All Student Lets Should Be Exempt from Plans to Ditch Fixed Term Tenancies

All Student Lets Should Be Exempt from Plans to Ditch Fixed Term Tenancies Plans to abolish fixed-term tenancies in England will “decimate” the student housing market, the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) said. But the National Union of Students said if students were exempt from the reforms, they would become an “underclass”. Meanwhile, the government said it was “engaging” with […]

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What the Private Rented Sector Needs Now is a Period of Reflection

And so the general election is over and all is more or less calm in the world of the private rented sector – for a few years at least. The clear majority for the Conservatives meant there will now be no compulsion for landlords to issue 3 year tenancies. And the green light previously given to local authorities to allow them to require all […]

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Nationwide Foundation and Generation Rent, the Odd Bed-Fellows

The Nationwide Building Society has an odd bed-fellow in Generation Rent, says David Lawrenson of LettingFocus.com. Nationwide Foundation and Generation Rent, the Odd Bed-Fellows Once again there are calls for rent controls. Most recently these have come from Diane Abbott, the MP for Hackney – and her call echoes some of what the likes of the pressure group Generation Rent have called for. […]

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Build to Let And Why New Institutional Investments in Private Rent Is Risky

In this article, David Lawrenson of LettingFocus.com looks at where the big new entrants could get it wrong with their investments in the private rented sector. The big new players (big pension funds like M&G, Prudential, Legal & General and various foreign real estate investors) who are now already in or about to come into the private rented sector could […]

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Generation Rent

Be aware of the holes in TV documentaries about the private rented sector says David Lawrenson of LettingFocus There was an interesting programme on ITV last week from the “Tonight” team. Called “Generation Rent” the programme set out to look at a number of aspects of the growing private rented sector and the problems people face trying to scrape together […]

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London Living Rent, Landlord Accreditation and Ken and Boris

David Lawrenson of LettingFocus worries about Ken Livingston’s idea of rent controls and says that that accreditation and registration schemes for landlords are not needed because the vast majority of landlord and tenants enjoy good relations and the minority of rogue landlords will never register anyway. Oh dear, oh dear, I spend a nice day at a CIH Conference telling […]

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Generation Rent, the Nation of Renters and Landlords Taxes

A recent survey and press release from the Halifax (the ones with those annoying but oddly impactful adverts of the two girls making a jingle and spilling their coffee) got a lot of column inches. “Suddenly we are becoming nation of private renters” says the Halifax. Those of you who have followed my work for a while will know that […]

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