Richlist

For those of you like me who pay/ have paid enormous amounts of Council Tax and even larger amounts of CGT, the police investigation into the tax affairs (& other matters) of the shadow deputy prime minister, should, I hope, have got your attention. I hate to see people getting away with paying less than they should. She is, of course, innocent until proven guilty but, I'm not holding out much confidence in her ability to keep her job beyond the end of the month.

I'm struggling to understand........???? The guy turned up on the wrong day but the tenant let him in anyway......so the repair is done. If the tenant didn't want him to enter the property they would have sent him away.......but they didnt. Presumably the guy apologised for turning up on the wrong day.....for most people that would have been enough. Are you in the wrong ? ..... no, your repair guy got it wrong, not you.

Well surely they will use the actual rental income being achievement at the time of the mortgage application. Why do you think they will use last year's rental income or a mythical amount that is nothing more than a guess ?

Well I know nobody wants me to bring politics into it but Wales has a devolved Government......they happen to be Labour. If Labour wins the General Election then England may well end up with the same set up as Wales. Mind you, Angela Rayner seems to be doing a fantastic job of ensuring that Labour wont get the majority that they will need. When my tenants left a washing machine I would just gift it to the new incoming tenants. I made sure they understood it was not on the inventory and I wasn't going to repair or replace it. If they didn't want it I would sell it on Gumtree......usually got £30-£50 for it. There always seems to be lots of people looking for a cheap 2nd hand washing machine.

Blimey ! £3 a month is a great price for peace of mind. The first 3 rental properties I bought I installed new washing machines and I purchased 5 year extended warranty on each. They all lasted around 10 years or more and I never needed a repair on any of them. Guess I was just lucky but following on from that I never supplied another washing machine. My understanding is that no washing machine is generally the norm now (with a few exceptions) unless :- * it's a large property or * a high end property or * it's brand new and been installed by the developers or * it's a new inexperienced landlord who thinks they need to supply one.

I agree I agree 100%. It's quite easy to say no to requests of this kind. Your tenant should feel lucky that the property he rents contains a washing machine. Most landlords do not provide them now unless it's a high end property. You will have to accept the fact that he can't be there but I assume he has given you permission to be there and let the repair guy Into the property ?

How totally wrong you are. Why do you think it's fair for a tenant to receive an enhanced service by way of compensation ? An owner occupier in the same situation would receive nothing. It's your kind of approach that results in tenants having an attitude of entitlement. I don't understand why you think it necessary or justified to 'smooth ' anything over. I don't entertain tenants who expect everything just because they pay rent ! These sorts of things happen, it's part of everyday life. Tenants should not expect to be exempt from them or benefit when things go wrong. Sometimes a repair doesn't always go to plan, there is a delay in parts or labour, problems are sometimes difficult to fix.......It's the same for everyone.

If it sells......don't forget to pay your taxes. CGT would be due in England & Wales, payable within 60 days of sale....I don't know what the set up is in IOM.

* I always left the electric switched on so I could set up a couple of table lamps on timers in the evenings, the last thing you need is a break in. It's also an advantage to be able to switch lights on when people are viewing the property on dark, overcast days. * Contact all the utilities and get the bills transferred into your name. * Don't forget to check your council tax situation and pay it if necessary. * Make sure you take all the meter readings. * I'd turn the central heating off as it's the end of March.....unlikely to get any very low temperatures now we are in spring. * Make sure the hot water controls are off. * Inform your insurers it's now empty. * Don't forget to lock all doors & windows. * I always made sure I visited the property every 2 or 3 days to check all is ok. Good idea to have a next door neighbour keep an eye on it for you.......give your contact details in case of emergencies. * Above all else NEVER ASSUME your agents will keep an eye on things for you......they wont.....they just want their sales commission. Good luck.

The big problem, which I have never understood, is why people just can't bring themselves to say the 'N' word. It not difficult, you just take a deep breath and say NO. The buying process has been honed over hundreds of years by millions of buyers and sellers. It's designed to afford some protection and guarantees around what, for many, is the biggest financial outlay of their lives. Why private individuals who have little or no experience of the conveyancing process think they know better and want to change the system is a total mystery to me. Unless a property has an overriding advantage for e.g. development, opportunity potential or price then why take the risk ? There are plenty of other properties around.

Maybe I'm just guilty of being nieve but I'm still suffering from shock at the news.......it will likely take me some time to get over it. Of course I knew that the numbers were high, but nowhere in my wildest dreams did I expect it to be 9 million (16-64 year olds). That 9 million presumably will include the following......mature students, early retirees, prisoners (80,000), drug takers (0.5 million), long term sick (2.5 million), mums/homemakers, Prince Andrew and the idle rich etc. I used to consider myself one of the 9 million because I was fortunate to retire at 53 but now I much prefer to call myself a member of the idle rich.

1 in 5 working age adults are economically inactive ie. not working.....that's 9 million people + another 1 million are unemployed. We have 900,000 job vacancies in the UK......what's going on ! Where the hell are they all living ? How do they pay their rent ?

Your best bet is to ensure there are no gaps in the building for the mice to enter. Explain to the tenant where your responsibility ends and theirs begins and that they need to set traps or poison. Get the ball rolling by buying some proprietary items that'll cost you less than £20 just to get them started and tell them to get on with buying their own. If there is any food lying around that is not in a container, fridge or cupboard the mice will eat it and they'll keep returning. We had a lot of success with poison. It acts as a coagulant and dehydrates the mice very quickly so they die of thirst. Obviously care needs to be taken if there are pet's around.

Whenever I have had mice in rental property, it's as a result of having gaps/holes in the fabric of the building. Those buildings often had some form of cladding e.g. timber with small gaps in the wood or sealer. I accepted those gaps as my responsibility to fix and the mice my responsibility to eradicate. If your property is brick built without cladding or any gaps in the outside walls then the mice (and the damage they cause)are not your responsibility. However, it's probably in your best interest to help your tenant in any way you can and it doesn't cost much as there are lots of excellent products available. The only time we had nice in our own home was due to an integral garage. Garages have gaps especially around doors and if you leave food (pet food, bird food etc) in bags then the mice will get in and eat it. So we just made sure any food stored in the garage was in metal containers.

I can't answer your questions in full but........It's important to remember that the freeholders will view the management of your development as a business and will expect to make a profit. In fact they will do what any business will do and go out of their way, wherever possible, to maximise any potential profit. I don't believe you have a right to have them send you copies of orders, receipts, invoices etc. However I think legislation permits you to visit their offices, by prior arrangement, once a year, to view the documents & accounts. You should always pay the fees every year, never, ever fail to pay as that could result in serious problems. It's always best to pay and then take action where necessary, afterwards.

Thanks for clarifying that point. I'm a shareholder in e.g. Marks & Spencer but it doesn't confer any special rights to me seeing detailed documents or contracts that the directors enter into with their suppliers and business associates. I suspect that your situation may be the same. I'm sure they'd respond if you had specific questions regarding service charges, the work carried out, the legalities/ notices etc.

This is where we really don't have enough information to be certain. Sammy didn't say he owns a share of the freehold just that he is a shareholder. This may mean he owns a share in the Company that manages the development (e.g. repairs & maintenance etc), along with all the other owners who own a share.

I'm puzzled with the levels of management.......management company (who own the freehold), directors (appointed by who ?), managing agents (who presumably handle day to day work on the estate). As a leaseholder I assume you aquire one share when buying a property, directors are appointed at an annual shareholder/residents meeting and they delegate work required to the managing agents. Most of the requirements will be detailed in your lease. If you have issues with whats being done or when or how it's probably best to talk with the directors or you must have a contact supplied by the managing agents......talk to them. There is every chance that there won't be a single contract. Work such as repairs or maintenance will be handled on an ad hoc basis. They will bring contractors in with skills to deal with whatever work is required at the time.

This probably won't help you much but it might give you someone else's perspective. When I read your note all I could see were mistakes that I wouldn't have made.... * I certainly wouldn't let a newly refurbed property to a single mum & son. * I wouldn't have furnished it & I wouldn't have supplied anything new. * I wouldn't have failed to increase the rent. * Regular inspection should have identified water leaks. * I'd have taken Rent Guarantee Insurance or a home owning guarantor to cover missing rent. * The landlord should be checking the Agents work......especially at check out. You have incorrectly assumed your Agent is going to do a good job. * You picked a bad tenant and a bad Agent. You have been unlucky but some of that is down to you.

I never bothered with it for the 20 years I let property. I always assumed it was part of Direct Line Landlord Insurance.

Why are premiums increasing sharply for home insurance ? What's the excuse this time ? We know car insurance is increasing for some cars.....and we know why but I can t work out why it's increasing sharply for property.

I've heard a few landlords, including yourself Grampa, previously say that they have let to benefits tenants successfully. I think it's more of a problem for new or inexperienced landlords. We have all heard of and read of people entering the business thinking they can handle everything themselves without any problems.......we know that's not always the case. In spite of me using my Agents as a tenant find service, I was always very, very picky when selecting tenants. I wouldn't hesitate to find some excuse to reject anyone who wasn't suitable 'in my opinion'. My Agents knew what I was like and filtered many before they viewed the property. However, I'm sure that other landlords on their books who were less discerning were sent applicants who weren't the best. As my Agents provided RGI they did of course have a vested interest in only providing those that 'ticked all the boxes'.

Quite right. My lettings Agents (who I nearly always used to find me tenants) didn't deal with anyone on housing benefits. So, if I had someone apply through my own private advertising who was on housing benefits I would always direct them to my lettings Agents. As the Agents would dismiss them I knew I'd never see them again. Why didn't my Agents deal with anyone on housing benefits/ how did they get away with it ????? My Agents business model was designed to offer all their landlords with rent guarantee insurance, designed by them, for them and underwritten by them. They weren't going to accept tenants on h/benefits onto their insurance cover.

Yes I agree, some of the restrictions on my list are not allowed on a purely discrimination basis. But I am creative enough to have never had a problem finding a totally legitimate reason to refuse them a tenancy.........that's not discrimination, that's the applicant not meeting my criteria. As you probably appreciate, it's entirely acceptable for landlords to require applicants to meet RGI requirements &/or to provide good references or a home owning guarantor or to meet the age restrictions etc, etc. There are also restrictions set by freeholders, managing agents, mortgage lenders and insurance providers.

I have never understood the attraction of trying to let a property to an applicant who doesn't conform to normal tenant standards, in this case, a foster carer. The whole country has a very large number of people looking for a tenancy at the same time as the whole country has an enormous shortage of suitable property. The result is that under normal circumstances there are lots of applicants, many of whom will easily meet a landlords criteria. Unless there is some financial incentive e.g. higher rents, why would anyone consider letting to anyone with increased risks in favour of all the other suitable applicants. The days of advertising a property and letting it go the first person who shows an interest have long gone. I had a long list of people who I wouldn't let to. I've posted that list on here before: Property not let to ......smokers, pet owners, non English speakers, anyone with children, in receipt of housing or disability benefits, Company lettings, anything that results on overcrowding, people running a business from the property, long lead times for moving in, disabled or infirm, non working tenants, under 25, anyone with poor refs or who don't qualify for RGI, lettings for less than 6 months, self employed with less than 3 years of audited accounts, shift or night workers, anyone in dirty trades, same sex couples, no 12 months in advance applicants etc.....and in spite of that long list I rarely had a problem finding suitable tenants.