Archive

A Labour councillor in Yorkshire claims letting agents are not showing the actual properties available to rent when they use virtual...

Restaurant staff were kept in “dangerous and overcrowded” conditions by a property company and its landlord-director, a court has heard. The company...

Knight Frank says it’s seeing tenants in the prime London niche reflecting the same trends as those in the wider property...

A new assessment of legislation and council rules surrounding the private rental sector suggests a severe crackdown may be coming in...

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

The property market, and therefore, estate agents have been accused of being the 'weak link' in the UK’s money laundering defences. This...

It appears lettings agents may have escaped the recommended demands for referral fees to be made more transparent to customers. A statement...

A £5,000 fine has been handed to five landlords in London for failing to license HMOs.  One of the properties, a four-bedroom HMO in...

Whilst Estate and Letting Agents have adapted their operations during COVID-19, to ensure safer working practices under Government guidance, ‘virtual property...

The chief executive of campaigning charity Shelter claims some lettings agencies are ignoring the recent ruling that private landlords cannot discriminate against...

Four buy to let investors have each been fined £10,000 for letting out unlicensed HMOs. The unlicensed properties , all in the...

A new automated lettings platform is launching next week and promising to ensure agents and buy to let investors stay compliant. PlanetRent...

A BBC News investigation has exposed some Airbnb and other short let platform users as flouting lockdown regulations. The probe has found...

Liverpool’s Labour council, which was prevented by the government from extending its city-wide licensing scheme for another five years, is seeking...

Despite the challenges being thrown up to the lettings sector by Coronavirus, this is a reminder that new MEES regulations on...

It’s easy to forget in the Coronavirus frenzy but from tomorrow, Friday March 20, all tenancies are to become subject to...

A lettings agency and its director have pleaded guilty to renting out an overcrowded house in the first case brought to...

Pressure group Generation Rent claims half of London’s councils did not fine any landlords for letting out unsafe homes in the...

A landlord has been ordered to pay nearly £6,000 in fines and costs after pleading guilty to harassing and financially exploiting...

The government has given the green light to a council’s huge licensing scheme, set to cover 18 of its 20 wards...

A room-finding portal, along with the owners of a London lettings agency and management firm, must pay over £100,000 for letting...

A London Labour council wants to introduce rent controls to its borough. The South London Press reports that Lambeth councillors have voted through...

A landlord has ended up with fines totalling over £90,000 after repeatedly ignoring a council’s selective licensing regime. Stephen Ige pleaded guilty...

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has backed a five year extension for a massive London council landlord licensing...

New research claims that one in every 50 homes in the capital is let on a short-term platform like Airbnb or...

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

A legal firm is warning agents and landlords that they have less than three months to prepare for the latest MEES...

A compliance consultant has explained why a local council’s penalty on a rogue landlord - initially £31,499 - was slashed to...

A dawn raid by enforcement officers from a London council has discovered 17 men sleeping on mattresses in a three bedroom...

Specialist buy to let mortgage lender Paragon has welcomed Labour's General Election pledge to force rental properties to undergo an annual...

Labour’s policies for the private rental sector are “too extreme ... unrealistic and will be hugely damaging to housing supply in...

A landlord has been hit with court fines for a fourth time for failing to properly manage his rental properties.  Landlord Jack...

Labour has given shocking new details of its proposals for the private rental sector including £100.000 fines if properties are deemed...

A rogue landlord and the property company he ran have been fined £22,000 for dishing out ‘sham licences’ to tenants in...

Zoopla is beefing up its customer relationship management programme with the appointment of RAPP UK to evolve the portal’s data infrastructure...

A seaside council has issued over £15,000 in fines to owners of unlicensed HMOs.  Torbay council in south Devon adds that “a...

A long-term legal critic of selective licensing is warning that letting agents could be held jointly accountable with the landlords, -...

First, he was trying his hand in lettings, then he devised a 2.5% commission to take on Purplebricks. Now, after nine months...

A call has been made for the best letting agencies and other rental sector professionals to show how they comply with...

London Trading Standards has made the startling claim that 46 per cent of almost 2,000 agents it has surveyed are falling...

Birmingham council has issued its first civil penalty against a House in Multiple Occupation landlord - and it says that move...

Some of the private rental sector’s most experienced and respected experts believe it’s almost inevitable that a housing market crash is...

A husband and wife pair of buy to let investors have been prosecuted after letting out a property that contained serious...

Average rents dropped in five of the eight UK regions monitored by property technology company Goodlord. The biggest drop was recorded in...

Another local authority has announced that it wants to introduce another selective licensing scheme and designate its entire patch for HMO...

A London council’s action against a property agent it has accused of “repeated negligence” has resulted in £37,000 of fines and...

A tenant pretending to be landlord has been ordered to pay more than £21,000 after he carved up five family homes...

In the past 18 months more than 200 landlords from across Scotland have been found to be in breach of a...

The number of landlords admitting to not paying tax has soared in the past year, according to new data. During 2018/2019, 16,110...

There’s been a dramatic 37 per cent rise in rental instructions for prime properties in the capital during the first quarter...

A buy to let investor has been fined £4,800 and ordered to pay £2,200 in costs for failing to keep his...

The Tenancy Deposit Scheme says that success of its information centre shows that the industry wants more information on the deposit...

Increased use of PropTech by lettings agencies should allow staff to be freed up to engage in all-important face-to-face contact with...

A rogue letting agent has been ordered to pay £42,596 in fines and costs of £10,626 after pleading guilty to a...

A husband and wife must pay joint fines, penalties and costs totalling over £8,000 after complaints about a bungalow they owned...

The Renting Homes (Fees etc) (Wales) Bill passed its final hurdle in the Welsh Assembly yesterday evening. This has similar policies to...

A dawn raid on unlicensed HMOs in north London last week were the latest sign of a crackdown on rogue operators...

Two landlords have been ordered to pay more than £30,000 for breaching fire safety and over-occupancy licence conditions at their House...

New figures from a leading trade body suggest that councils across England have cut by a quarter the amount they are...

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...

A landlord has been ordered to pay over £5,000 in fines and costs in a licensing dispute with a local council.  Almas...

A landlord who failed to comply with orders to improve the standard of a property has had to pay over £7,500...

There’s been broad support from the lettings sector for the wide-ranging reform of the redress system announced yesterday by housing secretary...

The man who is arguably Britain’s most controversial landlord - Fergus Wilson - is likely to be issuing up to 90...

Councils have been accused of routinely pursuing the most serious enforcement option open to them if they find a local licensing...

A holiday lettings company and a longer term private rental listings services have come together to try to optimise income for...

Three brothers and a property management company have received fines and a confiscation order, and must pay costs, following what a...

A landlord and building contractor have been fined after quantities of asbestos fibres were released from the demolition of a conservatory...

A local authority claims that a court decision may set a legal precedent for other councils across the UK using the...

A leading PropTech entrepreneur says agents who accept that the lettings fee ban is coming and who plan positively for its...

We regularly carry stories about fines for landlords and letting agents who have apparently broken council or national laws - but...

A buy to let investor has been forced to close down two rat infested homes he owns in Rotherham after they...

The heavy-handed administration of selective licensing schemes is driving out buy to let investors. That’s the claim from David Kirwan of Kirwans...

Havering council in London has issued £261,750 in penalty notices to what it calls ‘criminals’ operating in the private rental sector.  Between...

A landlord has been hit with more than £5,500 of fines and costs after he allowed a family with three young...

The Tenant Fees Bill is back in Parliament this week when it goes for its Second Reading in the House of...

The Labour-led local authority in Hackney has issued a statement pledging fines or even bans if landlords fail to get appropriate...

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

It’s been announced that the next stage of the Tenants’ Fees Bill through Parliament will be its Second Reading in the...

It is now just three weeks until licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) is extended. The new rules, which will require...

MPs have proposed a series of amendments to the Tenant Fees Bill as part of its Report Stage and Third Reading...

More big fines have been handed out in recent legal action regarding buy to let investors who have not stuck by...

A specialist buy to let mortgage lender says buy to let investors should act now - even if it means borrowing...

A new lettings agency set up at Burnham-on-Sea in Somerset says it’s setting out to atone for the misdemeanours of nearby...

Letting agents and landlords will have to win planning consent to erect To Let signs in student areas of Leicester from...

A leading PropTech entrepreneur has renewed his call for letting agents to use more technology to clean up their act when...

Figures from the Home Office show that as of the end of March, a total of 405 fines for non-compliance with...

An experienced agent claims that forgoing the services of a letting agent to save money is a false economy for landlords. In...

Today Trading Standards teams across the country will highlight the work they do to protect landlords and tenants from rogue letting...

Two rogue letting agents in London have been fined thousands of pounds as part of a council campaign to clean up...

A lettings agency has been fined over £20,000 for failing to licence an overcrowded semi detached house in London. The fine was...

A leading property law specialist has warned that many buy to let investors remain unaware of the new Minimum Energy Efficiency...

It’s less than two weeks before The ESTAS 2018 held in London on Friday April 20. It’s the biggest and best bash...

A property management company which ignored a series of housing safety regulations and flouted laws designed to protect tenants’ rights has...

A Select Committee of MPs investigating the proposed ban on agents’ fees levied on tenants says the measure could save renters...

The consumer group Which? says the new Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards starting next weekend could affect 300,000 buy to let properties.  From...

Two landlords have been hit with hefty court fines for failing to comply with a local licensing scheme. The pair are the...

A Kent county councillor says letting agents “would have to be pretty dumb” to allow a situation arise whereby they would...

The Association of Residential Letting Agents is reminding its members to tell landlord clients that they have only a month to...

Three head tenants who sub-let a three bedroom house to 35 men have been hit with over £23,000 in fines. Gheorghe-Valentin Lingurar...

Brent Council has confirmed that the government has approved its request to extend the local selective licensing scheme. The local authority, which...

A rogue landlord has been fined twice in the space of two months for failing to provide a suitable standard of...

Two buy to let investors have been fined a total of more than £27,000 under enforcement powers introduced in Burnley to...

A London council is marking 125 successful prosecutions against agents, landlords and sub-letting tenants since 2016. The authority, Brent, says the convictions...

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

A lettings agency apparently trying to get around HMO regulations has been prosecuted for licensing and housing offences.  Easy Let Agency let...

The local authority at Brent in north London has secured what it calls “an important court victory” after “appalling conditions” were...

A buy to let investor who a judge said “cut corners” and exposed his tenants to “significant risk” has been ordered...

A buy to let investor who failed to purchase a £542 licence for his HMO has been ordered to pay almost...

The Property Ombudsman scheme has launched the third and latest phase of its national campaign with the Chartered Trading Standards Institute...

The draft Bill to ban letting agents’ fees levied on tenants has been published - it’s to be called the Tenants’...

Four landlords have been fined and ordered to pay costs totalling £232,155.68 in the first prosecutions of its kind brought by...

Wear and tear can be a highly contentious issue for many tenants and landlords; many arguments have arisen because of unclear definitions...

A letting agent named in a case concerning a rat-infested House in Multiple Occupation in Leytonstone, East London, has been fined...

Trading Standards says representatives from 15 departments will today visit lettings and property management firms across London in a bid to...

A lettings agency and its director have been ordered to pay more than £2,500 in fines and costs for illegally advertising...

Almost a fifth of landlords say they are now less likely to let to EU nationals or people from the European...

A landlord who was found guilty of illegally converting a hotel into 26 flats has been given three months to pay...

A landlord has been prosecuted and fined for evicting a tenant illegally.  Last week, Suhail Mahmood, 30, was convicted at Sheffield Magistrates'...

More than 100 criminal prosecutions have been secured against landlords since the start of an enforcement crackdown by Brent council in...

With a host of changing regulations hitting the private rental sector, some landlords may be put off using letting agents, but...

A local authority has clamped down on what it describes as illegal advertising boards, fining agencies thousands of pounds in the...

The crowdfunding campaign for a legal challenge against the rollout of the Right to Rent scheme across the UK has exceeded...

Large letting agents found to be flouting the incoming ban on letting agent fees should receive fines up to £30,000 to...

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...

Labour says there would be a ‘consumer rights revolution’ for the private rental sector if the party won the June 8...

A landlord has been ordered to pay more than £17,000 in fines and costs after pleading guilty at St Albans Magistrates'...

A body representing 370 councils in England and Wales wants the government to close a legal loophole which allows the conversion...

Data from the first three months of this year suggests that investors are increasingly purchasing smaller, cheaper properties. Specialist lender Mortgages for...

The government has issued a new statement saying unequivocally that letting agents’ fees on tenants will be banned in England -...

The Residential Landlords’ Association has written to an immigration minister to express its concern over possible ‘further sanctions’ for landlords who...

A private landlord in Sheffield has been prosecuted for harassing a tenant and failing to manage his property adequately.   Nilendu Das was...

A rogue landlord found guilty of waging a campaign of harassment and intimidation against a young mother he wanted to illegally...

A new form of agency which wants to blend traditional letting with Airbnb-style short lets has launched in London.    Lavanda claims it...

Right To Rent is encouraging discrimination against international students according to a student lts online service.    Government figures marking the first anniversary...

A landlord and letting agency have been fined more than £26,000 after being found guilty of housing offences at two properties...

Lettings agents have been issued fines totalling £14,100 by a local authority for failing to comply with consumer rights laws.   Officers from...

A leading personal finance journalist - and a former editor of Landlord Today - has used the columns of right wing...

It hasn’t been a happy Christmas for one London landlord, who has been told to repay £40,000 in rent received in...

Rent Smart Wales, a controversial scheme that require letting agents to be trained, comes into effect today after a troubled lead...

The Residential Landlords Association has roasted the enforcement policies and provisions for the controversial Rent Smart Wales initiative which begins in...

The Association of Residential Letting Agents is warning that proposals to enforce minimum room sizes in HMOs in the privste rental...

A landlord has been ordered to pay more than £4,200 in fines and costs for not having a licence for his...

The Property Ombudsman scheme and the Chartered Trading Standards Institute have joined forces to tackle lettings agents that are breaking the...

A dramatic legal spat between New York’s civic leaders and online short-lets platform Airbnb escalated over the weekend in a dispute...

The Association of Residential Letting Agents has responded to the latest government recommendations for tighter controls on the private rental sector...

A Norwich landlord has been prosecuted “for putting lives at risk” according to the local council.  Piang Fui Pun has pleaded guilty...

A landlord guilty of breaching a planning enforcement notice has been ordered to pay £700,000 in fines and costs - the...

A landlord operating in Wales has been fined almost £3,000 for failing to renew the House in Multiple Occupation (HMO) licences...

An industry body says agents and landlords who ignore tenants' complaints about damp and mould could be putting their property at...

Property managers operating through a company have been ordered to pay more than £30,000 following a dawn raid that uncovered more...

Two private landlords have been found guilty of failing to obtain the appropriate licenses for their properties.   Jagtar and Jagdish Kandola, who...

Two landlords have received fines totalling £3,000 – and were ordered to pay costs of nearly £2,000 - after failing to...

For a long time, fair wear and tear has been a grey area for landlords and letting agents alike; this is...

Sheffield council has prosecuted a private landlord for failing to provide safe accommodation - with a bill of over £10,000 to...

A London council has prosecuted a letting agency that was ’ghost listing’ on Zoopla flats that were not in fact available...

Burnley Council has named and shamed eleven landlords that have been prosecuted for ignoring its selective licensing scheme. One landlord, Pierce Mullally,...

Two landlords have been fined after being found guilty of fire safety failings in their rental properties. Both prosecutions were brought by...

The National Landlords Association (NLA) has launched a new version of its Fire Safety Logbook which has been endorsed by the...

Magistrates have fined the leaseholders and landlords of a 10-flat property in north London £120,000 after finding they had put the...

A leading trade body says it’s time for the private rental sector to take gas safety more seriously following a spate...

Twelve landlords in Waltham Forest have been prosecuted for not signing up to a council Private Rented Property Licencing scheme, and...

A letting agent and four landlords face bills totalling more than £20,000 after being prosecuted by Islington Council for operating unlicensed...

Lettings companies and an organised group of criminals described as a “gang of chancers” have been hit with fines and costs...

Onefinestay, a firm offering high-end Airbnb-style short-let accommodation in London, is today making a pitch to letting agents to refer clients...

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

One of the UK’s largest suppliers of carbon monoxide and smoke alarm testing products has launched a record-pad to help agents...

The ability of the government to enforce controversial elements of the Right To Rent policy has been thrown into doubt by...

A property company managing an HMO in prime central London has been £47,900. The fine is in relation to 24 charges under...

An industry body is suggesting that the outcome of a court case may significantly reduce the government’s ability to enforce its Right...

A landlord who has had previous conflicts with his local council has effectively lost control of his 16 private rental properties. William...

An immigration lawyer has criticised the government’s Right to Rent scheme - officially starting today - for having little impact but...

A survey of 5,000 landlords suggests that 50 per cent of them are not prepared for the introduction of Right To...

A landlord who let out dark, damp and overcrowded rooms has been hit with a huge £67,000 fine. Rogue landlord Liakath Ali,...

MPs have given their backing to a government proposal to ban rogue letting agents and landlords who repeatedly break private rental...

The Housing and Planning Bill returns to the House of Commons tomorrow when the remaining stages of the legislation resume after...

Who are you? I’m the Head of Redress at the Property Redress Scheme. I previously worked for Legal & General PLC dealing...

It may be almost Christmas but the government is this week unveiling new laws to combat what it sees as the...

Two landlords of HMOs have been prosecuted for failing to license their properties - and now have to pay fines of...

Two letting agencies in the London borough of Camden have lost their appeal against fines for failing to join a redress...

A local authority has issued a press release branding a landlord as “unscrupulous” after he was ordered to pay £7,300 in...

A landlord and his letting agent who failed to declare they were operating a series of bedsits at an address in...

One of Britain’s largest local authorities has beefed up its powers so it can issue fines of up to £5,000 on...

A senior Conservative MP is urging the government to give councils the power to issue rogue landlords with on-the-spot fines. Oliver Colville,...

The PRS, one of three authorised redress schemes, is backing a ‘Fair Lettings’ campaign being introduced by Camden council in London. It...

Three landlords have become the first to be prosecuted by a council - almost three years after the authority introduced a...

A landlord has been handed fines totalling £3,250 and costs of £1,426 for running an unlicensed and unsafe House in Multiple...

A body representing over 370 local councils in England and Wales wants more powers to control the private rental sector, letting...

One of the UK letting industry’s leading agents says politicians should defer the new Right To Rent immigration checks until the start...

Parliament has approved the Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015 - the regulations which looked in jeopardy after a...

A landlord has been ordered to pay a total of £8,680 after failing to comply with formal council notices to improve...

London Mayor and Tory leadership wannabee Boris Johnson wants rogue operators in the private rental sectors to be banned with repeat...

A letting agency has been ordered to pay more than £12,000 in fines and court costs after being convicted of seven...

A landlord whose Home in Multiple Occupation was closed down by the local council has been left with a court bill...

The landlord of a house in multiple occupation is the latest to be prosecuted by a council for failing to licence...

Letting agents and property managers of blocks with fire doors are being urged to take their responsibilities more seriously. The warning comes...

A landlord reported to have received £100,000 in housing benefit from tenants in the past year is to repay court fines...

York Council is seeking the introduction of fixed penalty notices for letting agents and landlords in the city who are found...

A landlord has been handed a total fine of £75,215 for a number of offences, including failing to licence four houses...

A lettings agency has issued a warning to tenants to protect themselves following a claim that the city in which it...

In the nine months since new Right To Rent immigration checks have been implemented across the West Midlands only seven landlords...

Letting agents and other industry professionals are being consulted ver changes to the sector’s regulation - including possible blacklisting of rogue...

A council in an area with one of the country’s largest private lettings sectors says it has launched investigations into more...

Onefinestay, a firm offering very high-end Airbnb-style short-let accommodation in London and three other cities, has secured a new investment of...

The internet and rapidly evolving digital landscape has revolutionised the way people buy and sell properties. With some reports suggesting 95 per...

A letting agency has been handed fines totalling £7,000 and costs of £1,140 after a council took it to court over...

Father and son rogue landlords have been fined for failing to register their property as a house in multiple occupancy. Sabbir and...

Property consultancy Daniel Watney LLP is the latest industry operator to label the government’s Right To Rent immigration checks as unworkable,...

The National Landlords Association says next month is the next key date for the roll-out of the government’s controversial immigration checks...

An amnesty on the licensing of houses in multiple occupation is being held in Barnet in north London following the successful...

Landlords could risk facing heavy fines if they fail to protect their tenants’ deposits before an important new deadline on June...

Yesterday we heard about the letter from the CMA warning agents about anti-competitive behaviour. Today, in a scoop for Estate Agent...

A landlord has been ordered to pay fines adding up to over £6,600.  Balwinder Singh Dhadwal was prosecuted at Dudley Magistrates’ Court...

In 2007, the government introduced a compulsory deposit protection scheme as part of the Housing Act 2004 to help protect tenants...

With the Conservatives now having an overall majority, there is speculation that the pilot immigration checks which letting agents and landlords...

The Association of Residential Letting Agents says landlords who are not using their agents for deposit registration should be reminded to...

A private landlord who provided false documents and endangered the lives of his tenants has been ordered to undertake 200 hours’...