Archive

Propertymark has responded to the formal consultation schemes being imposed by a string of local councils - but says such measures...

A new partnership being launched today aims to see if the private rented sector can contribute to ending homelessness. It takes the...

A lettings agency set up by a council to buy properties on the open market and let them at open market...

One of the UK’s most high profile lettings agents is calling on politicians to change course on rent controls. David Alexander of...

A charity leader claims spiralling rents are forcing children into what he calls “damp and mouldy B&Bs”. Matt Downie, chief executive of...

Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner has launched a comprehensive review of the National Planning Policy Framework. The objective is...

Deputy prime Angela Rayner will tomorrow unveil a new National Planning Policy Framework in a move that will strengthen requirements for...

A prominent lettings agent says banning agents and landlords conducting bidding wars for a rental property is not addressing the real...

The government’s renewed pledge to end Section 21 eviction powers for agents and landlords is fine, a leading industry figure has...

There’s a call from a prominent international building science service for the new Labour government to review the Energy Performance Certificates. EPCs...

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has congratulated Labour on forming the next government but says it must move quickly to...

The biggest rental sector headline from Labour’s manifesto may well be its pledge for the “immediate” abolition of Section 21 eviction...

Thousands of homes in central London may have been lost to Airbnb and other short let platforms, a Labour candidate claims. Rachel...

The embattled short let and holiday let industry has hit out at what it calls the “rampant hypocrisy” of councils when...

Outstanding council tax arrears have soared according to new government figures. Data from he Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities shows...

The Scottish National Party, which as part of an alliance with the Greens introduced controversial rent controls in Scotland in 2022,...

Labour’s manifesto, just released, makes a pledge to enact the “immediate” abolition of Section 21 eviction powers, along with other private...

Agents, and others in the lettings industry, have given a sceptical response to the Conservative manifesto and its varied pledges about...

The Conservatives have this afternoon set out a 78-page manifesto, of which just over two pages are given to housing and...

Labour is launching a new Freedom to Buy scheme to get 80,000 young people on the housing ladder, over the next...

A pro-tenant group wants the next government to take Right To Buy properties back to public ownership when they come up...

If Labour plans to bring in rent controls they won’t work, a property association has warned.  The National Association of Property Buyers...

London councils have slammed government plans for regulating the short-term and holiday lets sector. In a letter to Housing Secretary Michael Gove,...

A Labour MP is calling for rent controls to be introduced, with powers for councils to tweak them as they see...

The government has won a landmark legal challenge against a freeholder forcing it to fix serious building safety issues in a...

Propertymark has urged Scotland’s new First Minister to end the country’s housing emergency. John Swinney is now First Minister and says he...

The head of a lettings agency in Kent says it would be a “practical solution” for second home owners to become...

A politician is claiming that second home council tax premiums, where owners pay up to double the normal rate, is resulting...

Campaigning charity Shelter is demanding an overhaul of the Renters Reform Bill, which will shortly begin its passage through the House...

Half of all private renters would not know where to turn to if a letting agent failed to address a problem...

Five Labour MPs have put forward an Early Day Motion in the House of Commons calling for rent controls - even...

A lawyer says radical rental reforms proposed for Scotland - which could be a model for change in England and Wales...

Property logbook company Chimni is trialling a new form of Digital Property Logbook aimed at the Lettings markets.   The new logbooks...

Agents have expressed their anger at permanent rent controls proposed by the SNP and Green Party politicians running the Scottish Government. The...

NatWest Group has announced a new package of what it calls ”targeted lending and support” to help local councils provide more...

England’s county councils want the next government to set out a long-term plan for housing, as a new report claims there’s...

Propertymark has urged the Scottish Government to resolve the country’s ongoing housing emergency. The news comes as Scottish Labour MSP Mark Griffin...

An umbrella group called London Councils has expressed “extreme concern” at the government’s decision to stop letting local authorities keep money...

Sharpened rules to double council tax on long term empty properties will come into force from April 1, says the government.  A...

Labour has waded into the increasingly-fractious debate over the Renters Reform Bill. Activists in groups such as the Renters Reform Coalition and...

A building society has launched a pilot project banning mortgage lending on holiday lets in two tourist areas for 12 months. Leeds...

Countryside campaigning charity CPRE has given a warm welcome to Michael Gove’s clampdown on short lets. Earlier this week Housing Secretary Michael...

Housing Secretary Michael Gove has this morning announced wholesale changes to planning and regulations surrounding short lets. His proposals include: - planning permission...

The trade body representing short lets providers and support companies has reacted angrily to government proposals for a radical shake up. Housing...

Ukrainians who came to the UK following the Russian invasion will be able to apply for 18-month extensions to their visas,...

A council that is buying private properties in second home hotspots to let to local people has struck a new agreement...

The excessive enforcement of council rules on private landlords while social housing is so poorly run will be ‘the next Post...

A survey of local council private rental licensing schemes says 19 selective and additional licensing schemes and consultations will be taking...

The Renters Reform Bill cannot succeed without proper engagement with letting agents and landlords, Propertymark argues.    According to a Freedom of Information...

Scottish councils must engage with letting agents and landlords if radical rental reforms have any chance of working. Propertymark argues that the...

Seventeen housing organisations have sent an open letter to the government rejecting its idea of prioritising British families when it comes...

Summer looks like it’s going to be a hectic period for lettings agents and the private rental sector according to TV...

Agents, landlords and others’ views are being sought in a consultation on proposals to introduce a borough-wide additional licensing scheme for...

Propertymark is telling member agents to be aware of potential risks and help educate tenants to lookout for common scams, especially...

Housing Secretary Michael Gove has given what some commentators have interpreted as a sign that private rental sector licensing from councils...

Measures contained in the Renters Reform Bill will fail without sufficient resources to ensure they can be enforced. The warning comes from...

Low-income renters will get a boost next spring - but a pressure group wants more government help for this sector. The Chancellor’s...

Scores of councils that enforce licensing regimes on the private rental sector claim they are on the verge of bankruptcy. Almost one...

A trade body representing short lets operators has slammed government housing failures. The Short Term Accommodation Association says it’s analysed local authority...

Second homes in the area of Essex known as Tendring - including popular holiday lets resort Frinton on Sea and the...

Propertymark has told politicians that an additional homes tax will not succeed in increasing housing supply. Timothy Douglas, head of policy and...

Changes put forward to the Renters Reform Bill to crack down on rogue landlords, protect vulnerable residents and improve the safety of...

A new report suggests London’s Build To Rent sector is being held back by a “stark inconsistency” from local councils in...

Propertymark has welcomed the government’s commitment to end the practice of council tax of banding single rooms in HMOs, potentially saving...

The lettings agency Winkworth has taken the unusual step of criticising policies of a series of councils. The councils are all Labour...

A business consortium is calling for bold measures to encourage landlords and owner occupiers to retrofit their homes, with the introduction...

Councils have become increasingly hostile towards agents in recent times, with increased regulation and licensing of the private rental sector in...

The National Audit Office says the government will soon have to take hard decisions on the future for the Homes For...

Five councils are delivering what they call “a ground-breaking project” aimed at improving the experience and environment for landlords and tenants...

Labour deputy leader and shadow housing secretary Angela Rayner has given her party’s conference an outline of future policy plans. She says:...

Social housing provider Caridon Property is hosting a series of free seminars to prepare letting agents for the migration of Housing...

A new manifesto calling for rent controls and a raft of other measures is accusing the current rent rises of being...

Airbnb has taken the unusual step of buying space on an influential Labour Party website, just ahead of the party’s conference. Amanda...

The Scottish Government is proposing to give local councils the discretion to charge Council Tax premiums of up to 100 per...

New directives issued by the government put the emphasis firmly on private landlords and their letting agents to take responsibility for...

A survey of local authorities in some of the poorest areas of the country - bodies which enforce many private rental...

A body largely consisting of councils wants more controls over Airbnbs and other short lets - and it wants local authorities...

The new Housing Loss Prevention Advice Service - introduced this month - will make possession court case delays even worse. That’s the...

Letting agents and landlords operating in South Warwickshire are being encouraged to take part in the next industry forum on Wednesday...

A hate campaign against AirBnb appears to have been launched in a Welsh village. Newspaper reports say a sticker reading 'Death to...

The Nationwide Foundation - a pressure group funded by the Nationwide - says more effective enforcement is required for the private...

An MP says owner occupiers are “scared, unable to sleep at night, worried about their safety and even concerned about whether...

London Labour Mayor Sadiq Khan is calling on the government to allow him to levy effectively uncapped council tax bills on...

Council tax premiums being considered in Wales would be insufficient to persuade short let and holiday home owners to move their...

The letting agents’ trade body ARLA Propertymark is urging the government to regulate Airbnb and other short let platforms but to...

Airbnb has issued a statement responding to the call for a clampdown on short lets demanded by Labour’s outspoken London Mayor,...

After numerous stories of councils and letting agencies at each others’ throats over To Let boards, Trading Standards and other controversies,...

An attempt to introducing statutory licensing for Airbnbs and some other tourist accommodation has got a frosty reception. The Welsh Government -...

New research shows a 41 per cent reduction in the number of London properties available for private rent since the Covid-19...

A long-standing and respected property firm has slammed the government for presiding over the “mess” of taxes applied to holiday lets...

London letting agents and landlords have so far been hit with more than £900,000 in fines in the first half of...

Utility management service Helpthemove has rebranded. The refresh, which has been produced alongside creative agency partner Jam, aims - in the words...

Ukrainians in the UK will be helped into private rental homes as part of a £150m government injection.  The funding will be...

A seasoned property lawyer who has specialised in residential landlord and tenant law for 22 years says she is embarrassed at...

A Liberal Democrat council leader says all properties - even those in properly established lettings businesses - should be charged council...

The Nationwide Foundation - a charitable foundation founded by the Nationwide Building Society - says the Renters Reform Bill should be...

I was surprised the other day to read statistics from the English Housing Survey about how many landlords use letting agents. In...

A prominent housing journalist says Labour should fund councils to buy homes directly from private landlords to rapidly increase the size...

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

The co-leader of the Green Party wants the Renters Reform Bill to go further in restricting the powers of private landlords. Carla...