The Letting Game would like to notify all Bristol landlords of some important changes to Section 21.

Please read on to prevent being caught out.

Landlords, if you want to gain possession of a property by serving a Notice under Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988, there are several new provisions that you need to be aware of.

The new rules will only apply to Assured Shorthold Tenancies (ASTs) entered into, on or after 1st October 2015.

Here are the main changes to be aware of:

For Notices given under Section 21(4a) in respect of statutory periodic tenancies, possession proceedings must be commenced within four months from the date of the expiry of the Notice.

This information can be provided in hard copy or by e-mail, where requested as such. The document is entitled “How to rent: the checklist for renting in England” and can be obtained from the GOV.UK website by searching for ‘How to rent’.

If the local authority then serves an improvement notice or carries out emergency remedial action, any Section 21 Notice already served will be rendered invalid. If a notice is served by the local authority then no further Section 21 Notice can then be served for six months from the date of that notice.

Information source: Lauren Stacey at QualitySolicitors Burroughs Day

Warm Up Bristol is a new four-year initiative from Bristol City Council, designed to help make your home cosier and cheaper to heat. As energy bills soar, the only long-term way to protect against rising costs is to improve the energy efficiency of your home.

Warm Up Bristol has secured government funding to help achieve this. We’re working with our delivery partner, Climate Energy, and wherever possible, local installers and other organisations such as the Fire Service and Bristol Water, to offer you a range of improvements that may make your home warmer, safer and save you money.

Find out how you can benefit


There are up to 45 measures on offer ranging from solid and cavity wall insulation to double glazing, draught proofing and new boilers. There’s something for everyone*, whether you’re a business, home owner or in private rented accommodation.

To take advantage of our initiative you will be required to have an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) or Green Deal Assessment (GDA) for your home. Energy Performance Certificates are required when installing loft and cavity wall insulation, and for a boiler replacement if on qualifying benefits. A Green Deal Assessment is required for all other measures and will be charged at £49 per house.

Register your interest by calling 0800 107 4100 or 0117 379 0203 to find out what’s on offer for you.

Retaliatory eviction legislation

The Deregulation Act 2015 has introduced new provisions to protect tenants from retaliatory eviction which will come into force on 1st October, 2015.

The Act requires a landlord to give an ‘adequate response’ to complaints about property conditions. If the local authority serves a ‘relevant notice’ (Improvement Notice of Emergency Remedial Action) following a complaint from a tenant, then the landlord will be unable to serve a Section 21 notice for a period of 6 months.

This legislation will apply to new Assured Shorthold Tenancies (ASTs) that commence on or after 1st October, 2015 and all ASTs from October 2018.

The Council is now considering changing its Enforcement Policy to include serving formal notices where there is evidence of retaliatory eviction, as well as other factors we normally consider.

Information supplied by Julie Norris at Bristol City Council.

If you have any comments please contact Julie by email (Julie.Norris@bristol.gov.uk or by telephone on: 0117 352 1853.

Landlord Check List


Gas Safety Certificate – Gas appliances need to be checked and a certificate needs to be issued yearly. If there is no gas in property, no certificate is required. The Letting Game provide these for a cost of £60 plus VAT.

Mains Electric Test – This is a test on the electrical installation in the. They last 10 years. This isn’t the law but it is seen as a duty of care.

PAT Tests – Any item that a landlord has that has a plug should have a PAT test carried out on it yearly. This isn’t the law but it is a duty of care.

Deposit Protection – By law, all deposits now need to be protected. This can be done through MyDeposits, TDS and The DPS. The tenant can dispute the deductions at the end of the tenancy if they don’t agree, in which case an independent adjudicator looks at the evidence and decides if the deductions are fair. The Letting Game uses Mydeposits to protect tenant deposits. The cost of this is £40 plus VAT.

Professional Inventory – With reference to the point above (deposit protection), it is highly recommend that a professional inventory be carried out. This is because you require evidence of the condition of the property before the tenant(s) move in. If a dispute is raised by the tenant, a landlord will not be able to prove a before and after condition and the tenant is very likely to be award a full deposit refund. The cost of an inventory varies according to the size of the property.

Energy Performance Certificate – It is the law that an energy performance survey must be carried out on all properties that go on the sales or rental market. They last 10 years. The Letting Game can organise these for £65 plus VAT.

Viewing a property to rent can be an exciting time – a new start, new home, new area.

Here are few tips which will help you make the most out of your viewing:

  1. Check the exterior of the property
    Make sure the outside of the property is in good condition. Look for loose roof tiles, leaking pipes and gutters and crumbling brickwork.
    If you see any problems, check if they will be repaired before anyone moves in.
  2. Inspect the inside
    Are there any signs of dampness or condensation, such as mould?
    Check that the wiring and appliances are safe and ask about gas safety as all gas appliances such as boilers, cookers and heaters should be serviced every 12 months.
  3. Parking and traffic
    Most professional tenants view properties at the weekend when traffic is often lighter and parking more of a challenge.
    Always ask what the parking arrangements are with the property and if it’s on-road parking, think about taking a drive around the area at the times you are likely to need to park.
  4. Brightness
    The sun rises in the east, swings south throughout the day and sets in the west.
    A south-facing home tends to get the sun for most of the day, especially at the front of the house and is therefore usually bright and warm.
    A north-facing home gets sun at the back of the house and can be darker and naturally cooler than a south-facing one.
    Apart from direction, higher floors tend to get more sunlight.
    If natural light is important to you, always make sure you have one of your viewings in daylight.
  5. Communal areas
    Check if there are any communal areas such as a garden, entrance hall or stairwell.
    Ask who is responsible and if there are any maintenance costs. Some properties have a service charge for the upkeep of communal areas.
  6. Focus on heating
    The biggest part of your energy bill is heating your home.
    Happy house-hunting!
    We hope you find just what you are looking for and if you’re searching for somewhere to rent in Bristol, you may be interested in some of our properties at The Letting Game

Landlords with long-standing tenants could face a £3,600 fine if they don’t register deposits this summer.

A 90-day amnesty is being run by the Government to allow buy-to-let investors in England and Wales to place their tenants’ deposits into an official scheme.

Penalties for failing to do so will be unlimited and calculated at three times the initial deposit. With the average deposit in the UK coming in at around £1,200, it means potential fines of £3,600 could be enforced.

It is thought that up to one in three of the 1.5 million private landlords in England and Wales are currently not registered with a deposit protection service, despite legislation enforced in 2007.

Hefty penalties aside, landlords who fail to register will also be left powerless if they want a tenant to move out at the end of their contract, because in the event of a dispute the landlord will be seen to have failed their obligations.

Landlords with an ‘assured short hold tenancy’ agreement have 30 days from receiving the deposit to register it with one of the three government backed schemes:

Other schemes exist for buy to let landlords in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Landlords who have longstanding tenants, where the agreement keeps rolling over, are those most likely to be caught out, says Emma Humphreys, of solicitors Charles Russell Speechly.

“These landlords may not use a letting agent, which would notify them of the need to register deposits, and may not have been keeping an eye out for the regulations when they were introduced in 2007,” she said.

“Of course, there is no excuse for new landlords not complying with the law. But many long-term buy-to-lets where the tenant and landlord have a good relationship may not realise they need to register with a scheme.”

“Such landlords may be unaware that they need to register deposits and may not even have taken a deposit in the first place.”

For further information on how to register tenancy deposits, please go to:

Deposit Protection Schemes

UK landlords will be required by law to install working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in their rental properties. The new legislation was announced by Housing Minister Brandon Lewis and will take effect from October, 2015 (subject to Parliamentary approval).

The government says the move will help prevent up to 36 deaths and 1,375 injuries per year.

Fire and rescue services are expected to support private landlords in helping them meet their new responsibilities. The provision of free alarms will be made available using grant funding from the government.

Lewis explained, “In 1988, just 8% of homes had a smoke alarm installed compared to over 90% today. The vast majority of landlords offer a good service and have installed smoke alarms in their properties but I’m changing the law to ensure every tenant can be given this important protection.”

Landlords will be required to install smoke alarms on every floor of their property and they should be tested at the start of each new tenancy. They will also need to install monoxide alarms in high risk rooms for example rooms with a solid fuel heating system.

Failure to adhere to the new measures and install smoke and carbon monoxide alarms could end with a civil penalty of up to £5,000. This would bring private rented properties into line with existing building regulations that requires all newly built homes to have hard wired smoke alarms installed.

In his Autumn Statement, the Chancellor George Osborne announced the abolishment of the residential slab system applied to calculate Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT). A new marginal system of taxation is welcome news for landlords who will benefit from lower costs when acquiring property, freeing up funds for property improvements and keeping rents stable.

With immediate effect, each rate will only apply to the part of the property price that falls within that band, very much like income tax. The new marginal rates are as follows:

The Chancellor calculates that the new system of SDLT will cut costs for up to 98% of home buyers, resulting in a tax saving of £4,500 on an average priced home of £275,000. Further good news is that anyone in the middle of moving house won’t miss out. Those who exchanged contracts without completing as of midnight on the 3rd December can choose whether to pay under the old or new system.

Many will be aware of capital allowances, but did you know that you can benefit from income tax relief by using capital allowances calculated on when you originally purchased the property?
 
This is providing it is in use as an HMO, furnished holiday let or a commercial property.

It is likely that your Accountant will have claimed for depreciation on furnishings, carpets, equipment and the like but has this been extended to central heating costs, fire alarm system, security. Unlikely, as HMRC say that 96% of allowable capital allowance relief still has not been claimed.

HMRC guidance gives landlords of HMO’s and holiday lets the right to claim tax relief by assessing the estimated value of allowable assets at the time of purchase; as such things such as central heating and plant, fire alarms, carpets and the like within common parts are potentially allowable.  Typically 15% of the purchase price.

These allowances may be offset against your present and future taxable income.

The rules are complicated but well worth looking in to. More information can be found on the HMRC website.