LETTINGSnews


MEMBERSHIP


Moratorium on ARLA name


In the November issue of PROPERTYdrum, our letters page featured


comments on the debate


around losing the brand names from the National Federation of Property Professionals. Robert Jordan, former President of ARLA, has written to PROPERTYdrum’s editor saying,


TENANCY DEPOSITS News from the TDS


Mike Morgan has been appointed Head of Adjudication for The Tenancy


Deposit Scheme, having carried out the role on an interim basis since June. He joins Steve Harriott, the new Chief Executive. Mike has significant experience in Alternative Dispute Resolution and consumer affairs. He said, “I am delighted to be appointed Head of Adjudication. Alongside Steve Harriott, our new Chief Executive, I am looking forward to ensuring that we continue to deliver high quality, independent adjudication services and improving customer services to all users of the Scheme.” Chairman of the Scheme,


Professor Martin Partington CBE, QC, said, “Mike is another key appointment at TDS. He has hugely impressed the Board with the skills and enthusiasm he has demonstrated and he will be a great asset to the organisation in this new role.” The Tenancy Deposit


‘Mike is another key appointment at TDS.’


48 DECEMBER 2010 PROPERTYdrum


Scheme has also announced the details of a new Members Forum. Its role will include giving feedback to TDS about day-to-day use, identifying potential for improvement and helping to find practical methods of strengthening communication with members. The Forum includes


members from three national lettings businesses or corporate landlords, three London-based and three out- of-London independent agents. Where possible, the Forum will include two National Approved Lettings Scheme members as well as members from ARLA and RICS. The next meeting of the


Forum will be in December, a Steering Group has already agreed the Terms of Reference. Also, areas of immediate concern have been identified and will be on the agenda for the December meeting. Steve Harriott, Chief


Executive said, “I believe the Forum has got off to a very positive start and is set to make an invaluable contribution to the future success of the Tenancy Deposit Scheme. This will benefit both members and TDS staff and we will continue to keep everyone fully informed of the Forum’s views and suggestions.”


“When I was negotiating the merger with NFOPP of ARLA, my mail box was full of messages from members insisting that the ARLA name remained unchanged. As a result the legal document that recorded the merger cites the wishes of the members at the time and places a ten-year moratorium on even voting on the idea of a name change. If it is ever voted on, then there has to be a 75 per cent majority in favour.”


STUDENT LETS Martin & Co’s Student Homes


Martin & Co. has launched ‘Martin & Co Student Homes’. MD Ian Wilson says that student lettings are big business with nearly 1.5 million students requiring housing from the private rented sector each year, “but the service on offer to landlords, students and their parents is often very poor. Our plan is simple; we already have offices close to many campus sites and we have a strong web presence, and in student lettings this online presence is even more important. “Getting the offer right for students has taken months of careful planning and investment in our business systems, including the


TAXATION HMRC chases landlords for tax


tracking down unpaid tax on rent and capital gains from property investors. The unit is based in


Landlords are in the firing line of a new HM Revenue and Customs charge to collect unpaid tax. HMRC is looking at 20 million cases dating back to 2004 where the taxman suspects tax is owed. Special task forces to tackle


problems in specific sectors are working through the cases - for instance the recent ‘amnesties’ for savers with cash in offshore accounts and high-earning doctors. HMRC has a special unit tasked with


Northampton and is trawling through records from letting agents, electoral rolls, the Land Registry and lists of council housing benefit claimants to cross-reference data to identify property owners who have not declared income on their tax returns. HMRC has a backlog of 17.9 million tax cases. To help, the government has agreed to pump £900 million in to the organisation to fund a drive to get back lost tax.


training of many offices involved in this new brand and our website.” The Martin & Co website www. martinco.com has been completely revamped. “We spent £50,000 on the site in 2009 and we are repeating that investment in 2010. A major addition is the dedicated Student Homes part of the site www.martinco.com/ students, that allows students to search by university and campus – a feature that students said they would find convenient but which even the large property portals and specialist student lettings websites aren’t offering at the moment!”


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