Tag Archives: yahoo
Half of landlords in England unaware of start date for right to rent rules change
Half of UK landlords are not prepared for the Right to Rent legislation set to come into force on 01 February with some thinking they had another two years to wait. Indeed some 20% believed that they had until April 2017 to prepare for the changes, while 3% believed they had until 2018 to get ready, the research from online estate agent Urban shows. The new legislation, already implemented in the West Midlands, will soon require all landlords and agents in England to check a tenant’s immigration status or ‘right to rent’ in the UK. A failure to prepare could leave landlords at serious financial risk, with potential fines of £3,000 if they do not comply. The survey report also found that only 10% of landlords provide the correct information to tenants at the start of a lease and 90% were unable to identify the characteristics of a House in Multiple Occupancy (HMO). Some 16% were putting themselves at serious financial risk by failing to provide a valid contact address on tenancy agreements; an action which could see contracts being deemed as null and void. One reason to explain the lack of industry knowledge could be due to the rise in accidental landlords who rent property due to circumstance beyond their control such as having inherited property, according to the firm. ‘There has been an influx of new legislation relating to the rental market made in recent years and we know that UK landlords are struggling to keep on top of these changes. Despite knowing many of the basics, many find it difficult to navigate the minefield of changing renting rights and wrongs and this is particularly so for accidental landlords,’ said Adam Male, Urban cofounder. However, despite a lack of understanding in some areas, reassuringly, the majority of landlords were abreast of most other rental fundamentals. For instance, 77% were aware of the need for an up to date Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) and 95% of landlords correctly identified their gas safety responsibilities, 76% also knew the need for a smoke alarm on every floor and 7% even put one in every room. The Landlord Knowledge League Table, a map which ranks the most knowledgeable regions in the UK according to the survey results, found that the most knowledgeable landlords let property in Southampton, while those in Newcastle-under-Lyme were unaware of many key landlord responsibilities. ‘It is great to hear that knowledge about things such as gas safety is a widely understood and implemented landlord legislation, however, there is still a long way to go in educating landlords about the varying aspects of renting,’ said Male. ‘New regulations such as the Right to Rent have the potential to stop back door lettings and create a better environment for all, however, this will only happen if the scheme is communicated to landlords properly. We as an organisation want to do our bit to clean up the industry and help landlords protect… Continue reading
Home sales fell in Canada in December, latest index data shows
Home sales in Canada fell slightly month on month in December but are still above where they were a year ago, according to the latest data from the Canadian Real Estate Association. Transactions were down 0.6% overall and fell in slightly more than half of all local markets, led by declines in Calgary, Edmonton, the York Region of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and Hamilton Burlington which offset monthly activity gains recorded elsewhere. Year on year price growth continued to range widely among housing markets tracked by the index. The actual, not seasonally adjusted, national average price for homes sold in December 2015 was $454,342, up 12% year on year, but it continues to be pulled upward by sales activity in Greater Vancouver and Greater Toronto, which are among Canada’s most active and expensive housing markets. If these two housing markets are excluded from calculations, the average is a more modest $336,994 and the year on year gain is reduced to 5.4%. Even then, the gain reflects a tug of war between strong average price gains in housing markets around the GTA and the Lower Mainland of British Columbia versus flat or declining average prices elsewhere in Canada, the report points out. It adds that if British Columbia and Ontario are excluded from calculations, the average price slips even lower to $294,363, representing a year in year decline of 2.2%. Greater Vancouver with a rise of 18.87% and the Fraser Valley up 14.35% posted the largest gains, followed closely by Greater Toronto up 10.01%. Victoria and Vancouver Island prices increased between 6% and 8% and prices were up by 0.62% in Ottawa, by 1.81% in Greater Montreal and by 3.88% in Greater Moncton. Prices fell by 2% in Calgary and Saskatoon and by 4% in Regina. While the home price declines in Calgary and Saskatoon are a fairly recent trend, prices in Regina have been trending lower since early 2014, the index report points out. An increasingly short supply of listings in Vancouver and Toronto blunted the impact of changes to mortgage regulations announced in December that were aimed at cooling these housing markets, according to CREA president Pauline Aunger. ‘Buyers there had been expected to bring forward their purchase decisions before new regulations take effect in February 2016, but they faced a growing shortage of supply. Meanwhile, supply is ample in many other major urban markets, particularly those where buyers have become cautious amid economic uncertainty,’ she explained. Indeed, December mirrored the main themes of 2015, with strong sales activity and price growth across much of British Columbia and Ontario offsetting declines in activity among oil producing regions, said Gregory Klump, CREA’s chief economist. ‘The recent decline and uncertain outlook for oil prices means that housing market prospects are unlikely to improve in the near term in regions where job market prospects are tied to oil production,’ he added. A breakdown of the figures show that actual, not seasonally adjusted,… Continue reading
Dubai rents expected to remain stable in 2016
Dubai is set to see a more stable real estate market in 2016 with prices expected to rise slightly and rents remain stable in the coming 12 months. New growth is likely to centre on affordable homes with several developers already announcing a foray into this sector of the real estate market. International City, IMPZ, Dubailand, Sports City, JVC and Silicon Oasis already have a number of lower cost options for buyers. The latest data from the Real Estate Regulatory Authority shows that rents for one and two bedroom apartments fell in 2015 across much of Dubai. Rents for one bedroom flats fell by between 4.55% and 11% depending on location. Two bed rents in Downtown Dubai are down by between 5.26% and 5.88% while in Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT) they fell by between 8.33% and 10%. In International City, rents of two bedroom apartments are down by 7.69% to 10%, in Dubai Marina they are down 5.26%, in Palm Jumeirah they dropped by u to 5.55% and in Discovery Gardens they fell by 5.8%. However rents in this sector were stable in many other locations including the Greens, Silicon Oasis, Jumeirah Village Circle, Arjan, Dubai Sports City, Dubailand and the International Media Production Zone. The arbitrary nature of rent prices is also shown in the latest data from real estate portal Bayut. It shows that average rents at the end of 2015 were AED 137,000, up 2.14% from AED 134,000 at the end of December 2014. A breakdown of the figures show that for studio apartments average rents were unchanged year on year but those for one bedroom flats increased 6.6% while two and three bedroom apartment rents fell by 4% and 2% respectively. Four bedroom rents fell by 12%. The firm believes that more affordable property will prove popular and is expecting 2016 to be a busy year in the residential real estate market as the population continues to increase and the economy continues to diversify. ‘Business and job growth will drive demand for residential and commercial spaces and ultimately help push property prices upwards,’ the firm added. Continue reading
