Tag Archives: safety
Two thirds of UK landlords now planning to buy new properties
Landlords in the UK are looking to expand their property portfolios at an accelerated pace over the rest of 2015, according to a new property investor survey. Some 65% of UK landlords plan to buy at least one further property in the next six months up from 55% looking to buy six months ago, says the research from specialist buy to let mortgage broker Mortgages for Business. . Just 8% of landlords currently plan to sell any property, while 27% do not intend to either grow or reduce the size of their property portfolio over the next six months. ‘Landlords are better capitalised and now more confident about reinvesting. A strong rental market is being driven by tenants moving to make the most of job opportunities, and now gradually starting to earn more too,’ said David Whittaker, managing director at Mortgages for Business. ‘That new surge of demand is putting more upwards pressure on rents, and landlords are only just beginning to supply more homes to let in response. On top of this, after the surprise stability of a majority government, landlords will almost certainly see a short term boost of house price growth while the threat of damaging regulation has been lifted for at least the next five years,’ he added. When choosing how to finance borrowing, landlords are also changing their approach. Some 26% would currently prefer a variable rate deal for a new buy to let mortgage, up from 23% in November 2014. However, choosing to fix repayments for just a short time period is actually slightly less popular than six months ago. Currently 22% prefer a two year fixed rate mortgage, down marginally from 23% in November, while 12% would go for a three year fix, down from 15% in November. Some 30% would still choose the safety of fixing their mortgage repayments for five years, though this is also slightly down on 31% in November. By contrast, very long term fixes appear to be gaining popularity and 10% would now choose a 10 year fix, more than the 8% recorded in November. Landlords’ average loan to value ratios have fallen in the space of the last six months. Overall, the average overall LTV ratio for UK landlords now stands at 54%, down from 57% in November. The proportion of landlords with overall borrowing above 75% LTV has fallen to just 12%, down from 16% in November. The vast majority have some borrowing, though below 75% LTV. This now represents 81% of landlords, up from 79% in the previous survey. Currently only 6% of UK landlords have no borrowing whatsoever. ‘Over the medium term, interest rate expectations have never been friendlier to landlords. This is clearly reflected in the proportion willing to eschew guaranteed stability in favour of some immediate savings. Over a two year period this may be rational, and landlords as a whole don’t tend to take extraordinary risks with their financial position,’ said Whittaker. Continue reading
Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms to be legal requirement in rental properties
Landlords in the UK will be required by law to install working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in their properties from October 2015, it has been announced. According to Housing Minister Brandon Lewis the move will help prevent up to 36 deaths and 1,375 injuries a year after a consultation showed strong support for the measure. Fire and rescue authorities are expected to support private landlords in their own areas to meet their new responsibilities with the provision of free alarms, with grant funding from the government. Lewis explained that it is part of wider government moves to ensure there are sufficient measures in place to protect public safety, while at the same time avoiding regulation which would push up rents and restrict the supply of homes, limiting choice for tenants. ‘In 1988 just 8% of homes had a smoke alarm installed but now it’s over 90%. The vast majority of landlords offer a good service and have installed smoke alarms in their homes, but I’m changing the law to ensure every tenant can be given this important protection,’ said Lewis. ‘But with working smoke alarms providing the vital seconds needed to escape a fire, I urge all tenants to make sure they regularly test their alarms to ensure they work when it counts. Testing regularly remains the tenant’s responsibility,’ he added. According to Communities Minister Stephen Williams it will help to create a bigger, better and safer private rented sector. ‘A key part of that is to ensure the safety of tenants with fire prevention and carbon monoxide warning. People are at least four times more likely to die in a fire in the home if there’s no working smoke alarm,’ he said. ‘That’s why we are proposing changes to the law that would require landlords to install working smoke alarms in their properties so tenants can give their families and those they care about a better chance of escaping a fire,’ he added. The proposed changes to the law would require landlords to install smoke alarms on every floor of their property, and test them at the start of every tenancy. Landlords would also need to install carbon monoxide alarms in high risk rooms such as those where a solid fuel heating system is installed. Those who fail to install smoke and carbon monoxide alarms would face sanctions and could face up to a £5,000 civil penalty. This would bring private rented properties into line with existing building regulations that already require newly built homes to have hard wired smoke alarms installed. New regulations will be laid in Parliament to require landlords to install smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in their properties, and are expected to come into force, subject to Parliamentary approval, on 10 October 2015. The allocation of funding to fire and rescue authorities to offer free smoke and carbon monoxide alarms to local landlords will be announced shortly. The British Property Federation said the crackdown was necessary to force the small number… Continue reading
Majority of UK tenants rent as they can’t afford to buy, new research reveals
Almost 60% of tenants in the UK rent because they are priced out of the housing market but generally they have a positive relationship with their landlords, new research shows. Indeed the research by AXA Business Insurance challenges the popular image of a hostile tenant/landlord relationship but reveals serious concerns about energy efficiency and the safety of many rental properties. The biggest downsides of renting are finding properties in a dirty state on moving-in day and unfriendly landlords but tenants are most concerned about high energy bills as a result of poorly insulated properties and old heating systems. Gaps in essential repairs put tenants and landlords at risk, the survey suggests. Only 30% of landlords carry out the annual gas inspection required by law and 58% do not have a fire alarm fitted, among other safety failings. AXA’s survey looked at tenants’ motivations for living in a rented property. It found that there are those who have no choice. Some 59% told the survey they would prefer to buy, but quite simply can’t afford current house prices. At the other end of the scale, there is also a sizeable number of tenants, 17%, who say they choose to rent because they ‘prefer the freedom’. The deciding factor in choosing their current rental property was the size, notably the number of bedrooms, followed by price and being in a central location such as near work and shops and amenities. When asked which feature they would most appreciate added to the property, the top answer cited by 35% of tenant was an outdoors area, such as a patio, garden or balcony. Use of a garage was the second most desirable feature cited by a quarter of tenants. The biggest gripe among tenants was dealing with other people’s dirt and grime when they move into a property, the top complaint for 38% of respondents. Meanwhile, one in five tenants named décor issues such as peeling paintwork or a bad colour scheme, as their pet hate. The most detested colour for interior décor was brown, closely followed by avocado green and orange. Even black, in fourth place, was considered less offensive than these colours. It would also seem that the personality of the landlord makes a big difference to how tenants feel about a property. Some 15% of tenants said that an unfriendly landlord would deter them more than anything else. The improvement to their current rental demanded by most tenants was better energy efficiency through insulation, newer boilers, double glazing, green technologies etc. This concern is unsurprising given government estimates that one in five tenants live in fuel poverty. Tenants are not the only ones concerned about poor energy arrangements in rental properties: the government is also looking to introduce new energy legislation for landlords. For instance, by April 2016, landlords will be obliged to introduce any ‘reasonable’ energy efficiency measure like insulation, double-glazing, etc, that a tenant requests. Meanwhile, by 2018, it will be an offence to let a property in the lowest… Continue reading
