Landlord Insurance « PropertyQuoteDirect – Landlords & Buy to Let Insurance Blog

Archive for the ‘Landlord Insurance’ Category

Energy Efficiency

Wednesday, February 22nd, 2012

With the winter almost entirely behind us (fingers crossed) as we move into the latter stage of February many people may be tightening their belts for the next few months after receiving very high energy bills as a result of the very cold, and rather arctic, weather we have had over the past couple of months.

However, it’s still not that warm and so heating will have to be a necessity in many cases in order to keep warm and comfortable.

Bill Paying

Furthermore, if you’re a landlord that usually covers the cost of your tenants’ energy bills then you could be in for a bit of a surprise upon receiving the bill.

Many landlords however do leave their tenants to take care of the energy bills themselves. This can be simpler a lot of the time as the tenants are then left to their own devices in order to budget correctly to cover their bills.

On the other hand, it can be a big advantage to a landlord to include the cost of all the bills within the monthly rent. This way the tenant knows what they’re paying each month without having to worry about fluctuations in bills.

Non Payments

Also, if you let to students, it is almost one hundred per cent simpler to include all the bills within the rental price as students, one may find, will fall behind with bill payments which at the end of the day will become a very stressful situation for the landlord.

If you manage the bills then you can set a monthly allowance for your tenants. It would be a good idea to monitor whether your tenants are being fair and reasonable in what they use as well.

Monitoring Appliances

It would also be worth looking at the appliances within the property in order to analyse if they are energy efficient, and more importantly, that they are working properly and without fault. If you discover that a particular appliance is not working properly, then it may be possible to claim for a repair on your landlord insurance.

Hopefully, with the weather warming up, energy bills will now begin to drop each month, however it is still vital to check that your property is efficient as this will be beneficial for the environment, the tenants, and you as a landlord.

Tags: Bills, energy, energy efficiency, Landlord Insurance, Paying Bills
Posted in Advice, Landlord Insurance | No Comments »

Olympic Warning for London Landlords

Monday, February 20th, 2012

There has been a lot of publicity and speculation surrounding the idea that there will be a very high number of landlords cashing in during the Olympics, however, they must be aware that it is illegal to let a London property for less than 90 Days without the correct permission.

Property118 have recently blogged about the issue and I thought it was certainly worth reiterating as we have ourselves, on this very blog, discussed the potential for landlords and property owners in London during the summer months.

The reason why I thought today was a good time to raise the issue of the Olympic landlords is, simply, because it is quite a beautiful day outside, and it led to me thinking about the upcoming summer months, which will undoubtedly come round quickly. Before we know it Olympic fever will have taken grip on London!

So, what should landlords be aware of?

Landlords will need to be aware of this little gem:

Section 25 of the Greater London Council (General Powers) Act 1973 provides (as amended by Section 4 of the Greater London Council (General Powers) Act 1983):

- For the purposes of Section 22 (1) of the Act of 1971, the use as temporary sleeping accommodation of any residential premises in Greater London involves a material change of use of the premises and of each part thereof which is so used.

Ensure You’re Legal

So that will mean that if a property is used as sleeping accommodation and occupied for less than a consecutive 90 days and which is conducted through the exchange of money or money’s worth, then it will need to be done with the correct permission from councils. Property owners hoping to make a fortune during the Olympics will have to make sure that they not only have the relevant landlord insurance cover, but that they also seek permission to let properties for a period of less than 90 days.

The councils that have already issued warnings to landlords comprise of Southwark, Tower Hamlets, Islington, Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster and Camden. Furthermore, in some cases landlords may receive fines of up to £20,000 if they were thought to be repeat offenders by the authorities in charge.

So to ensure that you do not face the wrath of your local council, make sure you have the correct permission to let a property for a short amount of time.

If you are a concerned London landlord then it may be worth contacting your local council in order to discuss your options during the Olympics.

Tags: Landlord Insurance Cover, London 2012, Olympic Games, Olympic Tenants
Posted in Landlord Insurance, Olympic Letting | No Comments »

We All Love a Good Party

Wednesday, February 15th, 2012

We all love a good party, right? A great chance to meet new people and have a laugh and a catch up with those you already…unless you’re the landlord of the property at which the party is being held.

Damages from parties can be quite severe at times and it will be important to ensure that such damages do not befall your property.

Tenants That Love a Party

It may be quite an obvious point but students love a good house party. We’ve all been there in our student days, where everyone crams into a single room to have a drink and a dance which instantly puts a property at risk. Even simple things like alcohol spilling onto carpets and rugs can cause damage that will cost a substantial amount to repair.

Furthermore, it’s not just students that can cause damage, even mature adults can get a bit over zealous at parties as a result of a little too much to drink.

Anyhow, people will always want to have house parties, and there’s no reason why they shouldn’t, but what should you look out for as a landlord?

Damages

Now of course we always hear horror stories about broken windows, broken doors and even structural damage, and whilst breaks are not uncommon, it’s slightly simpler problems that are certain to occur. Such as, red wine being spilt on carpets (we all know about the white wine trick but red wine can be trouble to clean!) and cigarette ash falling onto carpets too.

Small accidents do of course happen, and the worry should only come when it seems that tenants are being disrespectful to both you and your property. In this case then it may be worth claiming on a landlord insurance policy in order to cover the costs.

Sometimes you may also find that neighbours begin to complain with regard to antisocial behaviour, which is never good. This would only be likely if your tenants had a lot of house parties in a short space of time. This is a rare situation however, and with a careful screening process, you should be able to see which tenants would be most likely to cause such disruption.

Tags: Damages, House Parties, Landlord Insurance, tenants
Posted in Landlord Insurance | No Comments »

Rogue Landlords Must be Stopped

Friday, February 10th, 2012

You may have noticed today in the news that rogue landlords are again the topic of debate. Back in November, the government made a number of promises in their Housing Strategy in order to clamp down on rogue landlords and toughen sentencing for serial rogue landlords.

And now, homelessness charity, Shelter, are urging the government, and in particular the Housing Minister Grant Shapps, to stick to their proposed plans and promises as a huge and worrying number of rogue landlords continue to prosper at the expense of others as a result of the high demand for rental accommodation.

Steps To Take

Shelter has outlined that they want to see the following steps implemented for those landlords that break the law and abuse their tenants:

1) Sentencing must be tougher on rogue landlords – the maximum penalty for ignoring a court order to improve the conditions of the home must be raised from £5,000 to £20,000.

2) There needs to be a rogue landlord prosecution fund – for earmarking money to enable councils to toughen up on criminal landlords in their area.

3) Further protection for tenants – safeguarding tenants from being evicted when complaining about their landlord.

4) An online database of convicted landlords.

5) A rogue landlord summit convened by the Housing Minister in order to create a clear action plan to protect tenants.

Renting is Now the Only Choice for Many

Furthermore, Shelter’s Chief Executive, Campbell Robb, has been commenting on the situation: “Renting is no longer simply a stop gap for young people before they get on the housing ladder. More and more families are bringing up children in privately rented homes, and many have to take a chance on the first place they can afford.”

He added that such “high demand is a golden opportunity for rogue landlords who are exploiting the desperation of people looking for a home, and leaving them trapped in houses that fail to meet basic living standards and, in some cases, put lives at risk.”

This is clearly something that needs to be prevented by the government. Rogue landlords may even be operating without any landlord insurance and the only way, it seems, to put a stop to rogue landlords getting away with their illegal operations is to take the necessary steps outlined by Shelter above.

What would you like to see done about it? It would be great to get your views…

Tags: Campbell Robb, Grant Shapps, Landlord Insurance, rental market, renting, Rogue landlords, Shelter
Posted in Landlord Insurance | No Comments »

Overseas Buyers Providing a Boost to Prime Areas

Monday, January 30th, 2012

Thanks to the Olympic Games and its reputation as a ‘safe haven’ among overseas buyers, London continues to buck the national trend of falling house prices, according to a study.

Property analyst Hometrack;s study said that the eurozone crisis has motivated a large number of overseas buyers to invest in London’s property market, while the Games is set to heighten interest in the capital’s properties.

The report said nationally, house prices have unsuccessfully been able to record a monthly increase for a year and a half, while the pressure on household budgets including buildings and property insurance, bills, tax, food and also the poor economy are predicted to drive them further down.

In January, London was the only area in England to experience an increase in house prices, with a 0.1% increase, compared to property prices in the North East which fell by 0.4%, the biggest fall in the country.

The average house price across the country remained flat in January, following a 0.2% drop in both November and December, the survey of 1,500 surveyors and agents revealed.

Demand for properties in London is high and stay on the market for just 6.5 weeks, while sellers in the North, Midlands and Wales must wait an average of 3 months to shift their property.

The Olympics

As the Olympics brings everyone’s attention to London, the report said that the strong London market “looks set to continue through 2012 as the Olympics firmly focus the eyes of the world on London, and overseas buyers, in the midst of global uncertainty, continue to consider London a safe haven.”

Richard Donnell, Hometrack director of research said, “The latest Hometrack survey reveals a market dogged by uncertainty.

“On a national basis house prices have not increased over the last 18 months – a theme carried over into January when prices were unchanged.”

He carried on to say “London looks set to buck the national trend again in 2012 thanks to overseas buyers providing a boost to prices in London’s prime areas.”

Nationally, 2012 got off to a slow start in general. Agents reported that some 10.5% fewer new buyers signed up in January compared to December, while 5.4% fewer properties were listed and 14.3% less sales were agreed.

The number of properties coming to the market in Wales and England in the last

Tags: buildings and property insurance, London, Olympic Games, Property
Posted in Housing Market, Landlord Insurance, Property Market | 1 Comment »

Do It Yourself

Wednesday, January 25th, 2012

Today we’re thinking about DIY. It’s something you either love or hate and more often than not it can be an argument maker and a key area of dispute between couples. We’ve all been there, whether it’s witnessing your parents arguing about how to fit a toilet seat, or whether you’re the one arguing with your partner about the best way to paint a wall…it’s a common occurrence and one we can all relate to.

New Flat

Having moved into a new flat I didn’t expect to be doing any DIY – for a start it’s rented and I didn’t think the landlord would be happy with me making changes to her beautiful property. And, don’t get me wrong, it is a very beautiful property and I wouldn’t change a thing, however, upon moving in, the first thing I noticed was that the bedroom and bathroom doors didn’t actually close. Now that to me is a bit of problem, especially if someone requires privacy in the bathroom!

What to do?

So, I thought I better contact the landlord in order to inform them and to seek advice and guidance about steps to take as I didn’t want to set about breaching any contract I had just signed, or any landlord insurance policy the landlord had taken out, by hacking away at the doors to make them fit.

The landlord, however, was rather relaxed about the whole thing and advised me to have a go at fixing them myself, providing I knew what I was doing. I settled any doubts they had by telling them I have an A-Level in Design & Technology (without sounding too Del-Boy and Rodney-esque) and that I would be able to sort the doors out without a problem. The landlord was so relaxed about it because they intended to get some new doors in the property at some point in the near future anyway.

Having a go

So I went out, bought the right tools, and got to work. It was NOT as simple as I first thought it might be. Basically I wanted to plane the sides of the doors whilst they were still attached to the hinges. Whilst it was indeed do-able, it was a bit of a hassle and I would advise anyone else to take the doors off the hinges first.

That’s not rocket science but I thought, why bother taking them off the hinges when it would only be a thirty second job? Well, it wasn’t a thirty second job as I soon found out. It took a while and after I had planed the doors I decided to smooth them down with sandpaper. It was easy enough, but it still didn’t stop an argument between me and my girlfriend. She was of course, as usual, correct when she advised me to take the doors off the hinges, but I just didn’t listen did I?!

This is a bit of mild example of a DIY tiff but an example nonetheless, and I’m sure over coming years there will be many more arguments as a result of a bit of pesky DIY.

Do you have any amusing examples of DIY you’ve carried out?

Tags: DIY, Do It Yourself, landlord contract, Landlord Insurance
Posted in Landlord Insurance | 1 Comment »

Olympic Tenants

Monday, January 16th, 2012

The Olympic Games are quickly approaching and it will be the summer before we know it, and so, although it may still seem like a while away now, many businesses and firms are preparing for the sheer influx of tourists to London’s streets, and if you are indeed a landlord, or a potential Olympic landlord, then you will no doubt be thinking ahead to the summer’s events too.

Location

Many landlords with properties in central areas of London will already have snapped up tenants for the few weeks that the Olympic Games are in town, however, the majority, as of yet, probably won’t have.

So, now could be the perfect time to begin trying to pull in tenants. It may be worth having a look at the Olympic website if you are wondering whether you are near the locations where events will be talking place. It’s important to remember that Olympic events will not just take place in East London, as there will be some taking place in Weymouth for example, along with other locations dotted around the UK. So it may well be worth looking to see if you are near any particular events which may pull in crowds, and with it, tenants.

Student Landlords

If you are a student landlord in London, then you may find yourself in luck, as it is likely that your property will be vacant during the summer which will leave it available for Olympic tenants.

If this is the case then it will be important to ensure your landlord insurance policy is valid at a time when you wouldn’t normally have tenants in your property.

Pricing

Furthermore, if your property is centrally located, then you will probably be able to charge whatever price you like and it is no secret that accommodation during the Olympics is quite a bit more expensive than normal.

However, if you own property elsewhere, then you will need to be careful with your pricing strategy; accessibility is a key factor, and you would not want to overprice a property that is just too far to justify the cost. Tenants will not want to have to travel for an hour to get to a particular venue or event whilst paying central London prices.

With the Olympics nearly upon us, many landlords will be excited about the prospects that could lie ahead as they will try to maximise revenue and profit.

Tags: Landlord Insurance, London 2012, Olympic Games, Olympic Tenants
Posted in Landlord Insurance | No Comments »

Advice Given for Property Investment

Friday, January 13th, 2012

It has been reported in the property news this week that Assetz, a property investment advice firm, has warned that this year is not one for taking punts when investing in certain areas. They have warned that the difficult state of the Eurozone could negatively hit prices here in the UK, even though buy-to-let is likely to continue growing this year.

Popular Areas and Bargains

Popular residential areas where employment is at a good level and where there is a strong infrastructure are of course going to lead to strong tenant demand, and it is inevitable that demand is likely to continue outstripping supply in such areas.

However, that doesn’t mean a bargain that will ultimately make you money cannot be found in areas of high unemployment. If you research hard enough you may find that certain areas of the country may have a high unemployment level, but such areas may also have a university nearby and therefore a strong student population. And of course, students need accommodation!

Student Accommodation

Letting to students, in any part of the country, could indeed prove a winning situation for any property investor. Letting to students can be very tricky business however. Student properties often suffer from damages. Many students like to have parties involving alcohol which can in turn lead to damages being sustained. A good way to protect yourself is, of course, with landlord insurance. If accidental damage is incurred, a decent insurance policy will protect you against the cost of repairs.

Furthermore, students often live off their student loan which comes in once a term on a specific date. This all means that cash and rent payments can sometimes be a bit of an issue for students so it will be worth keeping in mind that rent payments may be a little late sometimes.

Student Rates

Also, whilst rent is normally charged on a monthly rate, when letting to students it may be an idea to think about charging rent every quarter, and perhaps it will be a good idea to advertise the level of rent as a weekly amount; for example, £80 a week including bills that is then paid quarterly. This means students can pay you once their loan is in every quarter, as chasing rent every month will become a bit of a hassle for both you, and the student.

There are of course, a lot of positives about student letting, such as, a continuous supply of students and therefore a continuous supply of tenants, provided your property remains attractive and affordable.

Student property can be a pleasure to invest in as it can be very profitable. Students will also normally be relatively easy to work with and provided you have a good working relationship with your tenants, it should be a stress free process.

Tags: Landlord Insurance, Property Maintenance, Student Accommodation, Student Letting, Students
Posted in Landlord Insurance | No Comments »

Social Housing Abuse to be made a Criminal Offence

Wednesday, January 11th, 2012

A big topic in the news today is the story that tenants who have been subletting their social housing could face up to two years in prison. On the face of it that may seem like quite a harsh penalty, but at the end of the day, that is a form of fraud and it is certainly an abuse of the system. A system that has enabled them to live at a low cost.

Fraud Must be Stopped

Grant Shapps has stated that he wants to make social housing fraud a criminal offence as this would be the only way to deter tenants from cheating the system. He has also spoken about his desire to introduce other proposals in an attempt to make it easier to find those that are indeed subletting their homes in order to then tackle the issue and free up homes for the people that need it most.

It is believed that between 50,000 and 160,000 social homes in England are currently unlawfully occupied. There is therefore quite a lot of scope in that figure, which suggests that this is a very inaccurate prediction simply because the fraudsters have been able to cover up the fact that they are scamming the government by subletting their social houses. The cowboy landlords are also extremely unlikely to bother with any landlord insurance quotes. Furthermore, it is also predicted that these unlawfully occupied homes are costing around £900 million each year.

What We’ve Been Waiting For

Now, what I do find to be quite ridiculous is that such a type of fraud is not even a criminal offence at the moment. Hence why Shapps is so keen on making it a criminal offence! The harshest punishment currently being handed out to those who are cheating the system is to simply hand back the keys for the properties they do not live in. My question is, why has it taken so long, and cost so much money, before a plan has been put in place to tackle such offences?

Well, nevertheless, plans that have been announced today will see social housing tenancy abuse punished by a maximum penalty of two years in prison, and a £50,000 fine if the case goes to Crown Court.

Tags: Landlord Insurance, Landlord Insurance Quote, social housing, Social Housing Abuse, Social Housing Tenancy Abuse
Posted in Landlord Insurance | 1 Comment »

House Prices at Eight Year Low

Wednesday, December 28th, 2011

A recent survey that was carried out by Halifax has revealed that the number of first time buyers in Britain has fallen to a record low in 2011. This news is somewhat unsurprising when we take into consideration the dire state of the economy and the particularly difficult year the UK has had financially.

House Prices

House prices have declined to their lowest levels in eight years; however this still hasn’t helped boost figures for first time buyers. This is due to the fact that those prospective first time buyers have struggled to raise enough money for expensive deposits and mortgages.

In 2011, it has been estimated that there were around 187,000 first time house buyers. That figure may sound like quite a lot, but when you compare it to last year, there has been a significant 7% drop.

Government Steps

These figures were released just a month after Chancellor George Osborne explained that he wants to do everything possible to help Britons get on the property ladder for the first time. The recession has been a very tough period for the UK housing market and Mr Osborne is clearly keen to work towards restoring the housing market. How long that restoration will take is anyone’s guess at the moment however.

In terms of steps the government is taking to help, Mr Osborne outlined details about a mortgage guarantee scheme. This is designed to help first time buyers with large deposits that would otherwise deter them from making the leap to get onto the property ladder for the first time. This would then inevitably help towards paying for property insurance as well.

What Will 2012 Hold for Housing Market?

Meanwhile, forecasts have already been made about house prices in 2012, and so far, it seems that they are set to continue falling. A 1.7% drop has been forecast with the housing market still vulnerable to any changes in the Eurozone. So, if the debt crisis worsens in mainland Europe, then we could see a further drop in UK house prices.

That would certainly make it easier for landlords to add to their property portfolio’s, which will only be a good thing for landlord insurance providers, but it would also make an increasing number of people even more reluctant to sell their home. Why sell at a cut price when you could wait to see if the housing market will bounce back is likely to be the attitude of many. What do you think will happen to the housing market, and the Eurozone, in 2012?

Tags: Eurozone, House Prices, housing market, Landlord Insurance, Property insurance, Selling Up
Posted in Landlord Insurance, Property Insurance | 1 Comment »