Online Letting Agents Explained

May 11, 2012 Leave a comment

online letting agentsThe days when house hunters flicked through the local paper to find their next home are long gone as the nation turns more and more to the internet. This has presented an expensive problem for private landlords, who are typically charged in the region of a month’s rent by a letting agent to advertise their property.  In the past, landlords have not been able to advertise privately on the big property websites such as rightmove and PrimeLocation, and the only solution has been to use a letting agent to give them exposure on these sites.
This has all changed with the advent of online letting agents.  Without the need for a high street presence, internet based agents have much lower overheads and offer landlords the ability to advertise their properties on the major property websites for little or no cost.
The process requires more input from the landlord as the internet based agent does not visit the property at any time. Read more of this post

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Rental payment struggle for tenants

April 23, 2012 1 Comment

Rental payment struggle for tenantsTenants are experiencing a rental payment struggle as more and more are failing to pay their rents at the right time.

The Association of Letting Agents (ARLA) have discovered that in the last six months, 40% of their letting agent members have noticed that more of their tenants are not meeting rental payment deadlines, or are struggling to do so. Tenants will therefore try to barter with landlords to keep the level of rent the same or even reduce it. The report discovered that this trend was most apparent in the South West and North East of England, which shows a struggle which takes place in very different parts of the country. Read more of this post

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Is 2012 a good time to invest in student property?

February 22, 2012 Leave a comment

By Lindsay Blair

Is 2012 a good time to invest in student propertyWhile many people predicted that an increasing number of students would rethink their futures as a result of the hike in tuition fees to £9,000 last year, a survey by FreshStart Living found that three-quarters of young people would still consider living away from home despite the higher education charges.

Even more surprising was the result that more than half of students questioned (58 per cent) said the increased cap on tuition fees had not affected what they would be willing to pay for rented accommodation in prime locations.The results of the insightful survey suggested that student housing is still a hot topic and for many investors, a lucrative deal that could see high returns from term to term. Read more of this post

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Five-point plan to undertake dodgy landlords, waiting approval from Grant Shapps

February 10, 2012 Leave a comment

A five-point plan has been suggested to tackle the problem of rogue landlords, and homeless charity Shelter are appealing to Housing Minister Grant Shapps to implement the promises he made in the government’s housing strategy.

Shelter has berated landlords who are taking advantage of the current rental shortage by charging extortionate rates and leaving families to live in dirty and dangerous housing. Chief executive of Shelter Campbell Robb commented that due to such high demand, landlords are able to exploit those in a desperation situation and are potentially putting their lives at risk. His main concerns were the upheaval of families due to this rental shortage and how problems are not challenged due to the worry of being evicted. Read more of this post

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London landlords cash in on Olympics, but at what cost for tenants?

February 3, 2012 Leave a comment

It’s the year Britain’s been waiting for. Ever since winning the majority of votes to host the 2012 Olympics back in 2006, the Olympics have driven a frenzied excitement at the prospect of welcoming more than 22,000 athletes, their coaches, families, friends and of course the thousands of country supporters to the doorstep, to celebrate the world’s most famous sporting event. However for many London tenants, the games are leaving them with little choice than to move away from London during the summer months, as greedy landlords charge up to 15 times the usual rent price to accommodate tourists willing to pay up to 15 times the normal amount.

Many clauses are being written into tenancy contracts by letting agents stating that the tenant must be out of the property during the months of the Olympics which begin on July 27th. During this period, the price of rent has risen to between 5 and 15 times its usual price. Antonia Bance, head of housing charity, Shelter, has said that the process of evicting and kicking out tenants has already begun, and experts are warning that evicted or displaced tenants will struggle to find a cheap alternative during the summer months, as tourists are willing to pay so much more. Read more of this post

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