Do you have an unheated toilet in one of your houses? Beware as in some Licensing inspections, PCC are asking landlords to add some form of heating because of the 'excess cold hazard' in the smallest room.    (This in a 2-storey, 5-bed HMOs that have the benefit of mains gas central heating, double glazing, and other energy efficiency attributes providing an above average EPC score)

The story of the negative impact of Portsmouth City Council's efforts to "improve" housing standards for a number of poor souls it might be assumed were already at the bottom of the heap in terms of both social support and housing...  

We worried that PCC's threatened removal of waste bins if they were consistently left on the pavement would impact landlords and leave them bin-less even where the landlord had paid for a larger bin and the problem was tenant caused and beyond the landlords control.

We need not have worried as you can see from PCC's response below. 

We seem to constantly debate housing standards and younger people particularly forget how rapidly standards improve - perhaps this reminiscence of one persons housing history will help put things in perspective. 

After this months Planning Committee, where councillor Benedict Swann said Carianne Wells (PDPLA member and director at Applecore, which provides architectural professional services) should hang her head in shame, The News went with a front page headline of 'HMO Anger' and twice published a piece summarising Cllr. Swann's rant.

Read our response  

It appears that the Renters Reform Bill will come back to Parliament for its 3rd and final reading in the next few days. It would also appear that the various representations we have made directly and also through and in support of PropertyMark and the NRLA have been listened to with regard to student tenancies, licensing schemes and court reform.

Sadly, landlords are once again at the end of the chain and pick up the workload, costs and risks associated with something as simple as a ceiling mounted smoke detector.  

In addition to your normal member discount, there are further discounts this month on landscaping, decor, kitchens and bathrooms. Read on for more detail and a reminder of how to get your card if you do not have one.

There has been much angst over the introduction of Licensing in Portsmouth, both Additional and the transition of Mandatory to the same process. Whilst we continue working to encourage PCC to improve their solution there are obvious restrictions on what we can or should publish, but a short update on the current situation does seem appropriate.  

We have talked about insurance many times, most recently in September last (Better, Best, Boswells - PDPLA News - Portsmouth & District Private Landlords Association)  but an incident this month brought my objectives into clear focus.

We publish here an exchange between Roger Bell the South Hampshire Chair of iHOWZ Landlords Association and someone called Jake responding on behalf of Secretary of State, Michael Gove 

Heatio has partnered with E.ON and Energy Systems Catapult to provide its Energy-as-a-Service solution (EaaS).

As part of the Green Home Finance Accelerator (GHFA) announced last week, the initiative will eliminate upfront costs for consumers considering heat pumps, solar PV, or battery storage via a 20-year subscription service, with monthly payments expected to be around £150 per month. The solution will also integrate a bespoke E.ON Next energy tariff, further reducing home energy costs by up to £70 per month.

We all see professionals, experts, gurus and charlatans purporting to be able to help you succeed with property, but do any of them really know the answer or are they all just after your money?  Seven years ago, I saw the perfect answer to how the property market works and what you need to do to profit from it.  Here it is.... 

Since 2015 we have warned members 6 times about the risks of property fraud and the need to register their properties with the Land Registry so that they get alerts of any potentially fraudulent activity - but it still seems that some members have yet to register.  It takes seconds, it gives you peace of mind and it could be the difference between losing a property or not. Do it today!

In 2005, my wife Iva and I were renting a house which the landlord was also marketing for sale. When home alone one afternoon, Iva came out of the kitchen and was shocked to find 3 strangers standing in the middle of the lounge. The sales agent had been asked by prospective purchasers for a same-day viewing, he assumed no-one was home, did not call in advance, did not ring the doorbell, but simply entered our home without notice or consent. It was a shocking, traumatic experience for Iva and an unpleasant memory that still gives her the shudders all these years later. That experience informs the way we approach entry when it is needed to our tenanted properties, that is, with great care and consideration for our tenants' privacy and sensibilities.