Tag Archives: middle-east
Over a third of UK landlords experience problems with tenants abandoning their property
Some 36% of landlords in the UK have had property abandoned by tenants before, according to new figures from the largest landlord association. Abandonment occurs when a tenant moves out of a property before the tenancy has ended, without informing their landlord. The issue can be costly as it often occurs when outstanding rent is owed. However, the tenant still has a legal right to return and take up residence at any time and it is a criminal offence for landlords to do anything to prevent the continuation of the tenancy. The only option for a landlord is to go through the legal process for regaining possession of an abandoned property which can take months. While on average a third of landlords have had property abandoned before, more landlords in the North East of England have experienced the problem than anywhere else across the UK, with 58% having had a property abandoned. Some 51% of landlords in the North have also experienced the issue. At the other end of the scale, 31% of landlords in the South West of England said they have had a property abandoned before, the lowest proportion across the UK, with 33% of London landlords having had to deal with the problem. The figures are released as the Housing and Planning Act which contains measures to tackle the problem recently received Royal Ascent. ‘The process of recovering an abandoned property is too long, frustrating, and costly for landlords at the moment,’ said Richard Lambert, chief executive officer of the National Landlords Association. ‘Many people will be shocked by just how common this problem is, and landlords will be relieved to know that the Housing and Planning Act will create a new process to deal with the issue, giving them far greater security and peace of mind when recovering properties they believe to have been abandoned,’ he added. The Housing and Planning Act also contains proposals to allow local councils to keep hold of the proceeds they make when carrying out landlord prosecutions as well as introducing stiffer civil penalties and banning orders for landlords found breaking the law. ‘We’ve long argued that councils should be able to hold on to the money they make when carrying out landlord prosecutions as this better enables them to implement long term enforcement strategies to tackle the rogues,’ Lambert explained. ‘The Government missed the chance to apply these changes in the Queen Speech, but we hope they waste no further time in giving councils these important powers,’ he added. Richard Blanco, who had a property in Tottenham, London, abandoned a few years ago, said that one morning he received a call from a concerned neighbour saying the door to the property had been left wide open. ‘It turns out that my tenant just upped and left without any warning, taking his dog with him,’ he added. As it is a criminal offence to end a tenancy without going through the proper legal motions, he… Continue reading
Property industry warns against rushing in to Land Registry privatisation
The property industry has added its voice to those expressing concerns about the possible privatisation of the Land Registry in England and Wales. The registry guarantees and protect land and property rights and covers 87% of the land mass in England and Wales with some 24 million titles which are a legal evidence of ownership, having been founded over 150 years ago. The Government want to privatise the registry with its preferred option being privatisation with a contract to the government, but also the potential for a mutual joint venture between government and a private firm and privatisation with a new regulator in place. But the British Property Federation (BPF), which represents those who own and invest in commercial property, has warned that the government should not rush into making big changes to the way that this critical service works, as any perceived threat to the security of property title in the UK could spook investors. The BPF stressed that security of title is one of the big attractions for overseas investors in UK real estate, who have steadily become more important players in the commercial property market. It says in its response to the announcement that security of title underpins billions of pounds’ worth of lending to commercial property and if it were undermined in any way, it would make the job of renewing the urban environment considerably more difficult and expensive. The BPF also believes that over the past few years, there has been a noticeable drop in service quality levels at the Land Registry, and that additional investment is badly needed. ‘The Land Registry plays a crucial role in ensuring that real estate transactions are transparent and smoothly effected. It also plays an important part in making the UK attractive to those who invest in our towns and cities,’ said Melanie Leech, chief executive of the BPF. ‘Our concern would be that in the rush to push through these proposals important questions about the quality of service do not get the airing they deserve. Should the government go ahead with privatisation, it is critical that incentives exist for a new operator to invest in service quality and to retain the Land Registry’s deep pool of legal expertise. The Land Registry is often taken for granted but its activities facilitate important and much-needed regeneration across the country,’ she added. According to Andrew Lloyd, managing director of Search Acumen, which uses the Land Registry to verify property ownership for law firms handling purchases, it needs to be transparent at all times. ‘The threat to the register’s integrity when in private hands has been a major source of concern for many in the conveyancing industry, and the consultation is likely to prompt a heated debate,’ he said. Meanwhile, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has warned that a private company could seek to block or prohibitively price access to the public housing registers in order to retain a commercial advantage. ‘We believe that… Continue reading
Chartered surveyors in Ireland hit out at high additional costs for new homes
The Irish government needs to address a trend in the country’s housing market which means that actual construction costs for new homes are less than half of the total price paid by buyers. A new report from the Society of Chartered Surveyors has found that the cost of building a three bedroom semi-detached house in the Greater Dublin area, for example, is over €330,000. But the actual cost of building the house, known as hard costs, came to €150,000, which at 45% is less than half of the overall cost of providing that house. This was broken down as land and acquisition costs of €57,500 or 17%, VAT of €39,000 or 12% and a margin of €38,000 or 11% as the main elements of the soft costs which total €180,000. Micheal Mahon of the SCSI said it may come as a surprise to those outside the industry to see that the actual construction costs or hard costs made up less than half of the total costs. He said this was an issue which required urgent and focused attention from Government. ‘The country is experiencing a chronic housing shortage which is contributing significantly to the current homelessness crisis. The findings of this report highlight a number of pressing issues, particularly on the soft cost side. We need to kick start housing supply as soon as possible and to accelerate from the current output of 12,000 units per annum to the 25,000 units which is required,’ he pointed out. The report is based on a detailed study of eight house building projects with a minimum of 30 units in the Greater Dublin area where chartered quantity surveyors were employed as independent cost consultants. It shows that the cost of building a new house in Dublin is now €45,000 more than the median asking price of a three bed semi-detached house in the city according to a recent MyHome.ie/Davy property report. The study found that the cost of building the house from foundations to roof and completing the estate roads and drains etc is €150,000. In addition to the soft costs listed above there were levies of €12,000 or 4%, some €5,500 or 2% for professional fees and sales and marketing costs of €8,000 or 3% to bring total soft costs to €180,000. The report provides an analysis of a number of cost reduction options. Mahon said it is up to policy makers to decide which measures to implement to support the early delivery of supply. ‘Whether they opt to reduce VAT to 9% or to zero as is the situation in Northern Ireland or to reduce finance costs to 5% or to reduce levies to €1,500 or to increase the supply of land, prompt and decisive action is needed. They may well opt for a combination of these measures. However the focus should… Continue reading
