National Landlord Day 9th November 2010 - Part 3

The new Private Rented Sector Housing Bill announced by the Housing Minister Alex Neil in October was discussed at the National Landlord Day and the best explanation came from T C Young Solicitors. Here is a bullet point list of what they said:

·         The “fit and proper” test of a landlord will be amplified meaning councils have greater ability to scrutinize a potential landlord’s past including

o   Previous offences under landlord registration

o   Whether they have any repairing standard issues enforced against them

o   Anti social behaviour orders relating to any properties they own

o   Complaints about them made to an official body

o   A criminal record certificate will be required where there is reasonable ground to suspect information supplied is inaccurate

·         Landlord registration numbers must be supplied in all types of property advertising except to let boards

·         Improves enforcement

o   Maximum fine raised to £5,000

o   Disqualification orders for up to five years

·         Information available to public will be improved

o   Whether application made but not determined

o   If a person has been refused a registration application

o   If a person has been removed from the register

o   Local authority must display all this for 12 months

·         The Private Rented Housing Panel powers will be improved

o   PRHP will supply information to local authorities

o   PRHP will have powers to assist landlords in gaining entry to effect repairs and inspections

·         Legislation on key money, premiums and holding deposits to be clarified

·         Termination notices to be rationalised and clarified

Overall this legislation is good for tenants and landlords given where we are. Even though landlords may not like landlord registration it is important that the councils have powers to be able to enforce it and make it worthwhile now that we have it.

The question which almost always remains is whether the councils will have the resources available to use the legislation effectively.

Jonathan Gordon MRICS

Director

Inside Letting Board Meeting 11 Nov 2010

Edinburgh Council may not be able to organise trams very efficiently, or at all now, but they have been at the forefront when it comes to local authorities in Scotland helping landlords AND tenants. The team of housing officers and other staff who manage landlord registration, HMO licensing and their advice service Letwise are fantastic: approachable, helpful and unbiased whether dealing with landlords agents or tenants.

 

Letwise produces a regular publication called Inside Letting. Clan Gordon has been a member of the board which produces and edits the magazine since last year. The magazine was produced and posted out but it made sense to change this in today’s digital age to an online magazine and the results are great.

 

The board meet a month or so before publication and it is planned to do one quarterly. The last one was produced in September 2010 and yesterday we had a look at the content for one coming out in December. As well as lots of handy features on topical issues this issue will cover the new Housing Bill which follows on from the recent Review of the Private Rented Sector, the Landlord Boiler Scrappage Scheme announced here this week and an update on landlord registration.

 

I will make sure the new issue is launched on this blog....

 

Jonathan Gordon MRICS

Director

National Landlord Day 9th November 2010 - Part 2

Following on from the last report on National Landlord Day organised by SAL or the Scottish Association of Landlords I thought I would summarise the market outlook report.

The presentation made on the day by Dan Cookson. The presentation he made was enlightening as reports by Citylets always are. Personally I am not sure if his style of presentation slides were a little futuristic?? You can have a look at the actual presentation here. The new specific area research is fantastic though and a great improvement to their market reports.

As you can see everything Dan had to say I will make this blog a little shorter than the last one...

Clan Gordon’s take on the market outlook matches up in some ways with Citylets but we see it as perhaps even stronger. We have seen properties being rented out extremely quickly. It remains the case that if a landlord is prepared to keep their flat in good condition and market at the right rental there should be no need at all to have any voids. The Edinburgh rental market continues to be strong and there remains a dire need fro quality flats anywhere within about 15 minutes of the City Centre. There are other strong rental areas such as Crammond and Corstorphine where historically there is a big lack of supply alongside good demand from all the people working in the Gyle area. In contract to this we are finding rents falling off a bit in some areas of Granton. This appears to be down to over supply of new build flats rather than lack of demand.

Jonathan Gordon MRICS

Director

The Edinburgh Letting Agent

100% of our landlords would recommend us. Ask about our 2010 Client Survey.

National Landlord Day 9th November 2010 - Part 1

The National Landlord Day run by the Scottish Association of Landlords (SAL) was held in Dynamic Earth, Edinburgh yesterday and nearly 400 landlords and letting agents from Edinburgh and around Scotland attended what was a very enjoyable day. If you have an interest in the letting market in Edinburgh or other main cities in particular then the topics covered by well chosen speakers was pretty interesting. The most interesting topics covered were:

1.       Private Sector Landlords Boiler Scrappage Scheme

2.       The Property Letting Market Outlook in Scotland

3.       The New Housing Bill

4.       The Pending Tenancy Deposit Scheme in Scotland

5.       Changes to the Local Housing Allowance

I am planning to post my comments on what I learnt about each topic over the next couple of weeks. As it is brand new and a limited fund which will run out I thought it sensible to start with the  Landlords Boiler Scrappage Scheme.

Harry Mayers of the Energy Saving Trust gave a good summary of a brand new scheme for landlords to allow them to scrap their old and in-efficient boilers paying £400 towards the cost of a new one. The scheme is open to any landlord to apply and they are able to apply for more than one property.

Private Sector Landlords Boiler Scrappage Scheme

Scotland has one of the most ambitious CO₂ emission reduction targets in the world. The installation of an efficient heating system is one effective way of reducing your tenant’s household energy bills and CO₂ emissions. There are currently an estimated 250,000 homes in Scotland that have boilers of the least efficient type (efficiency of 70% or less). To help address this, the Scottish Government has announced funding for a boiler scrappage scheme for private sector landlords in Scotland.

Scrappage schemes work by helping to meet the cost of replacing inefficient equipment with new more efficient alternatives – in this case boilers.  The Energy Saving Scotland Private Sector Landlords Boiler Scrappage Scheme will offer landlords £400 towards the cost of upgrading inefficient boilers to an Energy Saving Trust Recommended boiler in each of their rented properties.

What are the benefits?

·         Upgrading your boiler can result in: Higher EPC ( Energy Performance Certificate) ratings, which could make properties easier to let

·         Lower energy bills for tenants leading to reduced rent arrears and defaults

·         Reduced CO₂ emissions from properties

·         Reduced levels of fuel poverty experienced by tenants.

What are the eligibility criteria?

·         You must be replacing a working boiler. The boiler being replaced must have a SAP2005 rating of 70% or worse as detailed on www.sedbuk.com. If you wish to clarify if a system is eligible, please contact the Energy Saving Trust Services Delivery Team on 0131 555 8659.

·         You must replace this with an Energy Saving Trust Recommended boiler or a Microgeneration Certification Scheme accredited microgeneration technology. You can find a list of Energy Saving Trust Recommended boilers on our website or should you require further assistance contact the Energy Saving Trust Services Delivery Team on 0131 555 8659. Please note, an A-rated boiler does not automatically qualify as ESTR.

·         You must be a registered private sector landlord and be fully responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of the boiler. (This scheme does not cover individual owners/occupiers, council tenants or social landlords).

·         The property where the boiler is to be installed must be a domestic address in Scotland.

·         You must have received a quote for your boiler replacement before making an application.

·         The applicant must make an application and receive their voucher before having their boiler replaced. Work on the installation must not have commenced before the date on which the rebate voucher is issued.

·         The installer must be Gas Safe registered (for gas installation) and should be a member of a recognised industry body such as CLE, SNIPEF or OFTEC. Installation of a microgeneration technology must be carried out by a person qualified under the Microgeneration Certification Scheme.

 How to apply for the boiler scrappage scheme?

Once you have checked you are eligible you should:

·         Obtain a quote for your boiler replacement

·         Apply for a voucher online or via the phone on 0800 512 012

·         Arrange the installation of your new boiler within 12 weeks of requesting the voucher

·         Pay for the boiler and installation work up-front

·         Claim back the £400 by sending the completed voucher and invoice back to us

On the application form you will be asked for all of the following:

·         Your landlord registration number - to find this out check the following link or contact the Energy Saving Trust services delivery team on 0131 555 8659 and they will put you in touch with your local authority.

·         Your correspondence and installation property addresses

·         Some details of your rental properties’ existing heating system

·         The date you received your quote for the new boiler installation

·         The installer company name

·         Installer accreditation number (e.g. gas safe number)

·         Manufacturer and make of replacement boiler

Please note, if you proceed with your installation before you receive your voucher, you will invalidate your claim and you will no longer be eligible for the £400 rebate.

I will post Part 2 next week – regards – Jonathan