National Landlord Association
-
Latest property news
Right to rent legislation “is a farce” argue landlords
One of the Government’s flagship immigration policies has been branded a "farce" after a court ruling.
Read More » -
Latest property news
Government to introduce mandatory three year tenancy contracts
the government has revealed that it intends to introduced a mandatory three year minimum tenancy contract for all tenants.
Read More » -
Latest property news
NLA questions Right to Rent scheme
The Right To Rent immigration control scheme introduced by the government in England last February is not having the “desired effect”, the National Landlords Association says. The comments come from its head of policy Chris Norris in reaction to figures released today showing that one landlord is being fined every four days under the Right to Rent rules. Sixty-two landlords received penalties under the scheme during its first eight months of operation from February to September last year, the figures show. Fines totalling £37,000 were handed out, or £596 on average per landlord, although fines in theory can reach £3,000 for the most serious cases. Out of the 62 cases 36 were for lodgers in private houses and 26 were handed to landlords of private rented accommodation. The figures were obtained by the Press Association through a Freedom of Information request. Chris Norris, head of policy at the National Landlords Association (pictured, left), says he believes that most of the landlords involved are accidentally breaking the immigration rules rather than knowingly doing it. He also said that “ultimately this scheme should be judged on whether it tackles or prevents those who knowingly ignore the law and let to people who…
Read More » -
Latest property news
Has the London rental market topped out?
The pressures and costs of living in the capital are persuading many tenants to look elsewhere to live as demand within the London rental market ‘slides’, it has been claimed. According to the National Landlords Association (NLA) the number of landlords in central London reporting a rise in tenant demand has dropped from 45% to 17% compared to January last year. But figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders also suggest that the reduction in demand among tenants is down to increased number of first time buyers in the market, something that Prime Minister Theresa May put at the heart of her vision for Britain when she came to power last year. The CML’s latest figures show first time buyer mortgage borrowing increased by 9% in November, year-on-year. But London’s rental market problems, coupled to looming tax increases for landlords, are either driving many investors out of the market, or frightening them off new property purchases. The CML say that landlord borrowing has fallen by 10% year on year. The NLA says just 5% of London landlords say they plan to buy further properties this year, down from 15% last year, while outside London confidence is much higher. In the North…
Read More » -
Latest property news
Government makes it harder to license landlords
Reforms to the Selective Licensing scheme, announced last week by Brandon Lewis (left), the Minister of State for Housing and Planning, will further restrict local decision making powers making it harder for councils to license landlords. Since 2010, local councils have had the power to licence landlords across an entire borough or jurisdiction in order to combat issues such as anti-social behaviour in so-called ‘hotspot areas’. However, the changes, which come into force on 1 April 2015, will mean that councils will require Government approval before implementing a licensing scheme if they plan to license a large area or proportion of the market – likely to be above 20 per cent of either the geographical area covered by the council or the local private rented sector (PRS). The decision appears to have been influenced by sustained lobbying efforts by various organisations, including the National Landlord Association (NLA), which published its report on the state of landlord licensing across the country in February. The report points to a boom in the number of blanket licensing schemes since 2010 but highlights a lack of enforcement actions being taken by local councils. It also shows a correlation between the political control of a…
Read More »
