Archive

Propertymark wants Northern Ireland’s Department for Communities to regulate property agents via professional bodies such as itself. The Department for Communities is...

It feels as though the UK housing market is waiting for something to happen. The prevailing mood is one of anticipation with...

Promising figures from the latest house price index doesn’t mean underlying problems in the market have been solved, warns Propertymark. UK house...

Despite several fires in rented properties, the government is proposing to double the maximum legal power of e-bikes. A Department of Transport...

The merger of two of the largest names in the lettings industry has passed its final hurdle. Belvoir shareholders have now backed...

Another index has suggested a small monthly increase in house prices in England and Wales - even though the annual rate...

A prominent industry expert says lettings agents and other property sector insiders should be extra-vigilant over cybersecurity breaches. Neil Cobbold, managing director...

Labour is using a Bill currently going through Parliament as a backdoor method to introduce the regulation of lettings, estate and...

Knight Frank has revised its housing market forecasts for 2024, just two weeks into the new year. It’s done this on the...

Dealing in OnTheMarket shares will cease at 7.30am on December 12 following yesterday evening’s announcement that the CoStar takeover had won...

Another large Build To Rent scheme is in the offing, this time in Devon’s capital city, Exeter. Plans to build 246 BTR...

Introduction The lettings market is no stranger to the complexities and challenges that come with finding the right tenants for the right...

Propertymark has cautiously welcomed the Nationwide’s house price index showing a 5.3 per cent fall in the year to September. It says...

Two massive new rental licensing schemes are set to be approved in Brighton - and part of the reason is “uninterested...

A mortgage expert says it’s likely that the housing market will improve this autumn. Octane Capital studied Property lending mortgage approval trends...

A respected measure of investor confidence says it’s on the rise as a result of growing optimism over UK inflation figures...

A left-leaning think tank which says it champions ‘left-behind Londoners’ is demanding a turbo-charged version of selective licensing to be run...

PropTech rental platform  Goodlord has partnered with an open banking platform to enhance its tenant referencing service. Goodlord, which first integrated open...

Trade bodies have been trying to shore up investor confidence after the latest house price index, by the Nationwide, showing another...

Propertymark is speaking out about problems with some conversions of commercial property into residential.The warning comes in the trade body’s response...

The owner of a property in the Leicestershire village of Great Dalby has been fined after removing two trees within a...

Property accreditation service safeagent has written to all of its agents in England urging them to check legal requirements when setting...

Propertymark says banks are still misinterpreting Anti-Money Laundering rules regarding pooled client accounts, making life difficult for letting agents.  The trade body...

The number of mortgage approvals for house purchases in November came to 46,075 according to the Bank of England. The 46,075 figure...

A financial expert says the latest house price index, showing the biggest monthly fall for over two years, is the “first...

The large majority of players in the lettings industry wants the rental reform programme outlined by the government, an agent claims. Laura...

The Lomond Group has strengthened its position in Scotland by acquiring two more independent agencies and adding some 600 properties to...

A Build To Rent scheme has been handed a huge cash boost from City investors. Investec Real Estate has given Edmond de...

According to the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, organisations worldwide lose $4.7 trillion to fraud each year, with real estate suffering...

A team of experts has released a report that responds to government reform plans - and it insists that if Section...

Propertymark is urging lettings agents to familiarise themselves with recent updated guidance to avoid falling into non-compliance. The trade body says updated...

A consultation period has started on another council’s set of proposals to clampdown on HMOs. Blackburn with Darwen council wants to impose...

HMRC has issued a reminder to letting agents about how operate the Non-resident Landlords Scheme. This requires anyone in the UK who...

New plans to help control the numbers of residential properties turned into HMOs in parts of Coventry are moving a step...

All private rented homes in Oxford will need a licence from this September, following a green light from the government. Some 49.3...

One of the UK’s largest lettings groups has made an outspoken attack on the policies of a political party standing in...

Hamilton Fraser, well known as a provider of insurance products and services to letting agents and landlords, has been acquired by...

Another council is considering dramatic moves to limit the numbers of houses in multiple occupation. A public consultation is being planned this...

Agents using Reapit now have access to tenant due diligence and guarantee firm Homeppl, which will assist in combating rental fraud. Homeppl...

A PropTech company says sloppy referencing by agents and landlords effectively means that around a third of prospective tenants are discriminated...

The Association of Residential Letting Agents’ wing of Propertymark is demanding to see the results of a mediation project initiated by...

The government has revised its guidelines for its new mediation scheme, which it says will avoid some possessions now that the...

A leading figure in the lettings sector says the government’s new Housing Possession Mediation Scheme can help agencies and landlords recover...

Virtual tour suppliers have been keen to reassure agents that there need be no repeat of problems which befell a Devon agent. Fowlers,...

The government has at last released details of its mediation scheme - this was hinted at when Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick...

Unite Students, the UK’s largest owner, manager and developer of purpose-built student accommodation, has been granted planning approval for a new...

Some £3.5 billion of investment was placed in the growing Build To Rent sector in 2020, despite concerns over the pandemic...

A new law in Wales making it mandatory for a tenant to get six months notice for Section 21 evictions has...

A branch of Martin & Co has completed its second independent lettings book acquisition in 18 months. Martin & Co Chelmsford, part...

The government has unveiled the public health regulations which will underpin the second national lockdown in England - and the exemptions...

The recent survey in Letting Agent Today on why many landlords didn’t use agents was interesting and informative. That only 42.5%...

ARLA Propertymark says there has been a breakthrough on the banking clampdown on pooled client accounts - a pain in the...

  There is little doubt that the coronavirus has changed the way we live and rapidly created a new normality as different...

The director of renters’ campaign group Generation Rent says the long-running scandal of a planning decision made by the Housing Secretary...

ARLA Propertymark has set out its concerns over draft guidance on anti-money laundering produced by a body called the Joint Money...

The short let sector says it’s been agreed that it can open Airbnb and similar platforms for bookings from July 4...

The market for successful lettings businesses is still strong according to one of the country’s leading business transfer agents. Adam J Walker...

A lettings agency has given a full apology after a letter - not approved by the company - was sent out...

Another Labour council wants to introduce a city-wide landlord licensing scheme - a proposal that would require government approval to implement. Last...

A newspaper in Liverpool has sharply criticised the government for refusing to allow the city council to continue a huge landlord...

Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick has rejected a bid by Labour-controlled Liverpool council to extend its licensing scheme for five years. Government approval...

Industry supplier Let Alliance has merged with the Barbon Insurance Group, which includes HomeLet and Rentshield     The announcement was made at...

Rightmove has at last completed on its acquisition of tenancy referencing firm Van Mildert, first announced two months ago. The deal, reported...

In what some see as a sign of the growing importance of the lettings sector over sales, Rightmove has acquired tenant...

The government has published proposals for far-reaching changes to the way estate and letting agents are regulated, trained and licensed. The proposals...

Propertymark’s Money Shield service and the National Approved Letting Scheme have each received government approval to operate Client Money Protection schemes. From...

Another client money protection scheme has been given approval to launch itself before regulations go live on April 1.  From that date...

Client Money Protect has gained formal government approval to operate a client money protection scheme when the regulations go live on...

Online lettings platform HomeRenter says its property listings are now more detailed and more compelling thanks to a new ‘property creation flow’...

Agents and landlords have united against what is being seen as the latest attack on the private rental sector by the...

The acquisition of popular rental sector utility provider Spark Energy will “significantly benefit the rental sector” according to the troubled company’s...

A PropTech company has won approval from the Financial Conduct Authority to go ahead with a scheme which offers tenants a...

Rightmove is reporting that average asking rents outside London have topped £800 per month for the first time, fuelled by a...

A property management firm chief who had to pay over £20,000 after being found guilty of nine offences relating to an...

A new analysis of the buy to let market forecasts more bad news for agents, landlords and investors over the next...

Legal & General, one of the biggest players in Britain’s burgeoning Build To Rent market, has exchanged contracts on its largest...

Who are you and what does it say on your business card? Ben Robinson, Director of Agency Services at Landmark What is Landmark...

The Residential Landlords’ Association is upset at the government’s confirmation that the extension of mandatory HMO licensing will come into force...

A council says it hopes a massive set of fines and costs imposed on one buy to let investor and his...

Legal & General has exchanged contracts to acquire land in the centre of Brighton in order to deliver the city’s first...

A landlord has been ordered to pay £20,000 after being found guilty of nine offences in relation to a house in...

The director of a property management firm has been found guilty of nine offences of breaching regulations relating to a house...

A new licensing scheme in Nottingham has moved a step closer with the proposal being sent to the government for approval.    The council’s...

The substantial majority of landlords could soon be required to licence their properties in one London borough if the government agrees...

The Queen’s Speech, outlining the government’s proposals for the next two years, has confirmed a pledge to introduce a ban on...

Two lettings agencies have been expelled from The Property Ombudsman redress scheme.   As we reported when the story broke yesterday afternoon, one...

Two lettings agencies have this afternoon been expelled from The Property Ombudsman redress scheme. In one case, TPO expelled Lettings Solutions Ltd...

The Property Ombudsman scheme is backing a national campaign to help more consumers find reputable and trusted businesses and services.    Consumers are...

Metro Bank says its residential mortgage customers are now allowed to rent their properties through Airbnb and similar sites for up...

Damp and mould can mean big problems for landlords, letting agents and tenants. It can cause stress and even health issues...

Another 400 purpose-built Build To Rent apartments have been given the green light by planners in London.    Legal & General’s plans for...

Specialist eviction service Landlord Action has outlined the quickest way to evict tenants under new regulations introduced by the Ministry of...

Landlords are increasingly favouring Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) and more 'complex property types' due to the often higher yields available.  Mortgages...

A warning is being issued that the types of mortgages still being extended to buy to let investors risks them becoming...

The approaching of the April 1 stamp duty surcharge deadline led to a severe drop-off in buy to let purchasers seeking...

A substantial majority of new buy to let mortgage applicants are unaware of the mortgage tax relief changes, according to a...

The financial editor of The Guardian newspaper claims that - despite widespread criticism within the lettings industry of the latest buy...

An industry body says proposals by the Bank of England to curb buy to let lending are “premature.” The Bank’s Prudential Regulation...

February has seen a further burst of buy to let activity, fuelled not only by the stamp duty surcharge deadline but...

A surge in lending for buy to let properties ahead of April’s stamp duty surcharge means mortgage approvals have reached their...