Archive

Hello: so much has happened since the last Conquering Corona column on Friday. Before we get on with it, a reminder...

One of the lettings sector’s leading trade bodies has called on the government and lenders to agree a package of measures...

Activists with a record of opposing agents and landlords want a blanket ban on rent rises and evictions in the current virus...

Over 100,000 current or aspiring tenants have signed up to an education programme explaining how the rental sector works, run by...

A seminar roadshow has been announced for letting agents considering quitting the sector.  LegalforLandlords says it’s organised the six events after discovering...

The Association of Residential Letting Agents has made an uncompromising set of demands on the government, asking it to implement a...

Generation Rent - an outspoken organisation sharply critical of lettings agents and many aspects of the private rental sector - is...

A council is lobbying the government to ask for landlords using Airbnb and other short let platforms to be charged business...

Two major buy to let lenders have slashed their rates in a bid to win business. One of the highest profile lenders,...

The ESTAS, the national customer service awards recognising the best agents, brokers and suppliers, closes for entry at the end of...

The Advertising Standards Authority has ruled in favour of deposit alternative scheme flatfair in a dispute which began with a complaint...

Canopy, a firm that says it wants to eliminate rental deposits in the next five years, has won a £50,000 cash...

A short lets firm that describes itself as an “Airbnb management service” is launching an advertising campaign to woo landlords away...

More details have emerged of the long-term scheme to site Build To Rent homes at Transport for London tube stations and...

In recent days we’ve been running images and videos from Halloween-decorated offices over on our sister publication Estate Agent Today -...

The likely general election is an opportunity for the government to make the lettings sector more appealing for would-be landlords, says...

New research suggests that the recent fall in the cost of fixed rate buy-to-let mortgages may be coming to a halt. Online...

The letting and estate agencies which have provided the most consistent levels of high customer service are to be recognised with...

There’s a warning from a leading agent that the unregulated proliferation of Airbnb-style short lets will lead to mainstream rent rises...

A typical lettings agent could save some two and a half hours’ time each working day if they adopted more Artificial...

Labour is backing new guidelines which ban adverts which can be interpreted as encouraging landlords and home owners to flout restrictions...

The two largest landlord trade groups are to merge. The National Landlords Association and the Residential Landlords Association will unite to form...

The Labour Party appears to be entering the arena of organising private rental sector tenants who have grievances. Party leader Jeremy Corbyn...

The right wing Adam Smith Institute is the latest organisation to voice its strong opposition to Labour’s proposed rent controls for...

Trade organisations including the Association of Residential Letting Agents have welcomed today’s publication of the report of the Regulation of Property...

 – use technology to build a trusted brand as a people-focused custodian of client money Non-stop regulatory changes in the industry are...

Competition between various deposit alternative providers continues apace, with one of the earliest companies - Reposit - naming a new agency...

The Tenancy Deposit Scheme, which suggested a devastating fire in early January, has been recognised for the professional, efficient and calm...

As competition hots up between different deposit replacement scheme providers, three new Build To Rent sign-ups have been announced by one...

We may be all-too-familiar with the challenges facing letting agents and landlords in the private rental sector but there is at...

Airbnb has issued a statement distancing itself from controversial advertisements from a short lets management service. Hostmaker - which describes itself as...

The fierce competition in the lettings market in parts of London means that some tenants will feel no benefit from the...

One of London’s best known lettings agents says unfurnished properties can take 30 per cent longer to let than a furnished...

Rightmove has fallen in line with Zoopla and is banning the term ‘No DSS’ from its lettings agents’ listings from the...

The final - and some say most prestigious - shortlist for this year’s ESTAS awards has been revealed. The People Awards, sponsored...

The number of London landlords exiting the market last month was a whopping 125 per cent higher than the national average. The...

The best suppliers to the estate and letting agent sector for customer service have been announced by the ESTAS in the...

Brexit is not a good reason for delaying buy to let investment, insists a mortgage chief. Andrew Turner is chief executive at...

Buy to let may have been in the doldrums in recent years thanks to new taxes and stricter regulations but there’s...

Letting agents and property firms are being invited to take part in the inaugural Property & Construction leg of an event...

The tenants’ fees ban coming into effect from June 1 could help traditional lettings agents keep their place on High Streets,...

The head of a lettings agency has launched a petition in opposition to a bid by a local council to extend...

The LonRes data consultancy says the lettings market in prime areas of the capital is now characterised by increasing rents and...

The party conferences of the two main political parties threw up some interesting developments with regards to housing and the rental...

Urgent action is needed to tackle discrimination against benefit claimants by buy to let mortgage providers according to a leading trade...

PropTech company PayProp has been announced as the sponsor of the ESTAS People Awards category for 2019. The ESTAS is a customer...

The number of available properties to rent is falling at an alarming rate, particularly in Greater London, according to property platform...

The Association of Independent Inventory Clerks says it still believes there is an opportunity for the government to introduce mandatory inventory...

The Residential Landlords’ Association says proposals from Great Yarmouth council to introduce selective licensing in one part of the town contains...

Which?, the consumer body that appears to be taking an increasingly-aggressive line against letting agents and landlords, has now issued a...

Campaigning group Generation Rent has secured over 20,000 signatures for a petition it says will “end unfair evictions”. The petition, on the...

The latest LendInvest buy to let report, which ranks 105 postcode areas around England and Wales based on a combination of...

There are now well over 125 pieces of legislation and regulations - most introduced in modern times - governing the private...

There has been strong support for an e-petition calling for the scrapping of the stamp duty surcharge on buy to let...

A petition has appeared on the government’s e-petition website calling for a review of a city council’s newly-introduced selective licensing system. Nottingham...

The next phase of the government’s Rent Recognition Challenge takes place this week, as six short-listed PropTech companies know which will...

A lettings agent says she is returning to a High Street franchise agency group to help her combat competition from online...

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

What is the biggest challenge in estate agency today? At the risk of sounding flippant, selling houses! It’s a unique industry...

The government has responded to a petition calling for it to abolish the 3% stamp duty surcharge and reintroduce full buy-to-let...

An online petition which calls on the government to reintroduce full buy-to-let mortgage interest tax relief and abolish the 3% stamp...

Spicerhaart says that with the lettings agency industry under attack there is a danger of some within the sector focussing too...

One of the PropTech companies at the centre of the Rent Recognition Challenge contest is calling on letting agents to use...

The Lomond Capital acquisition bandwagon continues apace with the latest independent to be snapped up being the well known Bonett’s Estate...

Floor plan software provider Metropix celebrated their win at The ESTAS on Friday by announcing an upcoming landmark. Having scooped the “Best...

Belvoir has published what it calls ‘a decade of data’ tracking the changes in the private rental sector since 2008, when...

There are plenty of helpful and reliable professionals in the letting industry, however it’s no secret that there are a lot...

The ESTAS has announced its final and, to many, its most prestigious shortlist for this year’s awards - a special category...

The Association of Independent Inventory Clerks has renewed its call for letting agents and other property professionals to back an online...

The number of properties available to rent in London is now 46 per cent below the national average according to ARLA...

An online petition urging MPs to make it compulsory for privately let properties to be subject to independent inventory reporting is...

A range of factors - including fierce competition under the supplied housing market, rising property prices and political uncertainty – have...

An agency operating in London and Essex has launched an online petition to oppose the ban on credit and debit card...

An Essex lettings agent has explained why he has set up an online petition calling for a reversal of the government’s...

Automated rental payment provider PayProp has joined the call for private rent payments to be counted towards tenants’ credit scores in...

The Association of Residential Letting Agents has come out against a single government-administered system for Client Money Protection in the private...

The government is offering £2m to budding PropTech and financial technology entrepreneurs who can develop an application that will enable Britain’s 11...

The House of Lords has given the Creditworthiness Assessment Bill its second reading and a step forward to ensuring that tenants’...

Training for Agents Giving’s Strictly Come Dancing event is now entering its final two weeks - and Letting Agent Today readers have...

It’s that time of the year again - when the race begins to find out who will win The ESTAS Supplier...

Reporting software company InventoryBase has backed a campaign urging for inventories to be made mandatory in the lettings sector. The Association of...

Letting agents and landlords are being urged by a trade body to sign a petition calling on the government to make...

In the past 20 years the UK private rental sector has exploded! The sector has grown from under 10% of housing...

The lettings market typically heats up in autumn, with landlords and tenants back off their holidays and ready to start the...

MPs are today going to debate whether rent payments should be included when calculating credit scores to support tenants wanting to...

Rents outside of London have dropped by 0.2 per cent in the third quarter of this year according to new data...

The increasing number of renters and low interest rates for existing home owners mean that the total rent bill is now...

The number of new buy to let mortgages available to investors has hit 1,725 - its highest point since 1,942 products...

A new report identifies in detail over 145 laws and regulations governing the private rental sector, varying across the four countries...

A no-holds-barred blog on a controversial website claims that it lifts the lid on being a letting agent in central London...

Buy to let mortgage competition is showing no signs of stopping, thus giving one of the few pieces of good news...

A buy to let expert says there should be stronger enforcement and streamlining of legislation in the private rental sector. In a...

Angry landlords in Shropshire have set up an online petition against local council proposals to introduce selective licensing.    The Wrekin Landlords Association...

Housing minister Gavin Barwell has confirmed that consultation on the government’s proposed ban on letting agency fees levied on tenants in...

The Competition and Markets Authority says there is no time to undertake a review into the lettings market and the role of...

Specialist mortgage lender Together is the latest company to back the idea of rent payment records being used to measure the...

A 27 year old father of two has secured over 140,000 signatures for an online petition demanding that rent payments be...

As the industry awaits the delivery of today's Spring Budget, the National Approved Letting Scheme (NALS) has called on the government...

1) Who are you? Kevin Ward – Director and founder of Agentlocator.co.uk 2) For those not familiar with Agent Locator, can you explain...

The government’s Housing White Paper may have made many broad pledges aimed at the private rental sector, but it still remains...

The government says the formal consultation on the proposed introduction of a ban on letting agent fees levied on tenants in...

Vicky Spratt - whose blogging to highlight the various fees charged to tenants by letting agents triggered a campaign to get...

The National Approved Lettings Scheme says it wants the Competition and Markets Authority to step into the debate over lettings fees A...

An online petition is being staged to voice opposition against the government's proposed ban on letting agents' fees levied on tenants...

The National Approved Letting Scheme (NALS) has called for a cap on excessive letting fees charged to tenants, instead of a...

The key lies in improving your customer experience through technology For Agents, the tremendous growth in online estate agents highlights a strong...

Across the UK as a whole there has been a slight increase in the number of tenants who agree to pay...

Two letting agencies feature amongst the winners of The ESTAS Agent of the Month competition for July.     Each secured their success...

One of the biggest players in the burgeoning Build To Rent sector says this new segment of the lettings market is...

easyProperty says it’s backing a Labour MP’s bid to cap letting agents‘ fees on tenants “in order to provide a more...

A Labour MP has presented Parliament with a petition urging that letting agents’ fees should be capped. There were a modest 1,500...

The Association of Independent Inventory Clerks says the government should not back a provision in the Renters' Rights Bill which would...

The exemption of residential property from the new Capital Gains Tax cuts tops the list of concerns expressed by professional landlords...

Average rents for single rooms across the UK increased at a faster rate than those in London, according to spareroom.co.uk. The rental...

Q: What does it say on your business card? Director of Business Development Q: Who are PayProp? PayProp is an automated payment and reconciliation...

The Liberal Democrats are following in the footsteps of some Green and Labour politicians in calling for a ban on letting...

Two professional property investors are giving away a Manchester flat valued at £110,000 in a protest against Chancellor George Osborne’s attacks...

Statistics revealed by ESTAS founder Simon Brown reveal just how important the awards are in terms of showing public support for...

A community group that has in the past staged protests at letting agents’ offices in Bristol has now organised a petition...

The complete list of this year’s ESTAS award winners has now been released after a hugely successful ceremony in London hosted...

A petition opposing lettings agents’ fees in England and Wales has now gathered over 245,000 signatures. Vicky Spratt, features editor on the...

The new stamp duty surcharge on buy to let properties coming into effect next Friday will increase rent costs for tenants...

Not one of the raft of buy to let rule changes being introduced by Chancellor George Osborne - ostensibly to help...

In a constantly changing legislative environment, the importance of keeping up-to-date in terms of knowledge and skills has never been more...

Just over 60,000 people have signed an online petition urging MPs to reconsider the controversial buy to let mortgage interest tax...

An online petition aiming to get 100,000 signatures expressing opposition to Chancellor George Osborne’s buy to let tax changes looks certain...

Britain's largest letting agency says rents grew by an average of 3.1 per cent in 2015, taking the average monthly rent...

An online petition seeking the reversal of the Osborne clampdown on buy to let tax breaks has secured around 47,000 signatures...

An online petition asking the government to rethink its raft of tax measures imposed on buy to let landlords this year...

A property investment search portal has launched an online petition via the UK Parliament website, calling for a national register of...

Thanks to Accountancy Age for drawing to our attention to the fact that not every country is tightening up on the tax...

The man behind a new competition for agents says he has taken the initiative to try to redress the negative press...

The online petition opposing the proposed tax changes for buy to let landlords has now reached 35,000 signatures - but is...

The costs of lender arrangement fees, valuation fees and legal costs attached to new buy to let mortgages are falling as...

  Who are you? Ellie Hall. What does it say on your business card? Head of Acquisitions. You're on the hunt for acquisitions, what makes a...

The online petition against the government's proposed tax changes for buy to let investors is "a waste of time" according to...

The shortage of rental accommodation in some university towns is so great that up to 22 people are competing for every...

The government’s response to the online petition against proposed tax changes for buy to let investors is “unfair, incoherent and missing...

Opponents of the government’s attempt to end tax breaks for the buy to let sector now have a new opportunity to...

If supporters of Chancellor George Osborne’s Budget restrictions on tax breaks for buy to let landlords thought opposition would die off...

The office of a letting agency that urged its landlord clients to consider increasing rents has been the subject of an...

The petition against the proposed tax changes outlined by Chancellor George Osborne in last month’s Budget has now achieved 20,000 signatures. This...

A group of landlords in Oldham have said they are going to present the council with a petition against the town's...

Three agents have been announced as winners of The ESTAS Agent of the Month competition for July.   Bristol Property Centre won...

A petition to oppose the proposed change in buy to let landlords’ tax breaks is nearing the 14,000-signature mark - but...

The Residential Landlords Association has launched a new campaign ‘toolkit’ to enable opponents of the proposed buy to let tax changes...

An online petition demanding the reinstatement of buy to let landlords' tax breaks has broken the 10,000 signatures mark which means...

An online petition demanding the reversal of the revisions to buy to let landlords' tax breaks announced in the Budget last...

An online petition demanding the reinstatement of buy to let landlords' tax breaks has so far attracted 6,300-plus signatures. The petition, which...

Competition is hot among home buyers in my part of southern England to take ownership of properties that come onto the...

An analysis by Britain’s biggest letting agency, Countrywide, has thrown up a little known fact - with applications for school places...

Leading letting agency improves efficiency and customer satisfaction with DocuSign. Company’s Top Objectives LSL Property Services is a leading provider of residential property...

Three agents have been announced as winners of The ESTAS Agent of the Month competition for June.   The Birmingham Central branch...

There has been a 94 per cent increase in prime central London tenancies year-on-year claims Lucy Morton of W A Ellis,...

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

The Bank of England says excessive lending to fund buy to let purchases could pose a risk to the financial well-being...

After the passing of the Deregulation Act deposits deadline this week, Richard Price, Executive Director of UKALA, is in a contemplative...

This month has marked a real change in the way the private lettings sector is perceived - and it’s a perception...

The recent warning to estate agents by the Competition and Markets Authority sends a strong signal to the industry that “informal...

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

This publication recently reported on Russell Quirk's latest attempt to upset the establishment, this time by attacking the hallowed ground of...

OK, you’ve had your fun. Now let’s leave the regulators regulate and work for the public. If you don’t know what...

An umbrella organisation representing parts of the private rented sector is to be put before the Scottish parliament in a bid...

Ian Wilson, the head of Martin & Co, recently threw his hat into the ring regarding Labour’s stated intention to cap...

No agent reading this will be under any illusions that the agency market is a particularly competitive sector to operate in.  I...

Q: What does it say on your business card? I like the flexibility of roles so I do not have a title...

No agent reading this will be under any illusions that the agency market is a particularly competitive sector to operate in.  I...

Gareth Styles of Grants Independent Estate Agents, Woking writes: When considering opening a new office in Woking Surrey I met with several...