Exceedingly Problematic Certificates

This week’s top news items in property – and why they matter.

Housing market booms as ‘for sale’ listings soar. Over 140,000 properties were listed for sale in January – the highest number in a decade – with a 7.3% increase compared to January 2024. This surge in listings indicates a robust housing market and increased seller confidence. Buyers may benefit from a wider selection, potentially stabilising property prices due to increased supply.

ATTENTION LANDLORDS: Tired of tenancy uncertainty or the constant onslaught of regulation and risk? Wouldn’t you rather have trouble-free renting for 3-5 years at a time without any gaps in rent? Find out more about our soon to be unveiled service here.

Another council wants private landlords to help out with homelessness crisis. Continuing an ever more common trend, Maidstone council has introduced a Private Leasing Scheme – urging private landlords to provide properties to address the homelessness crisis. This initiative reflects the increasing reliance on private landlords to mitigate public housing shortages. If successful, it could reduce homelessness but many non-corporate property owners continue to sell to the owner-occupier market, meaning few rental properties to go round.

UTILITY OF THE WEEK: Saynoto0870. This handy tool lets you find “normal” 01 / 02 etc numbers for companies and organisations. Simply type in the name of your company, or the telephone number. It’s useful not only because this save you money, but – probably more importantly, you can use it to find alternate numbers for a company – that they may not necessarily publicise widely – meaning you could potentially cut queuing times greatly.

Build To Rent block’s small flats start at over £1,700 pcm. Oxford’s first Build To Rent development, The Kimmeridge, has launched with one-bedroom flats starting at over £1,700 per month. This development is important as it reflects the premium pricing in the Build To Rent sector, especially in high-demand areas like Oxford. High rental costs will limit accessibility for average renters and influence local rental market rates – the traditional (non-corporate) Landlord still remains the most cost-effective route for most tenants, however most of these are being squeezed-out by increasingly onerous Government legislation and punitive tax regimes.

Who are M2P? Married2Property are a family-run property company that aims to build social good through property.

Political pressure driving landlords from the private rental market in Scotland? A survey by SAL reveals that increasing political hostility and regulatory changes are prompting property owners/managers to exit the private rental market. Any departure would exacerbate current acute rental housing shortages and increase rental prices – on top of the additional costs being levied through additional regulation. As usual, it’s “the good who leave first” – meaning tenants may likely face reduced housing options and higher rents as the supply of rental properties diminishes and costs rise concurrently.

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Major changes to EPCs coming. It’s sometimes said that the most terrifying thing a business owner can hear is “we’re the Government, and we’ve come here to help” – particularly bearing in mind that no government produces any money of it’s own – it simply redistributes that produced by businesses and individuals. Fireside debates aside, the Government has launched a consultation on proposed changes to Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) – potentially altering assessment metrics and requiring valid EPCs throughout tenancies. Validity periods are already reducing to 5 years in Scotland, and it remains to be seen if this will also happen in the rest of the UK – on top of potential minimum standards of C for rental properties. These changes will further reduce the viability of rental properties – negatively affecting supply of rental properties / BTL owners and managers – thereby increasing rents on the remaining limited amount.

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Mortgage costs for landlords could fall soon. Declining swap rates – following the Bank of England base rate cut to 4.5%, suggest likely further potential reductions in mortgage costs for landlords. This could improve profitability for landlords and therefore lead to more favourable rental terms for tenants. It may even encourage greater investment in rental properties – thereby reducing rent levels.

Song of the Week: Blackpool Boulevard / Barry Can’t Swim

And Finally… they say “leaders eat last” – because after all, sometimes sacrifice is necessary to get to where you want to be.

What do M2P do? Married2Property aims to create social good through by property – by housing more vulnerable groups of people – giving them a stable platform from which to try and improve their lot in life. We also offer Landlords competitive and hassle-free solutions for their property problems.