Richlist

The booklet was originally put together by one of the Welsh Local councils but I've forgotten which one. If you can't locate it and still want one you can pm me and I will put one in the post for you.

I always provide every property with an excellent booklet entitled 'Controlling Condensation and Mould' produced by the Energy Efficiency Advice Centre. Of course, the elephant in the room is that anyone looking to benefit from it does need to be able to understand (read) English. Many landlords seem happy to let to tenants who do not have a good grasp of the language.

Yes I read the media reports of this tragic case. It wasn't clear as to what the cause of the mould was. My experience with flats is that there is either a structural issue with the property.....eg. leaking roof, leaking gutters, defective damp proofing etc OR the cause is the tenants lifestyle. It's nearly always caused by tenants lifestyle.......e.g. cooking, damp washing, failure to ventilated etc. My understanding is that the tenants in this case were from North Africa and probably had little or no understanding of cold damp weather and the causes/remedies of condensation. Why the family couldn't buy a bottle of bleach and treat the mould is a mystery.......but again I guess nobody told them this was a way of controlling it.

I suspect the reason (or part of the reason) is to do with repossession. If the lender needed to repossess one of the flats, the unhappy borrower could, if they wished, create numerous problems for the lender when they tried to sell the property. Noise, water leaks, parking problems, general bad behaviour et c that might impact their ability to recover the debt.

That is THE question. Who in their right mind would start a new business in the UK now given all of the negative financials. Look at the negatives.....painfully high...... rents, business rates, energy costs, corporation tax, dividends, import duties and then on top of all that the public have less disposable income to spend on goods. I'm usually quite upbeat during a downturn in the economy. I've always been able to remain optimistic & hopeful that I will be able to recognise a few opportunities that will do well. Let hope I can maintain my positive outlook.

There are two of us. We get an extra £150 winter fuel allowance each together with the existing £100 allowance each which equals £500 in total. We've already had letters telling us to expect our £250 each. Looking at the bigger picture........the Conservatives seem to be taking a completely different view & route to dealing with borrowings. One question that doesn't seem to be answered is WHY when the UK borrowing is lower than most other industrialised countries have they decided to raise interest rates heading into a recession. None of the other major economies have decided to do that. It doesn't make sense to me.

Individual CGT allowance currently £12300....... drops to £6000 in April 2023 and....... drops further to £3000 in April 2024. By my calculations that adds an extra £1764 to the CGT tax bill in 2023/24 and a further £840 in 2024/25. Still, our 10.1% triple lock, double state pension increase along with our £500 winter fuel allowance & £400 energy payment will cover that 😃😃......thanks Rishi.

No, I've never come across that before. I owned 2 flats that were literally next door to each other, they even had sequential door numbers. The mortgages were originally both with Paragon I think & then both re mortgaged with West Bromwich Mortgage Co Ltd. It was never raised as an issue, don't recall it being part of the t&c's.......both sold now. Is it worth you talking to a mortgage broker ? I've always found that they can find mortgage offers that aren't generally available elsewhere.

That depends on which newspaper you read......we'll find out for sure in less than a week.

Well for me personally I don't see very much bad news. * My income is below the 45% threshhold. So no tax increases expected for me. * I've sold most of my properties so my enormous CGT bill is already behind me. * I am in receipt of a state pension.....so looking forward to my 10.1% triple lock increase in April. * I am virtually loan free.....just a couple of months to go. * I have a very large war chest in case some attractive repossessions become available. * I always try to stay flexible, roll with the punches, look out for the opportunities and take the chances that present themselves. It's looking quite good......but I was always an optimist.

If you feel fed up with the Conservatives and want to see what a Labour Gov' will give you......just look at how things are handled in Wales !!!! Good grief, may God help us.

That doesn't sound so good. The CGT tax free allowance is currently £12300 per person. That's why it's a good idea to have joint ownership where possible so you can each claim. Then it's 18% for basic rate & 28% for higher rate. Well, we only have a couple of weeks to find out the bad news.

Well you may be right, I don't know if landlords will be hit on Nov' 17th but, I do know that there are a lot of fiscal opportunities available to the Gov' to help recover the £40 billion shortfall. We already know it's going to be painful because they have told us that. Usually when they hit a particular section or industry there is a knock on effect. They will know that hitting the rental market will further reduce available properties, increase rents, etc. I think it's much more likely to be 1p on income tax/ changes to CGT, tax free allowances & reduction in PSA. Maybe a small increase in VAT, changes to the triple lock and other tweaks to the tax system. There are many ways the Gov' could generate revenue.....e.g....I've never understood why we don't introduce a small visitor tax, other countries do it successfully.

This question really isn't suitable if you are looking for a yes OR no answer. There are so many variables that it looks like the questioner doesn't understand the subject. I would have to answer both good idea AND bad idea as the question doesn't contain enough detail for a definitive answer.

My first reaction was NO it certainly isn't for me but......there is always a but :- I can imagine a world..... where landlords with poor quality homes, in difficult to let areas at the lower end of the market who are persuaded by an undertaking from the UK Gov' to be paid a lot of money.....might just be queuing up to take part.

It is pure discrimination on my part but it's how you word your selection criteria that really matters. Most landlords would, I suspect, prefer not to let to unemployed or part time workers and it would be very easy to ensure they are avoided if you specify full time working tenants only. You can safely use that description because anyone not working full time is likely to fail the Rent Guarantee Insurance criteria where affordability is taken into account. But of course there are always exceptions. I had an application from a trainee barrister who, working part time, didn't meet the affordability criteria but we agreed her mother could stand as guarantor and it was a complete success. I would never let a property through my local council as I believe you will have no say in the tenants selected for you.

You need to write your own....we all have unique wants. It's really quite simple. Just decide what you don't want first.....e.g. unemployed, cats & dogs, children, wfh, in receipt of housing benefit, non professional occupation, shift or night workers, anyone who doesn't qualify for Rent Guarantee insurance, anyone who only wants a short stay, anyone you haven't met personally, anyone without references, anyone offering 6 months in advance, anyone working in a dirty industry etc etc.

...... here are a few more admin tasks :- * Standing order form to receive rent payments. * How to control condensation booklet. * Legionella - tenant advice sheet. * List of restrictions for leasehold property. * Rent guarantee insurance. * Guarantor documents. Good luck.

You don't say why you don't want to use Gumtree.....I've always found it very useful. Before you choose to deal with the letting yourself can I check that you are fully aware of and able to deal with all the legal & general admin required ? * Tenancy Agreement. * Inventory & schedule of condition. * References. * Deposit protection, prescribed information & confirmation deposit has been protected. * Informing your mortgage lenders & insurers. * Passport/Visa checks. * Gas & electrical safety certificates. * Energy performance certificate. * How to Rent booklet....latest version. * Smoke alarms on every floor. * Carbon monoxide alarms. * A template for reporting repairs * Etc, etc. Last time I checked there were around 22 documents required. Apart from using Gumtree I have used, local newspapers, professional publications eg teachers, notice boards of larger employers in my area, local shop windows, any websites that allow such advertising etc. I also have a list of criteria that potential tenants need to meet which I find more important than anything else.

Here are a few ideas for starters:- * Ask the selling agent. * Ask any local estate agent. * Ask the local council housing dept. * Ask your local councillor. If the development is fairly new and the properties are all basic 1 & 2 bed flats I think you can assume there is a very good chance that some will be council properties.

I have no experience of buying property in the North East and the main reason is that I live in the South East. One of the cardinal rules of letting property is.......know your area. There are so many ways you could buy the wrong property in the wrong area. If you are planning to talk to a few estate agents in the area, it isn't necessarily going to provide you with an honest answer......their only incentive is to sell you a property.

Will they travel for South Carolina to London England to fix my lock ?

All energy companies are doing the same. They are applying a discount of £66/67 a month for the next 6 months which equates to the £400 Gov' grant.

This is how it works :- * The tenant pays an increased rent if their energy costs are inclusive. * The landlord pays the energy bill and that expense is reimbursed by them receiving increased rent payments from the tenant. * Therefore the Gov't £400 energy payment has to be passed to the tenant(s) who are ultimately paying the cost of their energy. Simples. Can anyone explain why 13% of private accommodation is arranged in this way ?

Ok thanks for providing the link. I'm surprised that as many as 13% (585,000) of all private rented properties have energy costs included in the rent .......why ? whatever is the advantage ? I dont get it ! I assume that the rent charged for a property that includes energy costs is higher than a property without energy costs. I assume a landlord would set the rent for this type of property not just higher but higher + a safety margin as they cannot accurately predict how much energy their tenant will use. As the tenant is paying for their energy thru increased rent I see that it is fair for the tenant to receive the benefit and not the landlord. But of course any landlord who finds him or herself out of pocket will just raise the rent at their next opportunity. This seems like an overly complicated way to let a property.