LETTINGSnews
STUDENTS
Docklands – is it student heaven?
The trendy Docklands area of London seems to be attracting fewer bankers, but the students
are rolling up in their droves. Mason Brooks, Lettings Manager at Hurford Salvi Carr, has watched the transformation of the area over the last 10 years, and says that the firm’s Docklands office has seen an unprecedented demand for accommodation from student tenants this year; a 70 per cent increase on previous years, balancing out news from its City and West End offices which have reported the opposite; both their respective student markets have fallen by nearly 50 per cent. This trend is a result of two
major factors, Rental prices in the City and West End have increased by 15 per cent in the last 18 months, effectively pricing students out of the area. Additionally, due to the global economic uncertainty many foreign students have curtailed their budgets, forcing them to source properties in areas not previously considered. Now, a relatively new breed of Docklands landlord has had to decide on whether or not they will allow students to occupy their
RENTS 84% increase in tenants seeking help for arrears
Landlord Assist, the tenant eviction and referencing firm, is urging landlords to take immediate action if tenants default on rents. Their advice follows a report
from advisory charity National Debtline which revealed an 84 per cent increase in the number of people seeking help with rent arrears over the past four years. Healthy competition in the
rental market has led to an increase in rental prices for the best properties. But with food and fuel costs rising at the same time many people struggle to afford monthly rental payments. Graham Kinnear, MD at
Landlord Assist is not surprised by the findings of the research but is urging landlords to take early action to protect their income and
50 NOVEMBER 2011 PROPERTYdrum
prevent tenant arrears spiralling out of control. He says, “The economic situation is really impacting now. We are referencing tenants who are wanting to move to smaller properties as they are no longer able to afford their rent. There are increasing numbers being made redundant and others who are finding it difficult to meet their rental obligations due to soaring fuel and utility prices. “Landlords should take early action and seek professional advice if their tenants default on payments. Arrears situations rarely
rectify themselves and landlords need to protect their interests.” Stephen Parry, Commercial
Director says, “The majority of the tenant evictions that we undertake are based on rental arrears although most tenant defaults now are as a result of unforeseen changes to their personal circumstances rather than the wilful non-payment.” Graham Kinnear adds,
“Although no landlord can predict a tenant falling on hard times, performing credit checks at the start of an agreement can help landlords to assess the tenant’s ability to pay the rent. Landlords should also consider rent guarantee insurance policies to protect their income should a tenant fail to pay on time.”
COURT CASES
TDS says court sentences are a ‘kick in the teeth’
The lenient sentences handed down recently to the owner of a fraudulent Worcester based letting
agency and his accountant has been described as a “kick in the teeth” for tenants and professional letting agents in the private rented sector. Steve Harriott, the Chief
Executive of the Tenancy Deposit Scheme, TDS, was commenting on the suspended jail terms given to Brandon Weston and David Williams of lettings firm Premier Places, which traded in both Worcester and Redditch. They were sentenced following conviction for defrauding clients of deposit money despite claiming to hold it in ring-fenced client accounts. Amounts defrauded from
properties. Landlords accepting student tenants are basing the tenancy on conditional terms such as; UK based guarantors, a deposit of eight weeks rent and/or quarterly rental payments. Some
are still only accepting of tenants from the corporate sector. It remains to be seen what
effect this new tenant base will have on the supply as East London gears up for The 2012 Olympics.
tenants ranged from £400 to over £1,000 in some cases. The Tenancy Deposit Scheme paid out over £63,000 to tenants as a result of this case. “Not only were their actions fraudulent they served to undermine the excellent work of properly self-regulated agents,” said Steve Harriott.
Mr Harriott said it was shocking that stealing deposits and making false claims to the accreditation bodies for the lettings industry should result in only a few hours community service. “Criminals like this should go to jail, not have their sentences suspended. They have defrauded private individuals and brought disrepute to the private rented sector”. “The law requires deposits to be protected through authorised tenancy deposit schemes and this case highlights once again the need for regulation of the private rented sector and for the courts to take these frauds and the protection of consumers more seriously,” he added.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67