Archive

Consumer organisation Which? claims there are some 1,000 reports of rental fraud scams a month at this time of year. It says...

Propertymark has renewed its call for agent comments on Material Information.  The trade body - in collaboration with TDS, The Guild of...

Propertymark is today launching a consultation exercise, seeking the views of lettings and sales agents - amongst others - about Material Information...

David Cox, the former chief executive of ARLA Propertymark and now a senior executive at Rightmove, says it’s unlikely we’ll see...

Regulation of lettings and estate agencies must be a priority for the government elected tomorrow, a PropTech entrepreneur demands. Sián Hemming-Metcalfe of...

The Property Ombudsman received a record number of enquiries with 57,635 people seeking support with their property and housing related issues...

A prominent solicitors’ firm says the failure of the Renters Reform Bill to become law may have attracted headlines but the...

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

Propertymark has come out in support of the National Trading Standards Estate and Lettings Agency Team’s probe into Rent-to-Rent.    NTSELAT has...

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

Housing minister Lee Rowley will be taking centre stage at the largest property agency conference in the UK this summer, Propertymark...

A new guide from Propertymark explains the rights which private rental tenants have - and sets out how they can challenge...

Political parties should stop bickering and instead work together to improve the private rental sector. That’s the view of the Lettings industry...

A representative of the National Trading Standards Estate and Letting Agents team has told agents to accept new rules about material...

Propertymark is urging agents to get ahead of the curve and be ready for the next big initiative - Regulation.  Propertymark has...

A lettings agency has been expelled from The Property Ombudsman scheme following itsfailure to pay £1,100 out of an adjudicated award...

The all-party House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee has urged the government to get on with establishing a regulator of...

Propertymark has urged the Sunak government to press ahead with leasehold reform ahead of the Second Reading of the Leasehold and...

There’s been a large rise in complaints and a huge increase in compensation according to figures out today from the Property...

Propertymark has emphasised the importance of retaining fixed term tenancies under the Renters Reform Bill. Propertymark chief executive Nathan Emerson met Housing...

Propertymark will appear in front of the House of Lords’ Industry and Regulators Committee tomorrow morning, urging the regulation of lettings...

One of the highest profile groups in the private rental sector supplier space - Hamilton Fraser - is restructuring. In future the...

The long-awaited Third Reading of the controversial Renters Reform Bill will not happen this week according to the Leader of the...

Propertymark's latest research report suggests some letting agents want radical changes to the Renters Reform Bill now going through Parliament.  The aim...

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

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

A prominent housing market commentator says Labour would introduce a tougher version of the Renters Reform Bill if it forms the...

Former housing minister Rachel Maclean - the victim of a shock sacking by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last month - has...

Propertymark has set out its pro-agency position on a range of issues contained in the Renters Reform Bill, currently trundling through...

Leaders Romans Group is calling for a Landlords Reform Bill to balance the challenges and apparent disincentives now deterring landlords from...

A webinar is being held tomorrow, aimed to urging agents to get ahead of changes to the industry likely to be...

Propertymark has called on the government to retain the option of fixed-term tenancies in the private rental sector where it is...

The UK Association of Letting Agents says it now has a record membership of 1,200. UKALA describes itself as “a professional association...

PropTech platform Goodlord has launched a one hour online course explaining the controversial Renters Reform Bill. The aim is to equip letting...

The Property Redress Scheme has released its latest list of expelled agents - mostly for rental misdemeanours and/or failure to pay...

It appears almost certain that the Second Reading of the Renters Reform Bill - expected some weeks ago - will not...

We compare traditional methods of client money account inspections by an accountant to the alternative Client Money HealthCheck. But first, let’s clarify...

A webinar says the Renters Reform Bill is the biggest challenge facing lettings agents - and it’s prompted calls to a...

Consumer champion Martin Lewis - the man behind the Money Saving Expert website and TV shows - has backed the Renters...

A £5,000 fine has been upheld against a landlord who failed to declare himself as a property agent and did not join a mandatory...

The Property Redress Scheme, one of two government-approved redress services, has produced a list of recently-expelled agencies. All agencies must be a...

Several lettings agents have been expelled from The Property Ombudsman scheme; they are amongst eight named as having been kicked out...

The government has taken the first step to introducing a mandatory ombudsman scheme which private landlords must join. This is effectively the...

Introduce yourself A: My name is Sean Hooker. I have worked for the HFIS group for sixteen years, originally helping set...

There’s been a big rise in the number of complaints about agents lodged with the Property Redress Scheme, which says it’s...

A combination of regular inspections and pro-active installation of ventilation can help to reduce the risk of dangerous damp and mould...

Trading Standards officers check for agents’ compliance by scrutinising their websites, it’s being claimed. Agents are being warned to ensure their websites...

Propertymark has hit out at a proposal from a group of MPs that there should be a single Ombudsman covering the...

The political party propping up the Scottish Government says higher taxes on buy to lets will help the housing market be...

It’s been revealed that agents have been kicked out of The Property Ombudsman in recent months for failing to pay compensatory...

The Property Redress Service claims to be the largest lettings redress service now, with over 13,250 letting agency branches on board. In...

UK banks are closing client accounts held by established letting agents and refusing to open accounts for new businesses. The Problem A growing...

A council’s Trading Standards team is warning letting agents of a new clampdown on compliance failures. Stoke-on-Trent Trading Standards says it’s received...

Trading Standards is describing a penalty imposed on a London letting agent as “a landmark” after the company failed to comply...

The Property Ombudsman has reported a big rise in enquiries over last year and a huge rise since the pre-Covid year,...

One of the two official redress bodies, the Property Redress Scheme, has announced a beefed up advisory panel with a substantial...

Jeremy Hunt’s firm grasp of fiscal policy after the market turmoil of recent weeks won’t stop what one housing expert calls...

The head of the Property Redress Scheme will give agents the lowdown on the recent Fairer Private Rented Sector White Paper...

The latest update from industry discussions about allowing more pets in private rental properties suggests there’s not been a solution yet...

As the new academic year gets underway, demand continues to far outweigh supply in the lettings market in London and the...

Agents are being invited to comment on the government’s Fairer Private Rented Sector White Paper. And unusually the invitation comes not from any...

Fourteen Trading Standards authorities across a swathe of England are embarking on an enforcement project to check lettings agency compliance.  The Central England...

Senior figures in the agency industry have backed new guidance from the National Trading Standards Estate and Lettings Agent Team regarding...

One of Britain’s largest cities wants to regulate Airbnb and other short let platforms. The proposed scheme in Glasgow follows legal changes...

Today’s proposed changes to the private rental sector are the most radical for a generation. The first industry debate on this hot...

A prominent lettings industry supplier has asked whether the earlier-than-expected arrival of the rental reform white paper was a distraction from...

What looks suspiciously like a government leak to the Daily Mail says the long-awaited Rental Reform White Paper will be unveiled...

A collection of rental experts in a body called The Lettings Industry Council have set out what they want to see...

Sean Hooker, head of redress at the Property Redress Scheme, will discuss the latest rental reform proposals and answer letting agents'...

Propertymark says one lasting legacy of the Grenfell Tower tragedy is that agents letting properties in high rise blocks must engage...

PRS, one of the two official redress services for the lettings and sales agency sectors, says it’s seen an increase in...

Private rental property conditions and the enforcement of regulations by councils and government have all been in the firing line from...

Propertymark has stepped up its call for a dedicated Housing Tribunal to improve mediation and enhanced dispute resolution. The trade body also...

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

A radical shake up of the private rental sector is expected to be announced tomorrow by Housing Secretary Michael Gove. The main...

Two agencies have been expelled from The Property Ombudsman scheme for failing to pay compensation awards. Thamlet Estates, based in east London,...

A Trading Standards team is to carry out what it calls “unannounced inspections” of lettings agencies in one part of London...

A report from the House of Lords has condemned the private rental sector as being ”increasingly unaffordable” as well as being...

A leading expert on the private rental sector predicts it will take three years for the government to scrap Section 21 evictions...

ARLA Propertymark has launched a radical programme of reform for the private rental sector - getting in before the government’s own...

A report by the National Audit Office claims that the way private renting is regulated makes the sector unfair to renters. It...

A letting agency has been issued with penalty notices worth £3,000 for operating illegally. Back in 2014 it became a legal requirement...

A checklist for agents to help ensure they steer clear of unwanted fines or claims has been provided by the Guild...

The Property Redress Scheme has expelled an agent operating a guaranteed rent scheme which failed to pay £150,000 to a former landlord client. The agent...

Six agencies have been expelled from The Property Ombudsman for failing to pay compensatory awards - five of them for offences...

A senior Conservative in Wales wants the Welsh Government to consider creating a housing tribunal in the light of rising tenant arrears. Janet Finch-Saunders,...

Lettings once again dominated the complaints received by The Property Ombudsman according to its latest annual report - out today but...

There has still been no formal response to a government consultation on the database of rogue agents and landlords, 25 months...

Complaints referred to the Property Redress Scheme against its members grew by more than a quarter during 2020. In its annual report...

London’s Labour Mayor, Sadiq Khan, has made a new call for power to cap private rents. He’s claimed that rents in the...

Propertymark has accused the Scottish Government of rushing through the latest eviction ban extension without proper consultation. At the end of last...

A lettings agent who wants tenants to take out policies to fund complaints against agencies and landlords has branded the social...

There have been just 17 First Tier Tribunal cases involving allegations of fees charged to tenants in contravention of the Tenants...

A lettings agency which markets private rental properties and units operated by a housing association has apologised for its ‘No DSS’...

Some lettings industry figures are beginning to express doubt as to whether the government’s broad commitment to reform the private rental...

The Association of Residential Letting Agents says the government is willing to listen to agents and other industry players ahead of...

Today’s Queen’s Speech, setting out the government’s legislative programme for the next year, is expected to include rental reform. It’s thought one...

A rival trade body to the Association of Residential Letting Agents has announced what it calls “a robust membership result.” The UK...

After years of deliberation there still appears to many to be little progress on the recommendations of the Regulation of Property...

A clampdown on letting agents who fail to safeguard landlords’ and tenants’ money is now underway.  A statement from the National Trading Standards...