The number of individuals choosing to flat sharing exceeds 50,000 and the number of professionals currently searching for a flat share exceeds the number of students by 13%.

The data from flat sharing website Easyroommate also found that the number of individuals searching for rooms within flat shares has increased by over 2,000 in three months following a slight decline towards the end of 2011.

Approximately 8000 runners battled with heavy wind and rain in on Sunday in order to complete the 26 mile run.

Well done everyone who participated.

The first rental yield league table of 2012 has revealed that landlords in thenorth westhave taken the top spot, achieving the highest average rental yield.

Research commissioned by specialist buy to let lender Paragon Mortgages, has shown a significant regional shift in the rental yields achieved by landlords.

In the first three months of the year those achieving the highest average yield were in thenorth west, generating a yield of 6.6%, an increase from 5.9% in the fourth quarter of 2011.

The northern regions dominated the top spots, with landlords in the north east achieving an average yield of 6.5%. Following in third place was the south west with a yield of 6.4% and the east ofEnglandwith 6.3%.

From the 6th April the time a landlord has to register the deposit will be increased from 14 days to 30 days but the bill also removes all the current case law defences to not registering the deposit on time.

The compensation for non compliance will no longer be fixed at 3 times the deposit but will be between 1 and 3 times the deposit amount, the exact amount being at the judge’s discretion.

The tenant must be provided with proof of the deposit protection and the Prescribed Information within this 30 day limit by the landlord or agent.

If the deposit isn’t protected on time, the courts will be able to order the landlord or agent to pay the tenant between one and three times the deposit amount as penalty in addition to ordering the return of the actual deposit.

If the deposit is not protected and the information provided any section 21 Notice will be still be invalid. In addition the landlord/agent will also be unable to seek possession of the property using a Section 21 notice until the penalty awarded is settled and the information provided.

Landlords need to be aware that tenants can make a independent claim without any possession proceedings being commenced and by doing so could potentially delay any action brought via a section 21.

The bill recognises the role of the agent in respect of taking and registering deposits but the liability remains with the landlord should the agent cease to trade.

An additional change of note is that a tenant can make a claim after the tenancy has ended should they discover that the regulations had not been followed in respect of that tenancy.

Once again if the regulations have not been followed there is no defence to the claim and the amount awarded will be at the courts discretion.

Tenants are now paying an average of £739.00 per calendar month to rent properties in the UK and they are staying in unfurnished properties for 20 months and 16 months in furnished accommodation. This is an increase of 2-3 months each from 2 years ago and everyone knows that lengthy tenancies are good news for landlords.

With increasing tenant demand for UK rental properties exceeding the current supply of suitable Buy To Let accommodation, it is becoming increasingly important for landlords and letting agents to rely on thorough tenant referencing and good relationships to ensure that all applicants are suitable, solvent and above all, honest!

UK landlords have been taking extra steps to ensure that tenants occupy their properties for longer by using a wealth of specialist products and services, such as Tenant Referencing services and Rent Guarantee products, alongside good business practices to ensure happy tenants stay longer.

Relationship building starts from the prospective tenant’s very first approach and landlords and letting agents should endeavour to create a rapport with clients in order to establish good channels of communication. This will enable them to find out as much as possible about the applicant’s current circumstances and property requirements in order to direct them to available rental properties matching their criteria, prior to acceptance for tenant referencing.

The organisation wants to see Landlords treated as small businesses and says that stamp duty must be reviewed along with other barriers to investment in the sector.

It believes that the forthcoming Budget is an open goal for the Chancellor to encourage investment in the UK Private Rented Sector (PRS) and support growth in the economy.

In its Budget submission to the Chancellor, has urged the Government to support growth in the Private Rented Sector and remove prohibitive barriers to further investment.

‘Landlords must be treated as the entrepreneurial businesses they have now become. Supporting growth and encouraging greater investment into the private rented sector will help boost our economy and is an open goal for the Chancellor,’ said Ian Potter, operations manager at ARLA.

‘Demand for private rented housing continues to grow, with 3.4 million tenants living in the private rented sector, an increase of over one million tenants since 2005. The tax system can be used by the Government to incentivise investment in housing stock in the PRS, and therefore improve the conditions in which those 3.4 million tenants live,’ he explained.

 ARLA’s Budget submission calls on the Government to encourage investment in the private rented sector by treating rented property as an entrepreneurial business activity for Capital Gains Tax purposes; re-introducing roll over relief for landlords looking to reinvest in the private rented sector; and re-assessing the current slab structure of stamp duty to create a fairer system. 

‘Landlords play a vitally important role in providing housing in the UK, however, they are not treated as businesses by the Treasury and therefore can’t take advantage of tax relief available to other SME’s when looking to reinvest in their portfolio. Some landlords face tax bills of up to 28% when selling a property, preventing them from reinvesting in the market,’ added Potter.

ARLA has called on the government to allow landlords to take advantage of the same level of roll over relief available to other businesses when reinvesting in the private rented sector, and to only charge Capital Gains Tax on gains released from a business as profit.

Potter also suggested the government reforms the outdated structure of stamp duty.

‘The dampening effect of stamp duty on the housing market recovery is recognised across the industry. The current slab structure distorts the UK housing market and takes money out of the pockets of home owners  in a totally unfair way. Now is the time for the government to modernise the duty structure to create a fairer, more logical system,’ he added.

Article courtesy of Menmedia

The buy to let market has grown at a substantial rate over the last two years with rents hitting an all time high, especially in many London boroughs and commutable areas such as Staines and Sunbury, but the rate at which rents have risen is simply not sustainable for tenants.

Many tenants are spending two thirds of their income on rent making saving of any kind nearly impossible. Applicant numbers are equal or marginally above the same period last year demonstrating that demand remains high, so a period of price adjustment does not suggest that the buy to let bubble has burst, but simply reflects a more stable market.