Energy Act 2011 – An Overview
The Energy Act 2011 is the result of the much talked about Energy Bill receiving Royal assent. You have probably heard of items contained within the act without perhaps realising that that's where they originate. In particular, the Energy Act 2011 enacts the...
Housing benefit rates set to freeze from April 2012
The amount a claimant receives in housing benefit is based upon the local housing allowance rate. This rate is calculated every month by the rent officer assessing non housing benefit rents within the local area and calculating the 30 percentile of those rents. This...
Walsall landlord prosecuted for putting tenants at risk
Thanks to Painsmith Blog for this one. A Walsall landlord has been sentenced for failing to provide a gas safety certificate. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted Khalid Hussain following a complaint from a tenant and her partner, who rent a house at...
Nine out of ten landlords owed rent by LHA tenants
Almost nine out of ten (87%) landlords who accept housing benefit tenants have had problems with rent not being paid on time, with one in ten (11%) saying they have had tenants who stopped paying their rent altogether. Out of all landlords, more than half (59%)...
See how you like it! – Direct payment to social tenants
Councils and housing associations to test direct payments of housing cost support Local authority and housing association partnerships are named as the successful volunteers the Government plans to work with on pioneering demonstration projects that will see claimants...
Survey of Housing Benefit Changes
Almost 800,000 homes will become off limits to benefit claimants relying on housing benefit to pay the rent because of government cuts to the local housing allowance that begin in January, according to research by the Chartered Institute of Housing and the Guardian....
Localism Act and Tenancy Deposit Schemes
The Localism Bill is now officially the Localism Act. The tenancy deposit provisions of the Localism Act take effect on 6 April 2012 Of interest to private landlords in particular will be section 184 of the Act which makes significant changes to the tenancy deposit...
Affiliate Program
Earn money by recommending the Guild! We are pleased to announce our new affiliate program. By placing a special link on your website, if a new landlord subscribes to the Guild via one of your links, you will earn 5%. It is a very simple procedure to activate. Please...
Short Term Lets in Greater London
As the Olympics get closer, many property owners in the London area may be contemplating letting their property on a short term basis. Full credit must go to @ddortongibson for the content of this article as he did all the research on this one. This article is...
The Importance of Prescribed Information
Suurpere v Nice & Anor [2011] EWHC 2003 (QB) This is a significant High Court (so binding) case which highlights what we have been banging on about for several years now namely, the importance of the prescribed information. As we often say, 90% of landlords are...
Wales AST Threshold Increase
From 1 December 2011, the annual rent threshold for when a tenancy is an assured shorthold tenancy is increased from £25,000 to £100,000. To see the effects this may have to any existing tenancies, please see our slightly modified article that we did when the change...
Who has the Material Interest?
IMPORTANT: This case has been overruled by CT v Horsham District Council (HB) [2013] UKUT 617 (AAC). However, if you are using our tenancy agreements (since June 2013) then, the tenant will be liable for council tax in certain cases even when they...
Fine for Newquay Landlord for HMO Management Breaches
At Bodmin Magistrates Court on 8 July 2011, Cornwall Council’s Private Sector Housing team successfully prosecuted Newquay landlord Karen Gamon of Toppers Hotel, 73 Mount Wise, Newquay for failing to comply with requirements of the Housing Act 2004 and the The...
OFT evaluation of Foxtons case finds positive benefits for consumers
Letting agents industry warned to check their small print or risk enforcement action The OFT is warning the letting agents sector to check that their terms and conditions are fair and transparent as it publishes an evaluation of its consumer enforcement case against...
Under 35 Single Person Rate
Housing Benefit (Amendment) Regulations 2011 Currently, single people aged under 25 have their entitlement to housing benefit capped at the local housing allowance single room rate [Para 5 of Sch 1, Rent Officers (Housing Benefit Functions) Order 1997]. In October...
Taxpayers pay £12.7m to DPS
The Deposit Protection Service has received a 12.7m payment from taxpayers it has emerged. The revelation about the bail out was confirmed by Housing Minister Grant Shapps in a reply to a question in Parliament, asked by Chris Kelly, Conservative MP for Dudley South....
Tenant Wins Right to Keep Chickens
Here is an example of one of those rare but great little stories which reminds us of the many laws that still remain but not often known about. Natasha Brooks, from Greater Manchester, kept two chickens (named Henny and Penny just in case you were wondering) in the...
Application for 3 x Deposit After Tenancy
Please note: for cases after 6 April / 6 May 2012 this can no longer be relied upon Gladehurst Properties Ltd v Hashemi & Anor [2011] EWCA Civ 604 (19 May 2011) We now have a further court of appeal ruling on deposit protection, in particular can an...
Change to Ground Rent Notice
Ground rent is a regular payment which a leaseholder must pay to their landlord (sometimes called 'the freeholder') under the terms of their lease. Before ground rent is payable on a residential long leasehold property (which is one where the lease was originally for...
Deposit Protection After Tenancy Ended
Please note: for cases after 6 April / 6 May 2012 this can no longer be relied upon Potts v Densley & Anor [2011] EWHC 1144 (QB) Thanks again to the Painsmith blog for this one. Background The landlord granted the tenant a tenancy of 12 months from 12 May...
Coronavirus Guidance
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