Witlet Blog

Letting Advice Day at Braintree Freeport Shopping Village

admin — Mon, 14 May 2012 09:53:05 +0000

WitLet held a LETTING ADVICE DAY on Saturday 12th May 2012 at Freeport Shopping Village in Braintree.

One of our branded vehicles was parked outside the Next Retail unit, our car was filled with Blue and Orange balloons and we held a GUESS HOW MANY BALLOONS competition. We received over 80 guesses ranging from all ages on the day.

The WINNER was Mr Dave Belton who guessed the correct amount of balloons this being 84. The prize was a £20.00 next voucher.

We spoke to over 100 people on the day with regard to our services, including applicants looking to rent properties in the local area and Landlords looking to rent their own properties out.

WitLet gave away some goody bags including cupcakes and WitLet branded mugs along with promotional information.

MPs call for ‘build to let’ investors to be encouraged

admin — Fri, 11 May 2012 12:05:51 +0000

A committee of cross-party MPs has added its weight to the growing pressure for a new breed of property owners – ‘build to let’ developers.

The Communities and Local Government select committee says big investors are needed to tackle the UK’s housing crisis, while acknowledging the part that smaller landlords play.

The committee, headed by Clive Betts MP, has published its Financing of New Housing Supply report.

It argues that institutions and pension funds ‘could make a significant contribution to the building of new homes in both the private and social rented sectors’, while real estate investment trust (REITS) ‘should be revamped to encourage investment in housing’.

The committee has also called for a simplification of the way that landlords are regulated and taxed.

The report says: “While it is right to consider the potential for large institutions to invest in the private rented sector, it is also important to remember that the sector is, and will continue to be, dominated by small companies and individual landlords.”

It continues: “There are a number of issues facing those in the sector: the financial crisis had a significant effect on the availability of buy-to-let mortgages; many landlords no longer have the benefit of capital gains; and there is some concern about the levels of return.

“We have heard that the burden of regulation and taxation has deterred landlords from expanding their businesses.

“While constraints on mortgage finance will continue to affect investment in the sector, the Government could provide some support by taking steps to address this burden.”

The British Property Federation has been campaigning for the Government to remove barriers so that institutions such as pension funds can invest in housing, and liberalise the REIT regime so that its advantages are used by residential investors.

Ian Fletcher, director of policy at the BPF, said: “We welcome the findings of the report and particularly the support for several of our proposals. With current finance models struggling, we must look at the broadest range of options for funding the UK’s housing supply and institutions and REITs, as well as smaller investors, can all play a part.

“Institutions have for some time expressed an interest in investing in residential property.

“While many of the conditions are already in place, such as rental demand and political support, the lack of scale to deliver an acceptable return remains a barrier.

“We underplay the important contribution individual investors make to housing investment, and I would rather see them investing in housing than classic cars or fine wine, but if we want to see institutions deliver on a large scale we’ll need to see specific ‘build to let’ schemes.

“The Select Committee correctly highlights that whilst there is no silver bullet, we need to encourage and support a broad range of different investors in housing supply if we are to meet the nation’s housing needs.”

The Residential Landlords Association also welcomed the report.

Alan Ward, RLA chairman, said: “The crisis in the private rented sector shows no signs of abating. Faced with a chronic shortage of accommodation, many tenants are faced with too high rents and are left to simply accept whatever housing they can find.

http://www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk/news_features/MPs-call-for-build-to-let-investors-to-be-encouraged

NEW EPC regulations as of the 6th April 2012.

admin — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 14:47:32 +0000

As of the 6th April 2012, the new EPC regulations will come into effect. The regulations apply to EPC's for sale or rental of both domestic and commercial properties.

A brief summary of which you can find below:

From 6 April 2012 agents will be legally liable for ensuring that a property they are marketing has an EPC. The same applies to other third parties acting for building owners.

When an agent takes on a property for marketing, the EPC must be booked and preferably obtained within 7 days, and must be obtained within 21 days after that.

A copy of the front of the EPC has to be attached to every copy of the property details for every property being marketed. The option to cut and paste the rating on the details has been withdrawn for both domestic and commercial properties.

The copy of the EPC must be supplied to anyone viewing the property and / or requesting details.

The clause in the regulations which led some building owners to think they could put off getting an EPC until the property was let or sold has been deleted – the EPC must be obtained when the property is first being marketed.

The regulations give Trading Standards a duty to ensure compliance, powers to require production of EPC's and powers to levy fines for breaches of the regulations

From all the team here at WitLet

WitLet’s Lettings Advice Day

admin — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 16:56:20 +0000

We would like to invite you all to WitLet’s Lettings Advice Day

On Saturday 5th May 2012 between 10.00am – 3.00pm at Braintree’s Freeport Designer Village Outlet.

We will be located outside the Next retail unit, we have been kindly allowed to park one of our WitLet Vehicles which will be on site.

WitLet will be giving away promotional vouchers, gift bags containing information on our services in and around Braintree and also some scrummy cupcakes, So why not come along and meet some of the Lettings team who are on hand to offer professional advice on renting your property or 1st time clients looking to rent a property in the local area.

For more details on this event please contact:-

Miss Tina Rogers on 01376 502 500 or email tina@witlet.co.uk or visit us at www.witlet.co.uk

NewBuy Scheme Launched by Government – Guardian

admin — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 11:05:25 +0000

Barclays, Nationwide and NatWest have signed up to the government's mortgage indemnity scheme to help first-time buyers get on the housingladder.

The NewBuy loan guarantee, designed to give would-be buyers access to mortgages even if they only have a 5% deposit, will help 100,000 people who would otherwise have been frozen out of the property market and will support 50,000 construction jobs, the government claims.

Under the scheme, housing developers pay the lender 3.5% of the purchase price of a new-build property while the government provides an additional guarantee of 5.5%, to be called upon only if there is a crash inhouse prices.

It means Barclays, Nationwide and NatWest can offer large mortgages on new-build homes without taking on all of the risk: they will be guaranteed to not lose money if a property falls into negative equity and is repossessed, with the mortgage indemnity funded by developers and taxpayers.

The scheme is available on flats and houses up to a maximum value of £500,000 in England only, and means a buyer requiring a £40,000 deposit for a £200,000 property will now only need £10,000. The scheme is open to anyone buying a property, but the government sees it as a means for first-time buyers in particular to purchase their first home – a recent survey by Rightmove found that 38% of first-timers believe NewBuy means they will be more likely to buy within a year, and that 24% of first-time sellers will be more likely to buy once the scheme launches.

Halifax will announce details of its own NewBuy products in April 2012, while Santander is thought to be releasing its NewBuy mortgages by the end of June 2012.

Housing minister Grant Shapps said 28,000 homebuyers have already registered their interest in NewBuy with builders since the scheme was first announced in February 2011.

David Cameron added: "We are delivering on our promise to offer affordable mortgages to buyers who might otherwise not be able to raise the money to buy a newly built home. It is no good hoping people will climb the property ladder if the bottom rung is missing. Affordable properties and available mortgages are vital.

"[NewBuy] is a vital boost to the housing market, giving people good, affordable new homes and backing thousands of jobs in construction in the process. This government doesn't just talk about expanding homeownership, we're making it happen."

The NewBuy scheme was greeted warmly by the construction industry, with Stewart Baseley of the Home Builders Federation claiming it will "help thousands of people to meet their aspirations to buy a new home, freeing up the housing market and helping first-time buyers and those unable to take the next step on the ladder."

But critics say it will prove more of a boost to homebuilders than first-time buyers. Katy John of first-time buyer pressure group PricedOut said it will not help potential buyers who fail to satisfy stringent lending criteria, and that sky-high house prices remain a concern.

"It is fair to say Grant Shapps's main objective is to get banks lending to first-time buyers, but if builders can't sell their properties they need to drop the prices to a more affordable level, which would help people get on the ladder," she said.

"We don't need another scheme to help prop up the construction industry, we need progressive taxation such as the mansion tax that has been mooted or a change to the council tax bands – that will be more helpful to first-time buyers in the long run."

Under the NewBuy scheme the lenders will offer 95% loan-to-value (LTV) mortgages on properties built by Barratt, Bellway, Bovis, Linden Homes, Persimmon, Redrow and Taylor Wimpey. NatWest will lend at a fixed rate of 4.29% for two years and at 4.99% for five years; Barclays' rates are 4.99% fixed for two years or 5.89% for four years; and Nationwide is more expensive at 5.69% fixed for three years and 5.99% fixed for five years.

Dvaid Hollingworth of mortgage broker London & Country Mortgagessaid: "I am impressed with some of the rates, which do seem to back the idea that NewBuy is partly about improving the number and availability of high LTV mortgages on the market. If more lenders sign up it could really gather momentum. But I can't say this will result in the first-time buyer marker igniting; it will probably just tip the balance for someone already considering a new-build property."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2012/mar/12/newbuy-first-time-buyers-lenders?CMP=KNCNETTXT16997I

Property Update

admin — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 14:06:41 +0000

So since the turn of the year, we have been in overdrive! Demand for property has been at a real high when many expected a quiet period after an expensive Christmas time and upcoming recession. However, at WitLet we LET over 90% of our available stock in WItham (22 of 24 properties)!!! So does what does that mean?

Well with mortgages set to increase by around 0.5% over the coming months, more and more people are going to see an increase in mortgage payments. Demand for rental properties continues to soar – put it this way, if we put a property on the market, inundated with enquiries does not cover it! However, id supply drops and demand increases, basic economic theory indicates that price will rise! If we apply that to the past 18 months, we can see 2 bed HOUSES (most popular choice in the rental market by the way investors) in Witham increase from an average of £650-700 to £750-775!

So what about House prices themselves? i have pasted a link below to show some stats for Witham:

http://www.zoopla.co.uk/house-prices/browse/cm8/?q=cm8&search_source=house-prices

According to this link, the average rent in Witham is £745 pcm! Taking an average "Zed Index" (he Zed-Index is the average property value in a given area based on current Zoopla Estimates) of a terraced house in Witham, this would give a 6% yield already! This obviously is based very much on averages and it would be far more important to look at each case individually before making an investment decision. We would be always be happy to discuss possible rental yields with potential clients and explain exactly what they can earn from various properties!

So in conclusion to this blog, is it worth investing in Witham? The answer would be YES! If you would like some more information please contact Scott or Charlie on 01376502450.

Changes to tenancy deposit protection from 6th April 2012

admin — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 13:04:03 +0000

Changes to tenancy deposit protection from 6th April 2012

The Localism Act achieved Royal Assent in December and the DCLG has now confirmed that changes to tenancy deposit protection, introduced by the Bill, will come into force on 6^th April. Tenancies already in place on this date will have 30 days in which to comply with the new rules.

Here’s a recap of the changes due to take effect as a result of The Localism Act:

30 days – not 14 – to protect deposits

From 6^th April, landlords and letting agents have 30 days from receipt of deposit in which to protect it.

The re-wording and extension of this timeline also closes the loophole with regards to deposit protection deadlines that was highlighted by cases such as Universal Estates v Tiensia in 2010.

Now, if a deposit is not protected within 30 days, the tenant can take their landlord or letting agent to court – there is no other way to interpret this legislation.

Prescribed Information

The requirement for providing the Prescribed Information to the tenant will also be changed to within 30 days of receipt of the deposit.

Whilst we provide a template for Prescribed Information on our website, it is the landlord or letting agent’s responsibility to ensure it is issued at the correct times so it’s vital they review the Localism Act and understand when Prescribed Information should be issued.

No retrospective protection after the tenancy ends

If a tenant makes an application to the county court once the tenancy has ended, the landlord will no longer be able to retrospectively protect the deposit in order to comply with the Act. If the tenancy has ended, the only option is for the landlord to repay the deposit, or part thereof, to the tenant.

Revised sanctions for non protection

The changes give the courts discretion to award not less than the amount of the deposit and not more than three times that amount depending on the individual case. For example, a repeat offender may find themselves with a larger fine compared to a landlord who has simply forgotten to protect as an administrative oversight.

Section 21 notices

Further clarity to Section 215 of the Housing Act highlights that a section 21 notice may not be given where a deposit has not been protected within the 30 day period. However, there are exceptions to this which you can view in The Localism Act.

For a comprehensive explanation of each change, read our blog from September 2011 – ‘Tenancy deposit protection amendments proposed by the Localism Bill’. You can also read the The Localism Act (section 184) and view the amendments against the Housing Act 2004 (sections 213 – 215 are relevant).

AIIC launches new check-out workshop for letting agents

admin — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 16:24:03 +0000

Dated: Tuesday 7th February 2012

End of tenancy ‘check-out’ inspections can be contentious if not handled correctly and can cause wasted time, energy and money for all parties. To help in-house inventory clerks to manage the check-out procedure properly, The Association of Independent Inventory Clerks (AIIC) is launching new one-day workshop, specifically design for letting agents.

The new ‘Check-Out’ workshop will be held on The Hilton Hotel, Bagshot Road, Bracknell RG12 0QJ on Monday 27 February 2012 from 9.30am – 4.30pm.

The new one-day workshop will cover:
•   The practicalities of carrying out a check out
•   What to look for
•   Finding ‘hidden’ damage to ensure that the landlord’s property is protected
•   What is chargeable and what is not – being realistic
•   Handling your tenant in difficult situations
•   How to compile a detailed check out report
•   How to avoid going to dispute

Pat Barber, Chair of The AIIC, comments: “We have developed this new course in response to many enquiries for hands-on training on check-out procedures from letting agents. With this new workshop we can now offer in-house clerks training on how to complete a thorough and balanced check-out.

“We know that while many agents use an independent inventory clerk to develop the inventory and manage the check-in, they often handle the check-out to save time and money. Our new course will ensure that agents prepare a professional and thorough ‘check out’ that will protect in the event of a tenant dispute.”

AIIC is a not-for-profit, membership organisation committed to excellence and professionalism in the property inventory process. AIIC works hard to ensure that all landlords, tenants and letting agents understand the importance and benefits of professionally completed property inventories.

The AIIC is the UK’s largest membership organisation for independent inventory clerks, with over 500 members who are monitored for continued quality and fully insured as a condition of membership.

For further information on the workshop or to register your interest in any of the AIIC courses, please visit www.theaiic.co.uk.

For further information on training courses, please visit