Articles by ‘Paula Green’

Last week the Insolvency Service announced the disqualification of Jane Hipkin Russell of Frinton-on-Sea, Essex, an estate agent who had failed to comply with her obligation to protect tenants’ deposits.

Legal restrictions on the amounts that landlords and agents can charge in the way of fees to their prospective tenants come into force on 1 June 2019. The changes are designed to prevent unscrupulous landlords and letting agents from charging huge sums to tenants when they are entering into a tenancy agreement. Landlords and agents can now only charge for the rent, the tenancy deposit and a holding deposit. Tenants can not be charged for referencing, checking an inventory or administrative fees.

With changes taking place to legislation in April 2017, what do landlords need to know about Rent Repayment Orders?

Jacqui Walton discusses the plight of unsuspecting new build buyers caught out by onerous ground rent review clauses.

The recent case of Barton v Wright Hassall reinforces that although there is talk of the judiciary adopting a policy of forgiving technical non-compliance with the court rules for people representing themselves, in reality they are not yet ready to do this.

As of 1 February 2016, private landlords must check the right of prospective tenants to be in the country before a tenancy is offered. If a prospective tenant does not have the right to be in the UK and a tenancy is offered to them, the landlord could face a hefty £3,000 fine.

The Deregulation Act 2015 has given landlords who have not protected their tenants’ deposits correctly a second chance. The Act has given a 90 day ‘grace’ period within which landlords who are in breach can comply with their obligations without being penalised. The 90 day ‘grace’ period ends on 23 June.

Avoid a £3,000 fine when The Immigration Act 2014 comes into effect by making sure you check the immigration status of prospective tenants!

Many landlords know they need to register new tenants’ deposits with a tenancy deposit scheme but do you re-register this deposit if the original tenancy period has expired? If you aren’t getting registration right you may not be able to gain possession of your property and could face fines.

Property owners – have you checked that your registered address is accurate and up-to-date at the Land Registry? Failing to do so could have serious consequences.