Save energy when you develop a property
August 26, 2008
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When you come to develop a property for the rental market, one of the considerations you should have is making sure that it’s economical to run. Tenants will always look for ways they can save money in their rental accommodation, and having a house that’s cheaper to run will allow you to make more in rental income, and make your property more attractive to the rental market.
For example, under-floor heating is expensive to install, but drastically reduces the heating bills within the property as it’s very economical. Tenants will be able to save a lot of money on their electric and gas bills if you have under-floor heating installed in your property, so they’ll have more money to spend on essentials in life, and of course on rent for you!
Just as installing cost reducing apparatus can make your building more attractive, there are other things you can install that might cost more to run. For example, you could install air conditioning units into your flats to make them more desirable, but the costs involved with running them would make actually living in the property more expensive.
Keep your property cheap to run, and you’ll reap more from it in terms of rental income.
Popularity: 46%
Housing Associations Practicing Unfair Posseassions Says CAB
May 27, 2008
The Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) revealed that despite the Government’s rent arrears pre-action protocol appears to be bedding down well, some housing associations are continuing to choose to seek possession for rent arrears using the mandatory Ground 8 under the 1988 Housing Act.
The rent arrears protocol was first launched in October 2006, defining the steps landlords must take before resorting to court action. Broadly this has had a positive effect and Citizens Advice has found that most social landlords will only take possession action for rent arrears as a last resort.
However, some housing associations do not follow the protocol and still seek possession for rent arrears using the mandatory Ground 8. As a result some CAB clients have been threatened with homelessness in circumstances where this might have been avoided if discretionary grounds had been used. Citizens Advice does not believe that the use of Ground 8 by housing associations is consistent with the Government’s wider homelessness prevention agenda.
Citizens Advice Chief Executive David Harker said: “There really is unfinished business here. A minority of housing associations – and I stress it is a minority – are still using Ground 8 to recover rent arrears. This is unhelpful, inconsistent and often unfair.
As our report Unfinished business shows, the time has come to discontinue the use of Ground 8 by housing associations and we are therefore pleased that the Department for Communities and Local Government has set up a stakeholder group to look at the problem.
We hope this will result in early action to end this practice.”
Popularity: 83%
Bank of Scontland to Review Buy to Let and Self Cert Mortgages
May 6, 2008
Bank of Scotland plans to reprice mortgages from its buy-to-let and self cert ranges in an effort to keep pace with other lenders.
Mortgages from the two ranges will be withdraw today at 5pm, and relaunched with new rates from tomorrow.
The HBOS owned bank refused to comment on what the new rates would be.
Brokers were told in an email 16 mortgages from the bank’s buy-to-let and self cert ranges would be withdrawn.
Bank of Scotland will also cut the maximum loan-to-value on mortgages for new build flats by 5 per cent to 75 per cent.
A Halifax spokeswoman said:
We price in line with the market. Over the past few weeks, most major lenders have increased their pricing on a number of occasions.
It is not appropriate for us to pick up the significant capacity deficit left by lenders who have departed from this market.
Popularity: 84%
More Lenders Dropping Out Buy to Let Mortgages
April 10, 2008
The Bank of Scotland has drop five of its buy to let mortgages and ten of its self-certifying mortgages, this decision was due to the pressure created from other mortgage lenders who have completely dropped out the buy to let mortgages market.
The HBOS and the Mortgage Business have also pulled out some of their buy to let mortgage range.
Heather Scott, HBOS mortgages head of press relations said:
There has been a very significant reduction in the number of lenders in the specialist sector. Our focus is on getting the right proportion of business.
We can’t handle the level of business from those lenders who have left the sector.
Popularity: 32%
Scottish Buy to Let Market is Excellent
April 3, 2008
One property expert claimed the the buy to let property market in Scotland has superb prospects.
According to David Kendal of the National Landlords Association (NLA), rental prices are increasing meaning there is better scope for profit in the Scottish buy to let sector.
It’s known that the credit crunch made it hard to get a buy to let mortgage, however some landlords may benefit from this phenomenon. Mr Kendal added:
A result of that may be that there will be less new buy-to-lets coming on the market, so investors who are already in the game will do quite well.
There won’t be as many investors coming in this year, as there have been in previous years.
David Kendal also reported that the Scottish housing market is traditionally more stable than that in the south. Because does not experience a “boom and bust cycle”. Glasgow and Edinburgh lets have been relatively consistent during a somewhat rocky period elsewhere in the UK
House prices in Scotland rose by 2.4 per cent in last quarter of 2007 - according to the Bank of Scotland’s Scottish House Price Index. In the other hand prices fell 0.8 per cent in the rest of the UK.
Popularity: 29%
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