covid. Most who have lost income have been eligible for support, they just need to reassess their spending. Those who were in arrears before or who have landlords that need the property back, those antisocial tenants must face the courts and landlords must be able to take back their own property.

From: jeremy clarke 22 September 2020 07:44 AM

jeremy clarke
More b*****ks from shelter! Shelter will only have contact with disgruntled tenants who will then be asked leading questions. If the average agents manage 200 properties per office and receive 1 complaint from a tenant that represents 0.005 percent to the agency. If that tenant is one of 2 that complain to shelter, that tenant now represents 50 percent! Anyone can massage figures, especially when high numbers make it easier to get handouts from government.

From: jeremy clarke 16 September 2020 08:02 AM

jeremy clarke
So, this woman is a failed politician, lost her opportunity to become an MP in that well known liebor stronghold of Cornwall yet she's still banging on somewhere in the background trying to ruin those who work hard at the expense of the feckless and lazy. If she gets her way and the feckless & lazy win then maybe she will become an MP? Until then she is just another lefty rebel shouting loud and promoting crap!

From: jeremy clarke 09 September 2020 13:58 PM

jeremy clarke
Usual useless effort from ARLA. If tenants cannot pay the rent with all the support gov has given so far who in their right mind would campaign to give tenants more money? The campaign should be to give the landlords money where tenants have failed to pay.

From: jeremy clarke 08 September 2020 08:36 AM

jeremy clarke
I hope he gets charged for all the advertising he gets. Seems you just put together a crap article and mention your company lots of times and bingo you have editorial space.

From: jeremy clarke 08 September 2020 08:33 AM

jeremy clarke
If the debt is rent, it must be paid directly to the landlord.

From: jeremy clarke 25 August 2020 08:13 AM

jeremy clarke
What utter rubbish from this bunch of anarchists! Let all the feckless non paying tenants live in your house rent free woman, see how you like it! And, while you're about it, let every single one of the placard wavers take in non paying, anti social abusive " tenants " take the issue away from decent law abiding landlords!

From: jeremy clarke 24 August 2020 08:11 AM

jeremy clarke
Complete farce, doesn't currently affect me but selling up 1 property and the other will soon follow suit. Always voted Conservative but this bowing to pressure groups seriously tests mine and many others' views moving forward.

From: jeremy clarke 21 August 2020 13:42 PM

jeremy clarke
If they are so bl***y keen on protecting the feckless tenants out there, let them and their parents take them in! Anyway, shouldn't they be protesting about the 11 plus results or something? How do they keep up with scrawling all those placards?

From: jeremy clarke 20 August 2020 08:04 AM

jeremy clarke
Yet again this waste of good oxygen is trying to deflect away from his abysmal record in our capital city. Knife crime is out of control, gang warfare is out of control yet sad khan concentrates on headlines that have no substance. When does he go?

From: jeremy clarke 17 August 2020 07:49 AM

jeremy clarke
And still polly walks around with her head up her own a*** taking every penny on offer from gov and playing political football with the prs. Come on Boris, withdraw all funding from this shameful bunch.

From: jeremy clarke 12 August 2020 13:41 PM

jeremy clarke
Be careful shopping at B & Q or using Nationwide as they both support shelter as do Tom Smiths who make Christmas crackers! money spent at these organisations is money used to promote anti-landlord propaganda by shelter!

From: jeremy clarke 04 August 2020 15:33 PM

jeremy clarke
I read the article in the Guardian, in my mind it had nothing to do with private landlords not accepting benefit claiming tenants but more to do with the failure of successive governments and local authorities to provide sufficient social housing. For those on the margins, the availability of social housing would solve their immediate problem of insufficient income, no guarantor, no credit history. If Polly really wants to do good (& I for one and not convinced she does) she needs to focus her energy on government and local authorities getting them to provide more social housing. The same local authorities also need the powers to enable them to move on people in social housing who no longer need it because they can afford to rent in the PRS or they can obtain a mortgage to buy so releasing social housing for the needy.

From: jeremy clarke 04 August 2020 13:06 PM

jeremy clarke
He says that as a result of the contact, his firm is currently working with 500 tenants and landlords with the consequence being a mix of reduced rents, agreed payment plans and, in some cases, cancelled rents altogether. In my mind, that is a lot of landlords who should be looking for another letting agent PDQ! We deal with c160 tenancies and have zero arrears, zero payment plans and 100% happy landlords!

From: jeremy clarke 04 August 2020 12:58 PM

jeremy clarke
Councils of course don't want landlords to evict tenants, good or bad because they simply do not have the facilities to accommodate. So short sighted because rather than working against landlords they need to be working with them to prevent a perfect storm of homeless unwanted tenants and some very good tenants as landlords slowly lose the will to provide the service that they currently provide to local councils and gov.

From: jeremy clarke 30 July 2020 09:40 AM

jeremy clarke
Ministers have signed off for their summer holidays without so much as a backward glance at all the LANDLORDS they have left in the lurch this summer … Let's get this into perspective, there is help out there for tenants in financial difficulties but nothing in place for landlords, time to redress the balance!

From: jeremy clarke 27 July 2020 07:46 AM

jeremy clarke
Shelter running out of money? Oh dear, never mind couldn't happen to a nice lot, you reap what you sow polly, now you know how agents and landlords feel as a result of the vindictive campaign against them.

From: jeremy clarke 24 July 2020 07:50 AM

jeremy clarke
How long before this clown is out of office and on his way to live in some communist country? Terrible record as mayor of London, enemy of every landlord he needs to just go away!

From: jeremy clarke 14 July 2020 08:42 AM

jeremy clarke
and those from so called charities such as shelter

From: jeremy clarke 13 July 2020 11:36 AM

jeremy clarke
Come on shelter, find something wrong with this survey apart from the fact that it wasn't done by you with the usual bias and hatred of the prs? Housed any homeless lately Polly?

From: jeremy clarke 13 July 2020 08:06 AM

jeremy clarke
Without private landlords, many of Thangam Debbonaire's constituents would be homeless, including hundreds of students. For years, since the introduction of this punitive tax landlords have been holding back,this could be the start of getting some confidence and goodwill back as far as landlords are concerned.

From: jeremy clarke 13 July 2020 08:03 AM

jeremy clarke
So, the lazy sods that live off the state permanently got a pay rise, millions were furloughed getting at least 80% of their wages with fewer places to spend money, those being made redundant will get state support. No reason why rents could not be paid other than malice and the knowledge that they could not be thrown out on the streets, yet this woman is still droning on?! Someone tell her to put a sock in it and start supporting landlords or her dear charges will find out what hardship is without a roof over their heads!

From: jeremy clarke 09 July 2020 08:17 AM

jeremy clarke
Make it simple, landlords present court with rent statement, if tenants are 2 month's rent in arrears court issues possession order for 14 days. 14 days later if arrears not cleared automatically issue order for bailiffs to attend in 7 days. Why all the messing about with notices,tenants know when they sign agreement that the deal is a home in exchange for rent?

From: jeremy clarke 02 July 2020 08:08 AM

jeremy clarke
In my opinion tenants need to know that they need to pay rent to keep the roof over their heads. If you take away the possibility of losing that roof it will lead to two things, firstly, tenants who would normally pay rent will stop and secondly landlords will sell up as soon as possible. Far better to campaign for a repayment method to sustain the tenancy. There is no room for these ultra left wing ideas when private enterprises are involved.

From: jeremy clarke 01 July 2020 07:52 AM

jeremy clarke
Shelter wants, shelter wants, shelter wants! Well how about landlords and agents want: shelter to house people and stop harassment of landlords, shelter to talk sense, not left wing gobbledygook!

From: jeremy clarke 29 June 2020 16:25 PM

jeremy clarke
So, local authorities that spend their time hounding private landlords and that waste millions on vanity schemes now want the same landlords to help them out?! This at a time when we all know that it's impossible to evict tenants. I hope that every landlord tells every local authority to stick their requests where the sun doesn't shine!

From: jeremy clarke 24 June 2020 07:57 AM

jeremy clarke
Given that we have known that this was coming for 2 years, why are people now panicking? We have always insisted on electrical checks, no valid reason for any landlords to refuse.

From: jeremy clarke 23 June 2020 08:17 AM

jeremy clarke
Keir starmer and success in the same sentence? Just shows how deluded these idiots really are.

From: jeremy clarke 22 June 2020 08:29 AM

jeremy clarke
The words arse and elbow spring to mind!

From: jeremy clarke 19 June 2020 12:12 PM

jeremy clarke
The Conservative party may be in government but they are not in charge, that is left to civil servants and pressure groups.

From: jeremy clarke 15 June 2020 11:28 AM

jeremy clarke
This is all beginning to sound like a labour party manifesto, everything free for everyone with no consequences!

From: jeremy clarke 11 June 2020 08:24 AM

jeremy clarke
David, a free hosing is exactly what they all need!

From: jeremy clarke 09 June 2020 08:53 AM

jeremy clarke
The loony lefties are everywhere, it seems that lack of respect for others, their property and history are high on their agendas. They are all part of the 'want it now and if I can't have it why should you have it' mob!

From: jeremy clarke 09 June 2020 08:16 AM

jeremy clarke
Why would anyone want to help councils that spend our hard earned taxes in this way yet continue to bash private landlords?

From: jeremy clarke 27 May 2020 08:00 AM

jeremy clarke
Citizens advice, say no more, just bedfellows with the so called grant grabbing shelter shower.

From: jeremy clarke 26 May 2020 18:21 PM

jeremy clarke
Although against HS2, I cannot wait for the engineers to start chopping down trees so these waste of oxygen protestors can go and climb trees and tie themselves to machinery a la Greenham Common. Then landlords can get on with proper landlording and tree huggers can concentrate on hugging trees once more!

From: jeremy clarke 22 May 2020 07:59 AM

jeremy clarke
What a f*****g cheek, who do these overfunded, overpaid, out of touch idiots think they are advising us how to run our businesses? If we are into giving advice, my advice to government is stop listening to and stop funding this farcical "charity " immediately. My advice to shelter is " do what it says on the tin" SHELTER/HOUSE PEOPLE and leave agents and landlords alone!

From: jeremy clarke 15 May 2020 11:03 AM

jeremy clarke
Labour under the "leadership?" of many clowns over the past years have wanted lots of things, let us all hope that they never ever see the light of day as anything other than "wants!"

From: jeremy clarke 11 May 2020 11:12 AM

jeremy clarke
The only tenants that will need to be evicted are those that have made no efforts to get help or simply took advantage of the situation. Of c150 tenancies we have zero rent arrears as we have good tenants who we have communicated with throughout and pointed in the direction of help. 99.9% of tenants understand the importance of a roof over their heads, the other 0.1% can be housed by Shelter!

From: jeremy clarke 11 May 2020 11:11 AM

jeremy clarke
Professor? Accountant? Sounds to me like he's just visiting earth and hasn't a clue, still the next rocket to take him back to the planet notaclue will be along very soon.

From: jeremy clarke 07 May 2020 08:03 AM

jeremy clarke
And what's this on page 34? Wipe the tenants a**e after they've had a s**t!

From: jeremy clarke 05 May 2020 11:03 AM

jeremy clarke
So, is there a break clause or not? Someone wants to go home and live with their mum doesn't equate to a break clause. We often have tenants who want to break a tenancy because of their circumstances and we would try and negotiate with the landlord, at the moment we wouldn't advise landlords to accept a request but they would have to permit if a break clause was in the agreement.

From: jeremy clarke 05 May 2020 11:02 AM

jeremy clarke
Come the revolution Wolfie! What utter b******s.

From: jeremy clarke 04 May 2020 07:45 AM

jeremy clarke
Good news for Bournemouth, hopefully common sense will prevail and the whole crazy, expensive idea will be shelved.

From: jeremy clarke 30 April 2020 08:12 AM

jeremy clarke
Does it really matter what anyone from labour thinks? They've been shown as a shower of idiot that haven't a clue, the mayor's days in office must surely be numbered having achieved nothing. Perhaps a taxpayer funded 1 way ticket to Venezuela should be voted on?

From: jeremy clarke 29 April 2020 12:27 PM

jeremy clarke
When will these creations disappear up their own ar***? No reason for any tenants not to pay rent, indeed those living off the state before covid 19 are getting more money from gov than they were without the stress of not having work. Gov are undertaking to assist all tenants to ensure rents are paid,

From: jeremy clarke 14 April 2020 14:52 PM

jeremy clarke
No mention of the cost incurred in running the scheme and the total fines collected? Bournemouth council issued £165,000 of civil penalties to landlords last year but only managed to actually collect about £30,000. What's the point?

From: jeremy clarke 08 April 2020 11:57 AM

jeremy clarke
Going to be a lot of tenants with county court judgements against them in a few months. No rent paid = no reference = take them to court/money online = CCJ = no credit or future tenancies for many years. Not so clever now are they!

From: jeremy clarke 08 April 2020 11:52 AM

jeremy clarke
This needs underwriting by government before all the freeloaders jump on board encouraged by shelter acorn et al who cannot wait to tell tenants to stop paying rent to screw landlords over.

From: jeremy clarke 18 March 2020 13:02 PM

jeremy clarke
Paul, very achievable but would seriously limit tenant selection, they would need to be squeaky clean to be considered and if a claim was made I suspect that they would be blacklisted forever and therefore could not be considered as future tenants. The social housing sector would then have to step up to the mark pretty quickly or there would have to be a cast iron gov guarantee system in place to protect future landlords.

From: jeremy clarke 18 March 2020 09:46 AM

jeremy clarke
For the future, it should be compulsory for tenants to take out protection insurance and for landlords to take rent and legal cover. At the moment the crazy tenant fee ban act prevents this, it should be amended to allow higher deposit and compulsory insurance. I am recommending all landlords cover themselves moving forward. If a tenant defaults on insurance cover then eviction should be possible to protect landlords.

From: jeremy clarke 18 March 2020 07:50 AM

jeremy clarke
Councils are just too busy prosecuting landlords that haven't paid to be licensed rather than trying to catch bad landlords.

From: jeremy clarke 06 March 2020 08:13 AM

jeremy clarke
Incredible that anyone in business can consider that paying a fee of a couple of hundred pounds to belong to an organisation is a better option than being fined £12,000! They deserve everything that they get.

From: jeremy clarke 05 March 2020 13:48 PM

jeremy clarke
Proof that being intelligent is not a guarantee of having common sense! Perhaps this foolish man should try not paying his mortgage for 3 months as a trial, if that works and the bank just say "no worries" then maybe he's onto something? Somehow I very much doubt that the banks will play ball!

From: jeremy clarke 05 March 2020 10:00 AM

jeremy clarke
My usual answers, the current system works well, most tenancies are ended by tenants rather than landlords. I'm sure that 99.9% of landlords would never seek to remove a good tenant from THEIR PROPERTY unless government had made it untenable to continue as a landlord or the landlord had reached a point in life where the property needed to be sold or occupied by a relative. Give me 3 reasons why a landlord would serve notice on a good tenant!

From: jeremy clarke 03 March 2020 08:08 AM

jeremy clarke
Am I missing something here? I always thought that to be a professor you had to be intelligent? How then, is this professor able to spout such absolute rubbish and show that he has just no clue about basic economics and the open market? These fools should make better use of their energy by looking at the problem ie the failure of consecutive governments to build anywhere near enough social housing to house these poor tenants and the suffocating legislation and costs that consecutive governments have burdened the PRS with!

From: jeremy clarke 26 February 2020 13:51 PM

jeremy clarke
Is there a petition to stop them getting any more funding? If so where do I sign?

From: jeremy clarke 24 February 2020 12:30 PM

jeremy clarke
Ih, the efficiency of the online agents, beg for funding, burn cash, beg for funding, burn cash, pay directors huge bonuses, fold. Repeat!

From: jeremy clarke 20 February 2020 08:30 AM

jeremy clarke
In my experience it is mainly the tenants that ask for the longer tenancies and then, a few months in, want out because they have split up or lost their jobs. Hopefully there will be a mechanism in place, maybe compulsory insurance for tenants that will ensure that the tenant has to either serve 6 months' notice or the policy pays out to the landlord.

From: jeremy clarke 13 February 2020 09:06 AM

jeremy clarke
Claire, I agree re the underwriting by these charities. The same applies to shelter who bang on all day about terrible landlords but never mention bad tenants. if bad tenants do not exist why don't shelter step up to the plate as guarantors?

From: jeremy clarke 10 February 2020 13:30 PM

jeremy clarke
Bournemouth is currently consulting on additional and selective licensing. 2 years ago they tried and decided instead to employ 14 staff at an annual cost of c£400,000 PA to target the worst areas. 2 years on and having "burnt" through £800,000 the staff employed have issued civil penalties totalling c£165,000 but have only managed to collect c£27,000! A vanity project which has cost tax payers almost £800,000 as the staff continue to collect salaries and pensions despite failing miserably. The council now want to employ yet another 14 staff.........!

From: jeremy clarke 07 February 2020 12:54 PM

jeremy clarke
Yet again a fine for not holding a licence. No mention of any issues with his properties. Surely licensing is about property improvement and standards which can be measured without a licence?

From: jeremy clarke 04 February 2020 07:47 AM

jeremy clarke
Thus 16 years after introduction of tdps yet gov plough on with more legislation? Why not get 1 thing right before introducing the next?

From: jeremy clarke 03 February 2020 08:27 AM

jeremy clarke
37,000 compliance actions,2,500 legal and fixed penalty notices and 250 landlord prosecutions, all of which could have been done by the council under existing legislation without licensing in place. So, tell me again why we need licensing?

From: jeremy clarke 03 February 2020 08:25 AM

jeremy clarke
No need at all for licensing. Bad landlords will continue to operate until caught and councils have more than enough legislation already to close down and prosecute the bad landlords. What does need to happen is a simple reward scheme for reporting the bad landlords. Offering say, £500 to an informant if the landlord that they report is prosecuted would be a much better use of resources, targeted and incentives ed!

From: jeremy clarke 24 January 2020 08:05 AM

jeremy clarke
Yet just this week Bournemouth council have started a consultation on selective licensing having had their previous bid for additional licensing turned down!

From: jeremy clarke 15 January 2020 07:51 AM

jeremy clarke
Good to see the RLA standing up for landlords when nobody else seems to be!

From: jeremy clarke 15 January 2020 07:46 AM

jeremy clarke
"Doesn't inconvenience landlords "! Says it all really, another organisation that cannot see beyond their own pay packet doesn't understand the PRS and has no idea what tenants need which is more landlords not fewer landlords!

From: jeremy clarke 08 January 2020 07:54 AM

jeremy clarke
Why are they still trying to get votes from those unlikely to vote for them, they have a majority and 5 years to sort out the important things rather than following this suicidal path? No mention here of head leases that don't allow pets, no mention of allergy risks for future tenants, no mention of anti social behaviour from barking dogs, no mention of the prospect of a higher deposit to offset risk, no mention of compulsory pet insurance, no mention of compulsory flea treatment at the end of tenancy so who have they consulted this time?

From: jeremy clarke 04 January 2020 08:04 AM

jeremy clarke
Yet another free advert for yet another no deposit scheme, if I send some editorial in, can I get free advertising?

From: jeremy clarke 03 January 2020 08:08 AM

jeremy clarke
As usual, give funding given out in an uncoordinated manner for local councils to p*** up the wall with no idea what they are doing and with no direction whilst most sit at their desks with their fingers up their a**** wiling away the time until they can claim their gold plated pension. Good news that Boris is looking to shake down the civil service but will be too late for many! Local authorities have had the tools to prosecute for years, why do they need more legislation to ignore? What is needed is some serious action against those councils who do nothing.

From: jeremy clarke 03 January 2020 08:06 AM

jeremy clarke
Signed

From: jeremy clarke 31 December 2019 08:57 AM

jeremy clarke
Perhaps this organisation should welcome agents and fight to restore the PRS to what it was before Gov broke it and penalised agents for making a living?

From: jeremy clarke 30 December 2019 08:09 AM

jeremy clarke
Surprised ARLA haven't suggested a naughty step, they should be fighting against this not coming up with pathetic ideas such as they have. Any landlord or agent can see where this will go wrong. Perhaps ARLA's mates at shelter would like to act as guarantors for tenants?

From: jeremy clarke 30 December 2019 08:07 AM

jeremy clarke
An absolute disgrace, this woman should have been sacked with no pension for the damage she has done to the PRS!

From: jeremy clarke 30 December 2019 08:02 AM

jeremy clarke
The question now is how many private landlords will be spooked by this announcement and will jump ship before the new rules are announced? In our area, very few "professional buy to let landlords " most have just one property often inherited which is set up to supplement pension. Many have been landlords for years and as more pressure is piled on them and uncertainty looms, lots are just giving up. This year 7 times more landlords have chosen to sell than in our previous 10 years of trading! All these do gooders will have egg on their faces if there are fewer landlords but the legislation exists! You reap what you sow!

From: jeremy clarke 20 December 2019 07:55 AM

jeremy clarke
Given the spineless fight that ARLA put up for their members over the Tenant Fee Ban Act, what possible interest could they have in any formal qualifications? Could it gave anything to do with £'ss? No, surely not? What we need as agents is an organisation that represents all, not just those who part with money to put a sticker in the windows and pay salaries for directors who have their own agenda and just bow down to every government suggestion. They should not assume that their qualifications and training will be the benchmark and they and other organisations should fight for a grandfathering regime to support those in our industry with many years experience.

From: jeremy clarke 19 December 2019 07:59 AM

jeremy clarke
Reap what you sow, be careful...... The more pressure put upon the private landlords and letting agents, the more that will leave and there is no easy alternative in a market that is already desperately short of housing to offer. With so much energy, these organisations would be better working with the industry rather than against it! Boris needs to reverse a lot of the wrongs that previous administration has forced upon landlords, encourage the prs and listen to those who provide, not the great unwashed who whip placards out and shout a lot .

From: jeremy clarke 16 December 2019 07:54 AM

jeremy clarke
ARLA and lobbying in the same sentence?

From: jeremy clarke 11 December 2019 07:51 AM

jeremy clarke
Will only work if it includes landlords. I work as an industry trainer and cannot believe the knowledge gaps that I encounter when training private landlords, who often have many years experience.

From: jeremy clarke 28 November 2019 08:12 AM

jeremy clarke
On those figures the council are collecting £8.64 million! What type of scheme costs that much to run and administer? 32,000 properties still to licence will bring in another £21 million making almost £30,000,000!!! Something wrong here, is diane abbot in charge of the accounts?

From: jeremy clarke 25 November 2019 11:01 AM

jeremy clarke
Isn't there a radio show called sorry I haven't a clue? Everyone in the Westminster bubble seems not to have a clue, red blue and now sick yellow all spouting the same nonsense and making the same inflated promises. The red mob earlier promising to build 370+ houses a day, where and with what?

From: jeremy clarke 21 November 2019 12:47 PM

jeremy clarke
Does anyone in Westminster understand how the rental market works? I've said before, MPs should have to trial things for 3 years before introducing more ill conceived legislation. Make the MPs be landlords accepting a tenant on one of these schemes and see how they react when the previous landlord tells them there is no deposit money left and they have no protection!

From: jeremy clarke 21 November 2019 08:11 AM

jeremy clarke
The issue runs far deeper than just abolishing S21. Central and local government need to concentrate on the provision of more housing rather than listening to organisations such as GR. After over 30 years in this business I can categorically say that no landlord wants to get rid of good tenants without good reason. S21 is used for many reasons because there is more certainty of possession. If the real reasons for possession were available then I suspect few would actually qualify for S21 but until the alternative works.... My plea to all of these organisations is to concentrate on working with the PRS rather than trying to destroy it. When it's gone, it's gone!

From: jeremy clarke 20 November 2019 07:59 AM

jeremy clarke
Yet again "no fault"! There is no such thing!

From: jeremy clarke 14 November 2019 07:59 AM

jeremy clarke
Unless your organisation is called shelter Westminster simply no longer listens.

From: jeremy clarke 14 November 2019 07:57 AM

jeremy clarke
Like they opposed the introduction of the tenant fee ban until someone said it might get them some votes? What would really work is the reversal of the ban along with reversal of taxation of landlords and some positive support for the PRS!

From: jeremy clarke 11 November 2019 07:47 AM

jeremy clarke
Ah, democracy in action! Ask the people so that the box has been ticked, then, totally ignore them!

From: jeremy clarke 28 October 2019 07:49 AM

jeremy clarke
This isn't news, it's an advert for which most publications would charge!

From: jeremy clarke 25 October 2019 10:03 AM

jeremy clarke
Somewhere along the way government all their highly paid advisers along with all these do good so called charities have lost sight of who owns the property! I'm certain that if the tables were turned and tenants became landlords overnight, they would never agree to this hatchet job on the PRS.

From: jeremy clarke 15 October 2019 08:39 AM

jeremy clarke
I see that shelter are publishing survey pages on twitter today encouraging people to support the scrapping of S21 with their usual one sided take on the situation. Polly and her pals are no longer charitable, they are political using funds given by government to influence government which is wrong. If the public knew that donations and grants from taxpayers were being used to destroy the PRS I'm certain that there would soon be calls to stop the grants and that donations would drop dramatically.

From: jeremy clarke 11 October 2019 08:26 AM

jeremy clarke
All these benefits need to be more strictly policed. Day in day out we see people in our office who have have come to rely on benefits and feel entitled to get them, why? If you are of working age, work! Put something back instead of take take take, now seeing second generation benefit users!

From: jeremy clarke 10 October 2019 08:00 AM

jeremy clarke
Tenant obviously has too much time on her hands to undertake all the Google "research", same tenant would probably argue with a doctor who told her she was not ill! One thing though from the full article in the newspaper; contractors should be asked not to offer an opinion to tenants when visiting, tenants latch onto anything and never let go.

From: jeremy clarke 09 October 2019 08:34 AM

jeremy clarke
Another race to the bottom agency that cheapens the real business of tenancy and property management. People are constantly berating the poor performance of "conveyancing factories " caused by cheap fees yet seem to want to push estate and letting agents in the same direction, why?

From: jeremy clarke 08 October 2019 07:57 AM

jeremy clarke
More Westminster muppets completely out of touch with reality banging their political drums to summon the great unwashed to vote for them. The crazy woman now in charge of this particular mob flip flops between ideas and doesn't even have a mandate to be an mp having swapped sides to protect herself irrespective of the views of those who elected her!

From: jeremy clarke 18 September 2019 15:05 PM

jeremy clarke
For goodness sake Corbett and the rest of you idiots at Westminster, the answer is build more Housing not crucifying landlords. Get your own house in order and leave ours alone!

From: jeremy clarke 17 September 2019 11:37 AM

jeremy clarke
Yet again politicians at Westminster failing to accept that current and past housing policies are to blame, not the private landlords! If Westminster had insisted on houses being built, had stopped introducing so much legislation and red tape and had not crucified landlords over tax, there would be no debate! Westminster look at yourselves for the solution and stop blaming others for your shortcomings.

From: jeremy clarke 12 September 2019 08:25 AM

jeremy clarke
Consultation? Rubbish, just some civil servants making sure that another box is ticked before introducing more unpopular unwanted unworkable red tape legislation. The consultations on previous housing matters have ignored the advice from those of us in the business, why would this be any different?

From: jeremy clarke 09 September 2019 08:10 AM

jeremy clarke
Just put a date in my diary for august 2020, by then ARLA should have managed their usual response of writing a letter saying that they are displeased and would like to schedule a meeting.

From: jeremy clarke 04 September 2019 07:53 AM

jeremy clarke
As with all communist regimes, those at the top do not care about what happens to the people on the streets, they care not about chaos because they have already planned their exit route. Once in power a commie leader and their cronies start to accumulate huge wealth none of which remains in the country that they are ruining, all in invested in sympathetic countries around the world ready for the big escape. All regime leaders are the same, do as I say not as I do is their mantra as they destroy once great countries. The only good thing is that this will strengthen the country's resolve to not vote for corbet and his puppets.

From: jeremy clarke 02 September 2019 08:04 AM

jeremy clarke
Ah, Mr and Mrs Smith strike again.

From: jeremy clarke 29 August 2019 08:17 AM

jeremy clarke
Here's an idea, make it a criminal offence if tenants do not pay rent or cause damage to a landlord's property and we might consider cooperation.

From: jeremy clarke 29 August 2019 08:14 AM

jeremy clarke
Yet another clueless set of comments from another organisation that has lost sight of the simple fact that the property belongs to the landlord!

From: jeremy clarke 22 August 2019 08:10 AM

jeremy clarke
The main issue with all government direction/legislation at the moment is that government always set their starting point as the tenant not being at fault whereas we as landlords and agents see it from a different perspective. Yes there are millions of great tenants who deserve to be treated well but there are those that are bad who need different treatment. If government persist in this abolition of Section 21 and do not have in place an efficient and effective method of landlords being able to repossess THEIR PROPERTIES from defaulting tenants they will be creating the perfect storm for landlords to leave the industry, tenants that cannot be removed from properties and a court system that will go into meltdown. On that basis, if removing S21 is what gov want to do they will need a whole new process in place to enable tenants to be removed and, in circumstances where damage is caused by tenants the ability to charge for criminal damage. Where rent arrears are the issue an instant CCJ must be attributed to all offending tenants. Once that is in place and tenants realise that prevarication will do them no good then S21 can be removed. Additionally local and central government need to be prepared to provide housing for all the unwanted tenants with criminal records and ccj against their name along with the growing number of tenants already struggling to find housing in a shrinking market sector!

From: jeremy clarke 14 August 2019 12:26 PM

jeremy clarke
Yet again interference with an industry by people who do not understand it. How on earth do you manage 150+ accounts as far as staff time is concerned and reconciling would be a nightmare. Is there even a software system that would cope?

From: jeremy clarke 08 August 2019 09:13 AM

jeremy clarke
I agree with Nic Chbat, this ongoing culture of wanting everything for nothing has to stop. It would be interesting to know what these tenants do for a living and whether anyone using their services would get away with simply not paying? With government departments trying to trip agents and landlords up by silently issuing new htr guides and rebellious tenant organisations promoting breaking the law as a "right" someone somewhere has to get a grip before it all goes badly wrong. My hope is that Boris J who seems to have more b***s than any PM since Mrs T, can be persuaded that without the prs the gov has serious housing issues and that he will reverse some of Theresa Mad's policies!

From: jeremy clarke 06 August 2019 09:11 AM

jeremy clarke
Pot calling the kettle black! It's really time that this so called charity was called to account for the harm they are doing to our industry and the tenants in general. Time that all government funding was withdrawn, let's see how long their over pad, ego inflated directors last once their fees, nay gifts from government dry up. Shame on you polly neate!

From: jeremy clarke 05 August 2019 08:13 AM

jeremy clarke
Failed London mayor tries yet another ruse to save his own skin whilst all around him the city is disappearing under a crime wave! The sooner this politically motivated individual goes the better, he hasn't got a clue about life, let's just hope that the voting public see him for what he really is and that he's never allowed near national politics.

From: jeremy clarke 22 July 2019 08:00 AM

jeremy clarke
He doesn't care, any way who in their right mind would vote for a failed mayor who ignores crime to concentrate on gender free toilets and banning advertising on tube stations?

From: jeremy clarke 19 July 2019 08:42 AM

jeremy clarke
Regulating tenants, now there's an idea . Has anyone suggested it to that shower in Westminster?

From: jeremy clarke 19 July 2019 08:40 AM

jeremy clarke
Four enquiries online this morning, all looking to move because their landlords have given notice because they are selling up. That in a small market town in just 1 day! Yes landlords are leaving in their droves.

From: jeremy clarke 18 July 2019 14:41 PM

jeremy clarke
Hopefully this will be the end of the useless self promoting folk at ARLA even a biased Gov report almost goes as far as saying that they are useless.

From: jeremy clarke 18 July 2019 14:38 PM

jeremy clarke
Unless I've missed something, unlike Wales, landlords are going to be able to trade without registration and licensing? I suspect that there are more landlords that need regulation than agents. Another half baked idea from a government with zero direction or understanding of anything other than drawing huge salaries and expenses whilst their pension pots grow at taxpayer's expense.

From: jeremy clarke 18 July 2019 07:56 AM

jeremy clarke
And what happens if the landlord doesn't pay the mortgage and property is repossessed?

From: jeremy clarke 16 July 2019 09:54 AM

jeremy clarke
We along with many others have seen an increase in applications. The quality of applications is certainly poorer and if it wasn't for a quite detailed pre-viewing questionnaire that we send out we would be wasting hours! Incidentally only about 50% of applicants return the pre-viewing questionnaire which says to me that the other 50% would not pass simple checks!

From: jeremy clarke 11 July 2019 09:40 AM

jeremy clarke
Amongst the landlords for whom we manage properties ,a figure c130 I know of none who have letting income as the main source of income. We have a proportion of landlords with maybe 1 or 2 properties who supplement their pensions whilst the majority of our landlords are contributing the income towards their retirement plans. The idea that landlords are fat cats living the high life is completely wrong in my opinion, many have just made sensible plans for the future so as not to become a burden on the state despite the tax input that they will have made by the time they get there. I put myself in this category and quite frankly am sick and tired of the way government treats us. Private landlords provide a much needed service when successive governments have failed.

From: jeremy clarke 03 July 2019 08:19 AM

jeremy clarke
Labour have to be the biggest threat to the future of our country, it seems that anything that anyone owns or does is up for grabs as far as they are concerned. Is their aim just to stifle success and close down the country by giving everything that those who have worked hard to achieve to the tree huggers and scroungers who live off of the state? However bad the other parties are, if labour ever came to power it would be nothing less than armageddon!

From: jeremy clarke 25 June 2019 07:57 AM

jeremy clarke
Unfair evictions? What are they? By the time a tenant has got to the point of being evicted, a highly paid, very qualified judge has looked at a case and decided that the tenant has wronged, the judge has issued a possession order which the tenant has defied. The landlord, having spent money getting to this point now has to spend more money and wait for court time so that another highly paid, very qualified judge can confirm the tenant has wronged and issue another order permitting the landlord to spend more money to employ the services of a bailiff to visit the property to get possession from the tenant that had wronged! The only unfair bits in the equation are, the time and money the landlord has to spend to get HIS/HER PROPERTY BACK FROM FROM AN ERRANT TENANT !

From: jeremy clarke 21 June 2019 07:57 AM

jeremy clarke
What also needs to change is local council attitudes. We are paying full council tax with no reduction at all whilst we refurbish a flat. 2 months without water/WC yet Bournemouth council consider it fully habitable. Irony is that it was occupied by a single tenant before we bought it and the tenant got a 25% reduction for single occupancy! Where's the logic?

From: jeremy clarke 18 June 2019 07:41 AM

jeremy clarke
Giving anything to local or central government is like tearing up £20 notes, they have no clue what they are doing - just look at the mess they have made of the tenant fee ban, they are accountable to nobody as civil servants and will continue to do things badly no matter what the cost! A search through old articles on here and Property Eye will reveal many councils that have tried and failed; I even reported one to its own trading standards when they gave out leaflets advertising their services at a landlord training day with all fees quoted ex-vat, they probably fined themselves and made council tax payers foot the bill!

From: jeremy clarke 14 June 2019 10:57 AM

jeremy clarke
A day later and the Web page is still trying to open! I can see how landlords and tenants will be impressed by this particular disruptor! Why are they getting page space on here?

From: jeremy clarke 13 June 2019 08:17 AM

jeremy clarke
Another biased organisation asking a biased list of questions and promoting the soundbite results! If 1 in 10 are unhappy, that means 9 in 10 are happy! At the end of the day the fault lies with successive governments failing to provide social housing to house those that cannot behave as tenants in the private sector.

From: jeremy clarke 05 June 2019 07:59 AM

jeremy clarke
"Effectively used as a form of insurance..." Therein lies one of the issues with tenants believing that they have taken out an insurance policy so they have no worries about damage and unpaid rents, they clearly have not! This is another PPI just waiting in the wings, waiting for the claims to roll in, the tenants to realise that their efforts to take zero responsibility for their own actions have failed, the landlords left exposed, the costs of the schemes going through the roof. Who is the winner?

From: jeremy clarke 28 May 2019 07:59 AM

jeremy clarke
Had the, so called, representatives of our industry stood up to the bullying tactics of government and pseudo charities in the first place then the industry and landlords would not now be in this position and platitudes such as this announcement by ARLA would not be needed. If ever there was an organisation guilty of closing the stable door after all the horses had disappeared over the horizon, this is it!

From: jeremy clarke 20 May 2019 07:51 AM

jeremy clarke
Is this guy a shareholder? Seems to have an advert in this column almost every day!

From: jeremy clarke 16 May 2019 08:05 AM

jeremy clarke
How about walking the walk rather than talking the talk because nobody I know believes a word that comes out of the mouths of politicians? It is way beyond the time that something as important as housing was removed completely from any government intervention and was controlled by people who understand our business and do not live anywhere near London!

From: jeremy clarke 14 May 2019 07:50 AM

jeremy clarke
I'll tell you for a tenner, get rid of shelter and the rest of the do Gooders, leave the agents and landlords alone and make local councils use the vast amounts of legislation that already exists! Then, make local authorities build housing instead of the hare brained schemes most waste money on. JOB DONE!

From: jeremy clarke 09 May 2019 08:06 AM

jeremy clarke
This government's attitude gets more like the Salem witch trials every day!

From: jeremy clarke 24 April 2019 08:17 AM

jeremy clarke
It seems nowadays that nobody is allowed to make a mistake without fear of being reported to the press. No mention of how the story went through internal complaints procedure, if it was even used?

From: jeremy clarke 23 April 2019 07:54 AM

jeremy clarke
Given that some tenants struggle when it comes to the simple tasks in life such as changing a light bulb - had one recently who reported the fridge not working - light bulb needed replacing, how on earth would they cope with tasks such as fitting a kitchen? I suspect they would ask daddy!

From: jeremy clarke 18 April 2019 13:05 PM

jeremy clarke
Do journalists and politicians realise that the UK includes the area outside of London? It seems that few can be bothered to look or investigate and we end up with completely London centric legislation!

From: jeremy clarke 18 April 2019 08:21 AM

jeremy clarke
Let's hope that the Neate woman is next!

From: jeremy clarke 18 April 2019 08:14 AM

jeremy clarke
The headline was banning S21, the issue is not so much to do with S21 more to do with S8. Very few landlords use the S21 for a no fault eviction process, most use S21 for other reasons such as rent arrears breach of tenancy because the S8 process is not fit for purpose. S8 is rife with pitfalls, loopholes and opportunities for the tenants that know the system (& "charities") to exploit. Delays cost landlords money and there is often no recourse on the offending tenants so landlords take a view that at least S21 gives them certainty; they write off any tenant debts just to get the property back. S21 & S8 do not need 'tinkering with', they need a total review! A landlord must be able to get the property back either when the landlord wants it (sale, move in, for relative etc) but also when tenant defaults. Any new S8 grounds must be able to be actioned quickly to prevent huge losses to the landlord, say within 14 days for rent arrears?(After June 1st, landlords become the cheapest way for tenants to borrow money, a tenant with a rent of say £1,000 pcm can only be charged interest on the debt at 3% above base rate after 14 days - effectively 10p a day! Where else can you borrow money at those rates?) In addition, when the tenants owe the landlord money for rent, repairs etc. the tenant must immediately, without any further court action receive a County Court Judgement for the debt; if the tenant owes rent they must not be given Carte Blanc to go and do it again to another landlord. A central register which can be accessed by landlords and agents which shows all offending tenants must be produced. In my opinion, if a tenant discovers that he/she/they are going to get a CCJ, it will focus their minds and moderate their behaviour. So, this means radical changes to the court system with accessible court time for landlords and penalties on the system if it cannot perform; if the courts had to say, pay the landlords' rent and costs for any delayed time then landlords might not mind waiting. At the moment the biggest issue with landlords taking tenants to court via S8 is the uncertainty and the time delay - RESOLVE THAT FIRST BEFORE EVEN TALKING ABOUT BANNING S21!

From: jeremy clarke 16 April 2019 11:19 AM

jeremy clarke
As with other consultations, fee ban, longer tenancies, they are just ticking a box which they then just ignore!

From: jeremy clarke 16 April 2019 11:16 AM

jeremy clarke
At least the penalties are more palatable, the fines here in England are obscene and totally disproportionate and I bet that in 3 years time the honest agents will be struggling and the crooks will be carrying on regardless!

From: jeremy clarke 10 April 2019 07:59 AM

jeremy clarke
With the 2016 Housing and Planning Act and all the other legislation available to the councils there is absolutely no reason for licensing.

From: jeremy clarke 05 April 2019 13:14 PM

jeremy clarke
No doubt the same answer would be elicited if buyers were asked a similar question. "Would you take a mortgage if you didn't have to contribute a penny?" We all remember how the 100+% mortgages worked out!

From: jeremy clarke 29 March 2019 08:18 AM

jeremy clarke
How long before the deposit scheme arbitration services collapse under the sheer volume of cases as landlords try to do it themselves and fight for every penny? The fee ban will have far reaching consequences, not least the number of landlords cutting corners to mitigate additional cost. Had organisations such as ARLA & NALS & RICS stood up for their members and put up a fight we might not be in this situation!

From: jeremy clarke 27 March 2019 08:46 AM

jeremy clarke
Councils should stick to what the public expect of them. Every council receives millions of pounds each year from council tax, grants business rates and other sources, the money should be spent wisely. Our local council has just announced the appointment of a ceo on a salary of almost £450,000 pa yet this year our street have not been weeded or swept, our council tax has increased and all they talk about is budget cuts! Get on with collecting rubbish, sweeping and weeding street, repairing roads and pavements, providing basis services to the old young and vulnerable . If there's any money left over at the end of the day, invest it do not waste it on vanity projects!

From: jeremy clarke 27 March 2019 08:41 AM

jeremy clarke
This from a s**t shower of politicians who couldn't organise a p**s up in a brewery spending all day every day arguing with each other whilst making up rules for industries that they know nothing about.

From: jeremy clarke 26 March 2019 08:05 AM

jeremy clarke
Paul Barrett, CMP is the answer, compulsory for all agents from 1st April but no doubt as in any industry there will will be those that operate below the radar! Possession friend UK, let's hope that her poor credit history and conviction means that she can never rent a property via a reputable agency or landlord.

From: jeremy clarke 19 March 2019 08:11 AM

jeremy clarke
3 1/2 years!! That means she earned c £70,000 a year dishonestly, more than I earn honestly, she'll be out in 18 months at most - what message does that send to others??

From: jeremy clarke 18 March 2019 14:46 PM

jeremy clarke
Pets!? Government says no by restricting security deposits!

From: jeremy clarke 08 March 2019 07:39 AM

jeremy clarke
Another creative scheme to compensate for the loss of tenant fees?

From: jeremy clarke 26 February 2019 11:05 AM

jeremy clarke
So, the tax operative, border control, civil service assistant legal expert agents and landlords now need to become NHS staff too? Unpaid?

From: jeremy clarke 21 February 2019 08:06 AM

jeremy clarke
Is it me or is this sounding like a cartel already? £350 + vat is exactly the figure I've been quoted by NALS, up from £174 last year! Seems us good agents who have always had cover are carrying the can for the expected issues from those agents who have dodged paying for years and the issues that will arise!

From: jeremy clarke 20 February 2019 07:55 AM

jeremy clarke
Exactly the sort of landlord that legislation is designed for but why has it taken 20 months to get to court? Landlords like this are the ones that give good landlords a bad name. In the case, legislation that is 30 years old therefore should be known to all a good case for a specific housing court, offend, report, charge, should be almost no delays.

From: jeremy clarke 19 February 2019 08:14 AM

jeremy clarke
I hear that Venezuela is looking for a new leader, lent of tenants to protect over there rather than screwing over working people and individual landlords over here for 15 seconds of fame!

From: jeremy clarke 14 February 2019 08:00 AM

jeremy clarke
Was the landlord's name Mr Smith or Jones?

From: jeremy clarke 08 February 2019 07:59 AM

jeremy clarke
I think I need to get a job as a civil servant! 5 pages of fiction, complete ignorance of the lettings industry as usual. When will go learn that most landlords and agencies steer away from tenants who in this report's words "struggle to afford the initial costs of renting ". Running a property is an ongoing cist to everyone be they tenants or owners, it's all about budgeting! Imagine the council's view if, having moved into a house, I said sorry I'm struggling, can't afford to pay the council tax! We will be moving later in the spring, we are already budgeting that move, why does go have to interfere??

From: jeremy clarke 04 February 2019 08:24 AM

jeremy clarke
ARLA back from their holidays? If they had grown some b***s 3 years ago and put up a fight for their members perhaps we wouldn't be in such a mess now!

From: jeremy clarke 31 January 2019 08:22 AM

jeremy clarke
Generally we see more safety issues in the homes of first time landlords when they come to us to let for the first Tim. Why not enforce across the board and include all homeowners? A simple gas and electric check every year to be lodged and available at point of sale, enforced by a financial penalty if neglected.

From: jeremy clarke 30 January 2019 08:44 AM

jeremy clarke
As long as it's free for all users including agents and landlords too otherwise it will be abused!

From: jeremy clarke 30 January 2019 08:41 AM

jeremy clarke
Yea, free water, free gas, free electric, no council tax, no rent, free unicorns! Get in the real world woman, all your posturing and shouting is going to lead to fewer landlords entering the PRS more landlords leaving the PRS, agents losing their jobs and, ultimately rents rising through less choice and more legislation for landlords. Happy now? Still, I expect your salary is safe, your pension underwritten by the tax payer and your organisation protected by millions in grants from the tax payer!

From: jeremy clarke 28 January 2019 08:06 AM

jeremy clarke
Just wait until said students want to get a mortgage from a bank, then they'll know what being ripped off is, arrangement Fees north of £1500, rates increasing after first period, 0800 numbers to call the bank......

From: jeremy clarke 21 January 2019 08:07 AM

jeremy clarke
Stable horse bolted! Should have worked harder and earlier to fight for agents rather than lying down and playing dead at the first hurdle and letting shelter run the show!

From: jeremy clarke 16 January 2019 07:59 AM

jeremy clarke
I hope that all their landlords have agreed and signed new terms of business! I still think the no deposit industry is too young and untested to throw all your eggs in one basket; we intend to trial with a few landlords and tenants before considering.

From: jeremy clarke 15 January 2019 08:10 AM

jeremy clarke
Angry tenant? Never mind, they'll still get the deposit back despite the obvious damage!

From: jeremy clarke 10 January 2019 07:50 AM

jeremy clarke
SO, CALL CENTRE AGENTS THAT HAVE NO OFFICES YET PUBLISH MULTIPLE TELEPHONE NUMBERS??

From: jeremy clarke 09 January 2019 10:19 AM

jeremy clarke
Ah, Messrs Smith Jones and White strike again!

From: jeremy clarke 04 January 2019 08:00 AM

jeremy clarke
Oooo, a disruptor, never seen one of those before! I expect the business will soon be valued at 11 billionth pounds and the begging bowl will be out!

From: jeremy clarke 04 January 2019 07:58 AM

jeremy clarke
In the last year, our small agency has had c12 tenants wanting to leave before end of fixed term, 3 just a few months into agreement compared with zero landlords wanting tenancies to end early. Insisting on longer tenancies without imposing significant penalties for tenants is madness. Regarding rent caps, landlords increasing rents is up to 80% from about 30% previously; without exception landlords are merely recouping additional costs that they have incurred from government intervention such as paying more tax. This will continue as basic economics show that increasing cost to the supplier (landlord) along with reducing supply to the customer (tenant) leads to an increased cost to the customer (tenant)!

From: jeremy clarke 27 December 2018 08:35 AM

jeremy clarke
3 year tenancies would be interesting in these scenarios?

From: jeremy clarke 13 December 2018 08:11 AM

jeremy clarke
Makes me wonder why I bother to have staff doing a perfectly good job - we have zero arrears and a great lady in accounts! Why would I want to replace her with a computer programme??

From: jeremy clarke 11 December 2018 10:21 AM

jeremy clarke
I went to a property 3 weeks ago, landlord from S Africa over to renovate, almost finished. Agreed terms and advised re legislation and overseas etc. Seemed happy, terms left for signature appointment today to measure and photo as landlord dropped keys in over weekend. Call from neighbour to say that they have found a tenant themselves for the landlord, viewed it Thursday, moved in yesterday! Good luck with that then #references? RTR?gas record? ?deposit. When I met the landlord he hadn't a clue about the way it works in the UK, what made him & his neighbour experts overnight?? It will not end well.

From: jeremy clarke 11 December 2018 10:19 AM

jeremy clarke
Just more proof that we are no longer governed but those that hold that title just roll over every time they are bullied! Has anyone in government got any balls any more?

From: jeremy clarke 11 December 2018 07:53 AM

jeremy clarke
I'm quite sure that tenants do not yet understand how serious this is, they soon will! Moving forward, our tenancy agreement makes it very clear now that rent arrears will not be tolerated, that no reference will be given whilst there are any arrears and that all arrears left at close of tenancy will be dealt with via HMG money online. I shall be advising land Lords that we will recover damages and cleaning from deposit and then applying online for all documented arrears. The process is quick, costs £25 and gives the offender the option of paying up or receiving a CCJ. It may clog up the court system but we work for our landlords and ourselves, not this pathetic excuse of a government.

From: jeremy clarke 06 December 2018 08:25 AM

jeremy clarke
Well, in truth, most landlords would describe MPs in the same way!

From: jeremy clarke 26 November 2018 08:21 AM

jeremy clarke
Does shelter do any charity work any more with the millions that they get each year?

From: jeremy clarke 19 November 2018 08:11 AM

jeremy clarke
Next there will be a fund that tenants can use to pay for lawyers! Is there a plan to enable landlords to be fully recompensed when tenants "go bad?" Currently dealing with DPS tenant left without cleaning or clearing a property, left damaged doors and carpets - cost landlord over £800 to put right. Tenant objected to the claim and the date for adjudication was 21 September - we are still awaiting decision from DPS!!! In addition landlord lost 2 weeks in rent while we organised repairs and cleaning!

From: jeremy clarke 29 October 2018 11:24 AM

jeremy clarke
If you cannot survive in the real world, become a Councillor or a consultant!

From: jeremy clarke 23 October 2018 11:31 AM

jeremy clarke
Imho the deposit schemes are the biggest culprits, ignoring time frames, giving tenants extra time to present evidence and other delays. We've currently a case submitted in July with full evidence where the tenant deadline expired 5 weeks ago and still the case is with the adjudicator with no way of knowing how long our landlord will have to wait to get back money for cleaning damage and rent arrears?

From: jeremy clarke 23 October 2018 08:12 AM

jeremy clarke
Never mind, that nice lady from shelter will take them all in to her house, she loves them all and apparently they are better company than nasty landlords!

From: jeremy clarke 15 October 2018 08:22 AM

jeremy clarke
What a load of b*****t! Try asking 100 landlords the same question I guarantee you would not get the same answer. Faced with the option of anything for free people will jump at the chance, look at how many students got excited when corbet promised them free everything at the last General Election! How much is this chap Jagota paying for his editorials that appear in LAT about once every 10 days? I and many others have businesses that we would like to promote this frequently, please explain how we go about getting free advertising

From: jeremy clarke 18 September 2018 10:34 AM

jeremy clarke
Have we got another new housing minister? Who is she?

From: jeremy clarke 13 September 2018 14:19 PM

jeremy clarke
Why stop at btl landlords? If it's going to be done, include all landlords in both private and public sector. I suspect that there are as many issues in the public/social sector as prs.

From: jeremy clarke 11 September 2018 08:19 AM

jeremy clarke
You would still need to protect unless the tenancy agreement is well worded. A deposit being any monies not immediately due under the tenancy agreement!

From: jeremy clarke 04 September 2018 09:27 AM

jeremy clarke
These schemes all sound lovely and fluffy for tenants who, it seems, more people daily think should have their hands held and be protected from the nasty landlords. I suspect however that once this new disruptive industry discovers that not all tenants wear halos, the cost of cover will increase. You only need to look at car insurance premiums after a freezing winter to see the effect. Tenants need to "buy into" tenancies and take responsibility rather than chanting the mantra of it being someone else to blame!

From: jeremy clarke 04 September 2018 08:14 AM

jeremy clarke
And they've taken how much notice on other consultations? Tenant fee ban - ZERO. Deposit caps - ZERO. S24 - ZERO.

From: jeremy clarke 23 August 2018 14:57 PM

jeremy clarke
I have emailed the Polly woman a link to this page/thread also sent it to her twitter account (no doubt run by a flash London agency!) so that she can see the amount of bad feeling that she has caused by her reckless and thoughtless actions. Let's see if she bothers to reply.

From: jeremy clarke 22 August 2018 13:46 PM

jeremy clarke
Polly Neate of shelter who earns £12,000 a month really has her finger on the pulse of how life works in the real world - NOT! As I have suggested on many occasions, these do gooders need to trial things before trying to slag off this industry! Polly, get yourselves some benefit tenants and report back in a year or so when your tenant is behind with rent and the council are advising the tenant to wait until eviction, see if your ideas are the same then!

From: jeremy clarke 22 August 2018 07:59 AM

jeremy clarke
Usual drivel from these unwanted organisations! I am a landlord, I am self-employed. I purchased a property to rent out such that I have some sort of pension when I retire. When I do retire I will sell my rental property, not because I hate tenants (my tenant is brilliant!), not because I want to wind up generation rent et al but simply because it is my property and I will do what I choose with it! If there is a sniff of Section 21 being done away with, I will immediately serve notice and sell up before I retire. It may be that a FTB buys the property, it may be another BTL landlord -but I very much doubt that, as organisations such as shelter & generation rent are doing their best to ensure that the PRS is destroyed and government are just rolling over and letting these organisations tickle their tummies in the hope that it gains votes at the ballot box - THINK AGAIN!

From: jeremy clarke 21 August 2018 09:56 AM

jeremy clarke
There is no reason why deposits cannot be promptly returned, the only time issues arise generally is when tenants have not complied with tenancy such as non payment of rent or poor cleaning. In those instances deposit would not be returned under any scheme until arbitration. Passport of deposit would encounter same issues, tenants just need to understand that if they comply and follow the rules the period of "double deposit " need only be a matter of days.

From: jeremy clarke 13 August 2018 08:21 AM

jeremy clarke
In my experience properties that are unfit for human habitation during a tenancy are where the tenants have caused the issues. Why would a landlord want an unfit property, especially with the threat of action and prosecution under the already existing and overbearing legislation policed by local authorities?

From: jeremy clarke 03 August 2018 08:17 AM

jeremy clarke
I'm happy to see these guys getting inventories mandated as long as they agree to do them foc. If we cannot charge fees why should they?

From: jeremy clarke 30 July 2018 14:30 PM

jeremy clarke
Nothing says that agents and landlords cannot submit their rental horror stories! I have, and I'm sure every agent and landlord has a horror story to tell about tenants and the health and safety issues they cause!

From: jeremy clarke 18 July 2018 08:39 AM

jeremy clarke
Either his batch of whacky baccy was off or he's completely lost the plot! What I have said before and will say again is that those who propose these ridiculous ideas should have to pilot them for at least 5 years before trying to force others into unworkable ways! On the 3 year tenancies, tenant 4 months into a 12 month tenancy phoned in last week to give notice because he's buying a house, got a bit upset when I advised 8 months to go! Nobody can plan 3 years ahead!

From: jeremy clarke 16 July 2018 08:17 AM

jeremy clarke
When will shelter just f*** off and get on with housing the homeless instead of sticking their bloody noses into everyone else's business?

From: jeremy clarke 10 July 2018 11:42 AM

jeremy clarke
Who is pulling the strings on this bloody government? It seems not a month passes without yet another misinformed and unneeded edict comes along putting further nails in the coffin that is the PRS!

From: jeremy clarke 04 July 2018 08:17 AM

jeremy clarke
Very soon the conservatives as we have known them will have completely disappeared replaced by red shirts playing The Red Flag at party conference with speakers from Russia, Venezuela and the labour party!

From: jeremy clarke 02 July 2018 08:16 AM

jeremy clarke
More evidence that nobody in government has a clue! In my experience most tenants and landlords want longer tenancies but both sides need flexibility. In the past year 4 tenants wanting to break contracts because of relationship breakdown. 3 landlords wanting to break contracts to allow sons and daughters to move in because of relationship breakdown! Are gov saying that tenants would have to honour tenancy even though cannot live together??

From: jeremy clarke 01 July 2018 08:35 AM

jeremy clarke
337% means nothing without a staring figure! This is numbers straight out of the Diane Abbott school of mathematics!

From: jeremy clarke 29 June 2018 08:33 AM

jeremy clarke
Ah Messrs Smith, Jones and Baker caught out again!

From: jeremy clarke 15 June 2018 08:35 AM

jeremy clarke
Lots of talk about business models. The fact is that everyone who has entered the lettings industry over the past say, 15 years has calculated their lives on the basis of the industry business practices. Gov pressurised by so called charities then decide it is their place to turn over those business practices /business plans which will affect all! Imagine the uproar if tomorrow every ticket agency was told by Gov that they could only sell tickets at face value and couldn't charge postage! An accepted business plan overturned and businesses no longer making profit - sounds like corbynism by the back door. On another note, I'm guessing that Miss W has no office/premises /staff overheads? !

From: jeremy clarke 31 May 2018 08:05 AM

jeremy clarke
Plus VAT!? Better call trading standards!

From: jeremy clarke 23 May 2018 07:46 AM

jeremy clarke
Why can everyone not just let the market decide? In my experience it is always tenants who want to break contract and leave early, I can recall maybe 1 landlord in past 10 years that has asked the question. Truth is, from a landlord's perspective the longer a tenant remains and fulfils contract the better, no more meddling required!

From: jeremy clarke 18 May 2018 08:24 AM

jeremy clarke
Cannot see the problem, pay the deposit, comply with tenancy, get deposit back = zero cost. Pay a fee for not paying a deposit, comply with tenancy, costs money!

From: jeremy clarke 15 May 2018 07:44 AM

jeremy clarke
So, a political party who insist that they will tax all businesses to extinction, who do not want any business to make a profit and who base all policies on borrowing every penny that they spend is going to provide thousands of properties? Who will they get to build them then? Can't think of my builders who would do it for nothing and pay more tax for the privilege can you?

From: jeremy clarke 23 April 2018 07:39 AM

jeremy clarke
Shelter, for themselves, their agenda, their own pockets and the ruination of letting agents and private landlords! If the public only knew how little they do for the homeless and how much they pocket for themselves!

From: jeremy clarke 09 April 2018 08:08 AM

jeremy clarke
Just one question for all letting agents out there. How many times in the past 5 years has a prospective tenant complained, walked away from your office or refused to take a property because of fees? At our office we are struggling to recall any but we can list 6 or 7 who have paid fees and then disappeared without taking the property or requesting repayment of fees! So, is the payment of fees an issue at all?

From: jeremy clarke 04 April 2018 08:14 AM

jeremy clarke
Why? Why insist on landlords and agents having to verify themselves and pay for the privilege whereas tenants can just continue to spout venom FOC? I hope sites like this disappear up their own a********

From: jeremy clarke 08 March 2018 15:11 PM

jeremy clarke
With the new powers under Housing & Planning 2016 and with councils able to levy penalty fines of up to £30,000 which they will retain for investment I suspect that more local authorities will "wake up". Once they do then hopefully landlords will understand that they need to be compliant or use a professional agent to ensure compliance.

From: jeremy clarke 16 February 2018 12:09 PM

jeremy clarke
Try asking the same number of tenants after they have rented direct from landlords and see what the response is! Came across a tenant recently who had rented from a private landlord for 9 years, landlord had not visited, had undertaken no maintenance and no gas record undertaken for the whole period. Using a professional agent should at least mean that tenants are treated well and landlords comply with increasing legislation; how many landlords for example are ready for changes in HMO licensing?

From: jeremy clarke 16 February 2018 07:54 AM

jeremy clarke
Time for ARLA NALS et al to really do some proper work and start engaging with agents that are not members and getting a fair deal for agents. I suggested ARLA contact all non members and was basically ignored so I've decided not to pay my ARLA fees this year. Locally to us no other agent belongs to ARLA or NALS and in discussions most think that the idea of fee ban is either shelved or won't happen therefore they have done nothing about fighting their corners. Given that in the consultation only 32% of respondents were agents that number needs to increase dramatically to show government that our industry is needed and should not be trampled over.

From: jeremy clarke 10 January 2018 13:02 PM

jeremy clarke
Wouldn't it be nice if agents could tell mps what they think of shelter?

From: jeremy clarke 08 January 2018 08:16 AM

jeremy clarke
Shelter? Enough said! Is j avid looking over his shoulder yet, must be about time for a new housing minister? Ps could we in the industry have one that listens to experts and common sense rather than being swayed by whining charities?

From: jeremy clarke 05 January 2018 07:59 AM

jeremy clarke
So another council pledges to squander rate payer's money to set up a letting agency! Ethical? Just because fees are published doesn't make it ethical and making wooly promises before the doors are open is just so easy! Anyone can start a business if they don't have to worry about costs and overheads, how many councils have tried and failed at this now leaving vast black holes of costs? Councils would be better advised to spend public money ensuring that their houses were in order and that they were out in the field enforcing current legislation.

From: jeremy clarke 05 January 2018 07:55 AM

jeremy clarke
If the council, the waste company and the agent know that there are only 2 bins available and that is insufficient then the waste company needs to provide more bins to the property. No doubt the local council police the collection schedule so they need to liaise with the tenants and educate on usage. The agent then might have a chance of keeping on top of things but without the tools and the direction the problem will persist.

From: jeremy clarke 04 January 2018 09:02 AM

jeremy clarke
The only way to fix the broken housing market is to keep government well out of it! Set up a housing committee and take on board expert advice and ignore the self serving "charities" who shout to justify their own directors salaries and nothing more!

From: jeremy clarke 04 January 2018 08:35 AM

jeremy clarke
Sorry should read gas record

From: jeremy clarke 30 November 2017 08:11 AM

jeremy clarke
Short term maybe but once the deposit disputes kick in or tenants fail to move out.... Approached by let only landlord last month asking if we would take over management of his flat where we put tenant in 9 years ago.he hadn't been in the flat all that time, the last has record was the one that we did when tenant moved in!

From: jeremy clarke 30 November 2017 08:10 AM

jeremy clarke
A good tenant who adheres to the rules of the tenancy, pays all rent up to date and leaves the property clean and undamaged will get full deposit back = zero cost to tenant. So where's the problem? Tenants know the rules before during and at the end of a tenancy so it only goes wrong if they break the rules, who's to blame therefore if deposits are lost?

From: jeremy clarke 13 November 2017 08:04 AM

jeremy clarke
I drafted a letter which about 80 of my landlords signed, each letter was personal from landlord to their own MPS. All in all approximately 35 different MPS , of those MPS who bothered to reply, 16 in total the letter that they sent to my landlords was exactly the same letter. Just proves to me that government have no interest in listening.

From: jeremy clarke 06 November 2017 18:05 PM

jeremy clarke
Of course they won't! I suggest that every agent and every member of staff posts a paper copy of their CV without a stamp to the housing minister and let him/her/whoever has the job this week decide what training we need!

From: jeremy clarke 01 November 2017 13:12 PM

jeremy clarke
Here it is folks! Tough on tenants who require guarantors or who have pets, cannot see why any agent or landlord will take them without deposit security or why they would "absorb" the cost of yet more checks on guarantors? Poorly thought through, ignorant of all "consultation" and industry experts! https://thenegotiator.co.uk/draft-tenant-fees-bill-published/

From: jeremy clarke 01 November 2017 11:40 AM

jeremy clarke
That may work unless landlords require something like rent guarantee in which case the checks will need to comply. We are always very diligent but we get tenants leaving our properties and going to properties with other agents or private landlords where we are not even approached for any type of reference; frustrating when our tenant tells us that they've paid £400 or so for referencing and admin! I can see some agents and landlords not bothering at all and the courts will get clogged up with landlords trying to get properties back from tenants not paying rent et al!

From: jeremy clarke 01 November 2017 11:16 AM

jeremy clarke
Ill conceived from day 1! Why would a tenant be hit by surprise fees? There is legislation already to prevent this and to prosecute those who choose to comply; that is of course, if you can get anyone from trading standards/local council away from their cosy offices to do anything! Certainly our local TSO (25 miles away) cannot be arsed! Any legislation needs to be enforced before introducing even more and regardless of that the agents & landlords who currently ignore legislation will continue to do so, often dealing with the vulnerable tenants who government want to protect! I just hope that very soon government realise that you cannot keep bashing away and interfering with a business that generally works well and expect it to continue performing well as well as undertaking more and more tasks imposed by government. There are many other industries such as mortgage companies, car hire firms, car leasing firms, holiday companies, lawyers, banks.... all of which need policing far more than an industry that affects a lower proportion of society! I suspect that more people have gripes about booking holidays or concert tickets than have gripes about paying a small amount of money to ensure a roof over their heads!

From: jeremy clarke 01 November 2017 10:35 AM

jeremy clarke
I know, said a voice from a darkened room in Westminster, let's give councils more legislation rather than less. That way we as government can say "we've done our bit, it's local councils who are failing".

From: jeremy clarke 31 October 2017 08:23 AM

jeremy clarke
What these figures say to me is that 98.5% of tenants want their deposits back and make an effort to get them back whereas with an insurance/fee based scheme 100% of tenants would get no money back at all! Doesn't make any sense to me at all so why would it make sense to tenants, especially those who look forward to getting their deposits back.

From: jeremy clarke 30 October 2017 07:59 AM

jeremy clarke
For a company that only opened in 2014? These are Burple *ricks type statistics! Did they start tenancies a year before they opened? Baa!

From: jeremy clarke 24 October 2017 08:17 AM

jeremy clarke
Likewise, here in Christchurch rents are strong, demand is high but supply is pitiful! Currently leading to agents taking on property at any price to get instructions - a corporate recently listed a property at £1450 pcm, it was reduced 3 times over a period of 6 weeks before final listing at £1050 showing as let. When we first saw it we discussed it in the office and concluded that £1000 pcm would have been right so looks like landlord waited 6 weeks to get £50 extra a month!! If the property is well presented and the price is right it will let in a week.

From: jeremy clarke 09 October 2017 11:52 AM

jeremy clarke
Usual clap trap looking to take our country back to the 1970's. Unfortunately most of his sheep are too young to remember those terrible years under labour then or the latest attempt by labour to govern and by the time they find out it will be too late. Suggest that they google housing conditions pre 1988 and then think again!

From: jeremy clarke 27 September 2017 14:39 PM

jeremy clarke
Is that corbet bloke still alive? Thought he'd emigrated to Venezuela?

From: jeremy clarke 20 September 2017 08:33 AM

jeremy clarke
Oh well, it'll be fine when agents cannot charge a fee because they have neither time or staff to do such checks, at least each tenancy will be founded on the same thin ice! You reap what you sow!

From: jeremy clarke 14 September 2017 08:13 AM

jeremy clarke
Not that many actually complaining about the fees then? The way shelter and government are hounding agents you'd have thought that millions of tenants were complaining!

From: jeremy clarke 15 August 2017 17:56 PM

jeremy clarke
Yawn!

From: jeremy clarke 09 August 2017 08:08 AM

jeremy clarke
If words were cake then shelter would be complaining about the sugar and calorie content!

From: jeremy clarke 31 July 2017 15:51 PM

jeremy clarke
I agree completely, it seems that their mission in life nowadays is to create as many issues that they can to destroy the PRS! Unfortunately they have the ear of someone in government who listens to them and ignores logic and reason from elsewhere. One day it'll dawn on them and hopefully, they will all lose their overpaid jobs, maybe then someone in the PRS will refuse them housing as payback!

From: jeremy clarke 31 July 2017 15:49 PM

jeremy clarke
Perhaps hackney council should concentrate on licencing the 200 or so HMO s under the mandatory scheme that, according to its own Web site are out there and not yet licenced rather than focussing on vote grabbing headlines. Surely more tenants are affected by possible poor quality unlicensed properties?

From: jeremy clarke 31 July 2017 08:15 AM

jeremy clarke
Usual head up arse response from shelter who clearly have only one thing on their agenda which is themselves. They and their former chief bullshitter who has gone elsewhere to spread his poisonous lies need to be exposed for what they are, evil one sided lobbyists!

From: jeremy clarke 28 July 2017 12:33 PM

jeremy clarke
As a landlord there is no way any tenants are going near my properties until I see some commitment.

From: jeremy clarke 28 July 2017 12:02 PM

jeremy clarke
The thing Is, shelter are not answerable to anyone. They can sit in their lovely offices drawing obscene salaries and make up numbers to suit their cause. Then they issue a press release, rent a mob get involved and before you know it government think it's real and you get a knee-jerk reaction which makes shelter look good and us nasty landlords and agents get it in the neck again!

From: jeremy clarke 27 July 2017 13:52 PM

jeremy clarke
Shelter claims that " some landlords evade tax by not declaring their rental income." Anyone else see where this trumpet blowing mob are heading next? Watch out private landlords, you are soon to experience the wrath of this "charity" just as we honest letting agents have, not content until they've wound up thousands from rent a mob to campaign against you and attempt to ruin your business. All this whilst their management are paid eye watering salaries! Ask Shelter how many homeless people they actually rehoused last year! Imo now just lobbyists for their cause "for the few not the many!"

From: jeremy clarke 27 July 2017 08:25 AM

jeremy clarke
All Campbell Robbie ever seems to do is run down the prs, the guy's a liability! Hopefully JRF will very soon see this and get shot of him and the obscene salary that they pay him and put the money where it can be used rather than lining the pockets of a hypocrite.

From: jeremy clarke 26 July 2017 17:26 PM

jeremy clarke
Just thinking about running a consultation for letting agents over the issue of fees to tenants, will keep it simple with just two questions. "Has a tenant ever said to you as agent, I'm not taking that property because of the fees?" How many times has this occurred in the last 5 years? I'll kick off with my responses:- Never and not once!

From: jeremy clarke 21 July 2017 08:19 AM

jeremy clarke
I suspect that zero happy and satisfied tenants bother queuing up to report to cab or shelter which makes any statistics mere fiction as usual! Ho hum carry on regardless gov now only hear what they want to hear and certainly do not listen to those of us working on the coal face everyday.

From: jeremy clarke 17 July 2017 15:36 PM

jeremy clarke
Sorry, don't believe any of this! I talk with many agents and landlords and would say that the opposite is the case; many agents will suffer financially if fees are banned outright and landlords fear that yet again they would be the losers iv deposits are capped. As for longer tenancies, yes we are seeing tenants staying much longer but very few want to be tied to 3 or more years, the last tenants of ours that asked for a long tenancy and the landlord granted 2 years, split up after 8 months and wanted out ASAP!

From: jeremy clarke 11 July 2017 08:07 AM

jeremy clarke
Email me your details to jeremyclarke1960@hotmail.com

From: jeremy clarke 06 July 2017 14:15 PM

jeremy clarke
I am encouraging all of my landlords to write to their mps, I have produced a template letter which outlines the main issues around fee bans and the issues of restrictions on the dilapidation deposit namely that costs for landlords will rise as will the selection of tenants. It highlights how we feel that ultimately tenants will pay the cost via higher rents, less flexibility and less choice. So far every landlord that I have spoken to is fully supporting us and has asked for a copy of the letter to sign and send!

From: jeremy clarke 06 July 2017 08:23 AM

jeremy clarke
And government is looking to "develop " the market for the corporate landlord?! Looking at the amount of background to this fire, it looks like this corporate landlord got it spectacularly wrong compared to thousands of private landlords who get it right every day.

From: jeremy clarke 15 June 2017 08:18 AM

jeremy clarke
If these guys are experts they should know that (a) none of these notices are eviction notices and (b) that no agent or landlord can serve an "eviction" notice! Landlords and agents can apply to courts using Section 21, 6a or many other notices the court then takes over the process which may ultimately result in the eviction of tenants; any agent who thinks that by simply serving a notice they are evicting tenants doesn't deserve to be trading as an agent!

From: jeremy clarke 20 May 2017 13:31 PM

jeremy clarke
I seem to recall that the Lettings business model has always been different in Bristol with most agents not charging landlords a fee for letting a property but charging the tenants a percentage of monthly rent. When the van arrives it will be interesting in Bristol!

From: jeremy clarke 09 May 2017 11:42 AM

jeremy clarke
Surely any research by citizens advice is limited to their database which, if I'm not mistaken, will comprise mainly of grumpy disillusioned tenants rather than happy clappy tenants who would have no reason to interact with CA?

From: jeremy clarke 05 May 2017 17:32 PM

jeremy clarke
Something else to be funded from the magic money tree that this mob of misfits have hidden in a big cupboard somewhere next to the one containing pink unicorns which will be distributed free to all who vote for them!

From: jeremy clarke 02 May 2017 08:04 AM

jeremy clarke
And it must include rogue landlords on this database.

From: jeremy clarke 28 April 2017 08:00 AM

jeremy clarke
Realistically they could promise that they would introduce pink unicorns into The Isle Of Wight, it doesn't matter what they promise because jc and his rag tag bag of followers will never again get the keys to number 10!

From: jeremy clarke 28 April 2017 07:58 AM

jeremy clarke
Can this be true? Has someone at arla grown a pair?!

From: jeremy clarke 25 April 2017 14:59 PM

jeremy clarke
Another housing minister, surely not! What experience will the next one need? It seems that the ability to lie, make u turns and not understand anything about the role is all that's required. Plenty of them around westminster

From: jeremy clarke 25 April 2017 07:46 AM

jeremy clarke
Is anyone running a book on how many housing ministers will come and go in between or how many changes to housing policy there will be?

From: jeremy clarke 19 April 2017 10:53 AM

jeremy clarke
One consolation, the lib/dem party is dead, next step sorting out those in the house of lords who pursue personal agendas rather than common sense!

From: jeremy clarke 18 April 2017 07:43 AM

jeremy clarke
The concept could work but surely the tenant should be expected to pay the landlord's protection insurance and my guess is that if that type of policy becomes popular then more claims will be made and the cost will rise! Deposits from tenants are returnable, all the tenant has to do is look after the landlord's property pay rent and adhere to some basic requirements such as cleaning, makes it a brilliant savings scheme! What would be interesting would be to ask how many tenants, if they became homeowners, would let tenants into their new homes without the commitment of a deposit? It seems that more and more landlords are expected to invite tenants in with less commitment, once tenants fees disappear, I'm fairly certain that some landlords will take tenants at face value rather than spending money investigating credit and background; take away the deposit and you may as well leave the keys under the mat with a welcome sign on the door!

From: jeremy clarke 27 March 2017 09:38 AM

jeremy clarke
I just hope that there is a mechanism in place to deal with all the tenant complaints once the truth is out and tenants find that rents are rising, landlords are reluctant to carry out preventative maintenance and agents are not inclined to assist out of hours when the tenant demands service but doesn't want to pay for it. Perhaps Shelter need more people on their help line?

From: jeremy clarke 21 March 2017 10:37 AM

jeremy clarke
Hidden fees?? If the agent/landlord is operating legally, the fees would have been advised to the tenants at the outset of the tenancy. If the fees were not advised they should not have been paid. It's uncanny how many tenants "forget" what they have signed despite us holding signed copies and the one that gets me every time is the tenant who states that he/she never received a repayment ID from the DPS yet they do every time. I would take this article with a very large pinch of salt and sceptisism!

From: jeremy clarke 21 March 2017 10:35 AM

jeremy clarke
Has anyone sent a copy of this to the newly self-appointed lobbyists to Government Shelter? Perhaps it may help convince them that their constant landlord and agent bashing propaganda is misplaced!

From: jeremy clarke 17 February 2017 08:27 AM

jeremy clarke
It's not just the cost. I'm looking to raise an additional £30,000 against a btl property that I've owned for 15 years which equates to a total ltv of c60% and that's proving nearly impossible yet the same bank is happy to offer me c£129,000 on a residential mortgage! How does that make any sense?

From: jeremy clarke 14 February 2017 07:46 AM

jeremy clarke
Anyone ever asked home owners whether they've had the same issues? What a pointless article, perhaps I could assist with the next one, I propose asking tenants whether they have encountered issues with grass growing in their gardens despite having cut it last year!

From: jeremy clarke 24 January 2017 07:43 AM

jeremy clarke
See my comment, he just doesn't know what he's talking about full stop!

From: jeremy clarke 23 January 2017 08:00 AM

jeremy clarke
Another b****y amateur put in a position that he knows nothing about! 2 legs, 2 arms, head and a mouth - you'll do, they'll never notice that you know nothing about it.

From: jeremy clarke 23 January 2017 07:38 AM

jeremy clarke
So, a failed mayoral candidate now has nothing better to do? I would suggest that she tried working in a letting agency for a few months before making such judgmental statements about something that she clearly has no knowledge of at all! Green party - perhaps she should concentrate on getting government to reduce all the paperwork that we now produce - DPS, prescribed info, How to rent guide for idiots et al - isn't that what green tree hugging is all about rather than trying to put people out of work?!

From: jeremy clarke 03 January 2017 15:12 PM

jeremy clarke
Good luck with that then!

From: jeremy clarke 22 December 2016 12:30 PM

jeremy clarke
And I bet they will still be celebrating as good staff are laid off in agencies across the land as they compensate for the loss of the only profit some agencies make? Meanwhile these 'charities' continue to cream off hundreds of thousands of £'s from donations and grants to line the pockets of their fat cat executives! The placard wavers really should be protesting about these organisations not whining about the modest profit that genuine businesses in this country make!

From: jeremy clarke 24 November 2016 09:22 AM

jeremy clarke
I have no idea! It doesn't put any more housing stock into the mix, it means that the tenant who has left will have to find somewhere else to live - probably the property that the buyer is leaving. So I give notice to a tenant who has to leave and find somewhere to live, the property is empty whilst a buyer messes around for weeks trying to get a mortgage sorted and solicitors argue over a clause in a lease. Then the buyer moves in leaving his property empty and his landlord deciding whether to find another tenant that Generation Zog believe should never be asked to leave or to try and sell to a first time buyer who will move out of his rented flat ........... ever decreasing circles IMHO!

From: jeremy clarke 01 November 2016 12:16 PM

jeremy clarke
So how would you deal with the accidental landlord or the landlord like me that requires the flat back for a relative? My flat has been let for 15 years, I had no intention of taking it back until my son was put in the position of not having anywhere to live. Do you advocate having a relative homeless in favour of a tenant? The notice is not divisive at all, it is common sense; if you remove a landlord's ability to get a property back unless a tenant is in breach of the agreement I can guarantee that many landlords would offload leaving a shortage of rental properties and mortgage companies would be reluctant to lend. How will this rebalance the housing sector? Just because a property is not let does not mean that someone will want/be able to buy it.

From: jeremy clarke 01 November 2016 12:06 PM

jeremy clarke
Earth to planet Zog! I'm a tenant and a landlord and a letting agent so I think I have a measured view on this; Generation Rent have no idea of the real world! This month as an example, one of my tenants has given notice that she will be leaving my flat at the end of November and it's not convenient for her to permit access for viewings until she has left - leaving me with the bleak prospect of trying to let a flat in the depths of December! My own landlord has served notice that my rent is to increase in January by 19% because his accountant has just worked out his new tax liability. My son has been forced (at 31) to move back to his mothers following the breakdown of his marriage so we have served notice to one of our very good tenants so that my son will have somewhere to live - blood is thicker than water .... The Section 21 route is therefore essential as 3 weeks ago I had no idea that all this was going to happen - peoples lives change which forces their hand in certain situations! Are any of the Generation Zog landlords I wonder??

From: jeremy clarke 01 November 2016 09:31 AM

jeremy clarke
Not the sharpest knife in the block then?!

From: jeremy clarke 07 October 2016 09:58 AM

jeremy clarke
We need to do something but this headlong rush into banning fees is wrong. When you see all the protesters on their marches most look like tree hugging hippies and as we saw with the recent Gatwick protests many were over-privileged hired hands making a load noise as they have nothing better to do. I have been running an agency for 15 years and have never had a tenant object to paying a fee nor lost a tenancy because of tenants' fees which makes me think that the "noise" is being made by the few rather than the majority. What these groups seem to focus on is that they can get free credit checks done or at least at a minimal cost; that is of course only part of the whole picture when it comes to referencing, we deal with past landlords, employers council tax register et al. Moving the charges to the landlord is all well and good but where do you draw the line, tenants must accept some responsibility for their actions? As an example last week we showed 3 couples around a flat, they all (at the viewing) "wanted it" as there was little to choose between any of them and we always discuss with our landlords we advised all viewers that we would come back to them later in the day after speaking with the landlord. 1 1/2 hours later having spoken with the landlord we phoned his preferred choice - message left on a mobile, before close of play we feared the worst having not heard back and therefore went to option 2 who had "changed their minds" onto option 3 who had "changed their minds" leaving us with NOTHING and a disappointed landlord (incidentally 9 days later and the first couple haven't even had the courtesy to call us back!) Had we taken a fee on the day I'm certain the outcome would have been different. Capping is all well and good but at what level, I would suggest that we start to put some figures out there to see what the "affected" feel is a reasonable fee level - even though we already publish fees so everyone knows what is what!

From: jeremy clarke 23 September 2016 09:52 AM

jeremy clarke
YAWN!

From: jeremy clarke 20 July 2016 09:34 AM

jeremy clarke
Proof that if councils want to they can use existing legislation to good effect; indeed what it was designed and introduced for. If all councils & Government were to take note then surely there is no need for any further legislation!

From: jeremy clarke 28 April 2016 09:18 AM

jeremy clarke
At last a sentence that comes close to fitting the bill. Fine should have been a lot higher but, I wouldn't mind a tenner on this guy re-offending and going down!!

From: jeremy clarke 22 March 2016 12:14 PM

jeremy clarke
I think it's simple maths. Put landlords costs up whether at the outset through tax, during the tenancy by additional legislation or at the close with additional costs/taxes and the only option is to increase the cost to the tenants - a bit like fuel surcharges that airlines used to charge when oil prices rose. is this really what the government want? Where will it lead? Who knows, maybe landlords will not buy, maybe some will sell but my gut feeling is that rents will become less affordable meaning that local & central government will end up "propping up the market" with more housing allowance payments to bridge the gap between real rents and affordability. In a nutshell someone has shot themselves in the foot BIG TIME!

From: jeremy clarke 11 January 2016 16:34 PM

jeremy clarke
Do you not feel that we need to "take a breath"? So much has happened in the lettings market this year that needs to be addressed, we already have agents local to us that do not display fees, 1 doesn't even display the energy rating on adverts! What government needs to do first is get TSOs out from their comfortable chairs in their warm offices, give them a clipboard and a check list and get them walking the High Streets and visiting agents. They need to start penalising and fining those that do not comply with current legislation, they need to start asking to see records of smoke detectors fitted in properties, asking why fees are not displayed, asking why agents do not belong to redress schemes before we can even contemplate mandatory CMP. If the speed limit on motorways was reduced to 60 mph next month would police forces ignore it or enforce it? My guess is that they would enforce it because it raises revenue, on that same logic if TSOs were to visit, penalise ,& prosecute they would increase their revenue. Once they have the revenue they could employ another member of staff and we could then start looking at enforcing new levels/layers of legislation!

From: jeremy clarke 26 November 2015 09:47 AM

jeremy clarke
Simple maths to me, you put landlords costs up and they seek to recover those costs - the only way to do so is to increase rents. Yes it will only affect new buyers coming into the BTL market but as the above comment states the stock is shrinking, will continue to shrink and this move will only worsen the effect. In my opinion this was a wrong move - if this government want to down pay the deficit the easiest way would be to completely stop foreign aid!

From: jeremy clarke 26 November 2015 09:19 AM

jeremy clarke
What needs to happen is that local authorities need to utilise the legislation that exists and get up and start enforcing it before any additional legislation is introduced to "muddy the waters"!

From: jeremy clarke 19 October 2015 09:28 AM

jeremy clarke
Lost me here; where does ethical come into this? All agents now have to display their fees, this just looks like a bit of free advertising for a new, unproven agent with a "wish" to give up profits, I guess that if they make insufficient profit then that will just not happen? ethical would have been - give the money first and then blow your trumpets!

From: jeremy clarke 17 September 2015 09:45 AM

jeremy clarke
We all thought that the loony lefts disappeared in the 1980's - must be a bit like some insects, able to remain dormant for years and then re-emerge! Somebody needs to tread on them or poison them quickly before they turn into an epidemic!

From: jeremy clarke 14 September 2015 09:42 AM

jeremy clarke
and 3792 landlords and letting agents don't understand why the CEO of a charity should earn £250k+ PA!

From: jeremy clarke 03 September 2015 12:03 PM

jeremy clarke
I spoke with a landlord last week that "saved money" by managing a property herself. She came to me because having not been aware that she had to issue prescribed information after the first 6 months when the tenancy went periodic (pre-April this year) she had ended up having to return tenant's deposit (they took advice!) before issuing Section 21, tenants then stopped paying rent and so she was out of pocket by 3 1/2 months rent by the time that she got the house back. When she entered the house she found it filthy and several areas damaged but now had no deposit to claim against. Rent was £1400 PCM deposit was £2000. Lost rent therefore £4900, damage and cleaning c£700 plus court fees. Had we managed the property for the period of 15 or so months she would have paid us less than £3000 - this time she wants an agent to manage having saved -c£3000 by DIY!

From: jeremy clarke 02 September 2015 11:43 AM

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