News

More than 1,000 readers responded to a Property Industry Eye poll yesterday which sought to find out what agencies are doing about opening back up for business and how people feel about the reopening of the housing market.

In a starkly damning result, almost 56% of the readers who took part believe that, in the context of Covid-19, it is unsafe for the government to have reopened the market.

27% said they do consider it safe to have reopened; and 17% ‘don’t know’.
Question: In the context of Covid-19, do you consider it safe to have opened the housing market at this time?



The Government updated its home buying and selling guidance on Wednesday, asking agents to favour virtual viewings initially but stati

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In the lastest Competitors Activity Report by Zoopla in the BS15 area of Bristol.,Seymour & Co acheived the highest click through rate of all its competitors which has meant Properties offered for rental are being tenanted at a remarkably quick rate. Many properties are being let at the first viewings and with top rents being achieved we are providing the highest level of service to our Landlords. This is due to the hard work of both Natalie and Kimberly with a little help from Stephen. Great Work.

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After nearly four years of debate, the ban on Agents charging fees to Tenants is about to become law on the 1st June 2019. Only very limited permitted charges are allowable such as charging for lost keys or any matter that affects the security of the property. Certainly items such as Tenancy Renewals will not be allowed, fees for Referencing will not be allowed. Deposits are capped at 5 weeks rental.

For most Agents, this will have a serious financial consequence for the continuance of thier business. However Kingswood Accommodation are financially sound and are infact emmbraking on an expansion plan to open more branches across Somerset, Devon & Dorset. We will keep you posted.

For all Landlords with the extra compliance

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We are Opening A New Office In Chelston Torquay TQ2 6HP On The First Of February 2019. If You Have A Property To Rent Or Sell Please Call Us On 01803 607036 to arrange a Valuation and Appriasal of Your Property.

www.seymouronline.co.uk

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The local media in Bristol are reporting that landlords in the city are complaining that they face backruptcy if a hugely expensive new licensing scheme is introduced by the council.
Last week we reported that the authority was introducing a five year licence on so-called ‘mini HMOs’ in 12 wards in the centre of the city. This would cost £885 for a licence, a fee which could nearly double for some landlords who do not take advantage of an early-bird offer.

The Bristol Post reports that landlords are organising to fight the proposals.

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Councils cannot use selective licensing conditions to impose new standards on private rented homes, the Court of Appeal ruled yesterday.
The case saw Accrington-based landlord, Paul Brown, challenge Hyndburn Council which sought to use its selective licensing scheme in certain areas of the borough to force the installation of carbon monoxide detectors and also to carry out electrical safety checks and implement their findings.
Whilst the landlord had already carried out both of these requirements, he argued that imposing such standards through licensing schemes went beyond the powers available to local authorities, and this was a view supported by Court of Appeal yesterday.
Instead, the court and the landlord argued that rathe

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The lettings sector is at the forefront of government proposals for a new redress system for customers of agents and others.
In a statement released over the weekend, Housing Secretary Sajid Javid announced that dissatisfied owners and tenants tenants should have “a clearer version of redress for their grievances.”
Now the government is seeking opinions over the next eight weeks about its official options including:
- introducing a single housing ombudsman to cover the whole of the housing market
- if homes builders should be required to join an ombudsman scheme, following on our commitment to expand redress to tenants of private landlords
- naming and shaming poor practice to help tackle the worst abuses. Housing Secretary

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The housing market has started 2018 as it ended 2017 according to the RICS, with new buyer enquiries, instructions and sales all drifting lower.
The latest market snapshot from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors shows that for the 10th month in succession, new buyer enquiries across the UK declined - in January there were 11 per cent more respondents reporting a fall rather than rise.
Similarly, newly agreed sales also slipped, extending the run of negative readings back to last February.
Going forward, surveyors responding to the survey predict a relatively stable sales trend for the near term with a belief that sales will pick up over the next 12 months.
There is, however, no sign of an upturn in the flow of proper

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Net buy to let investment has fallen 80 per cent in the past two years, a mortgage lenders’ group claims.
The Intermediary Mortgage Lenders’ Association says net investment in buy to let property was £25 billion in 2015 but fell to just £5 billion in 2017 “due to excessive regulatory intervention on the sector.”
IMLA says the 80 per cent slump is a steeper fall than after the financial crisis as recent tax and regulatory changes have caused a downturn in landlords’ activity.


The association firmly blames measures such as the three per cent stamp duty surcharge and the removal of mortgage interest tax relief, saying they deter some landlords from expanding their portfolios and prompt others to exit the market.
“Various

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Legal & General has exchanged contracts to acquire land in the centre of Brighton in order to deliver the city’s first ever Build to Rent development.
This is the seventh UK city in which L&G is to be engaged in Build To Rent.
The site - currently occupied as industrial space - is 200 metres from Brighton train station and subject to planning approval will deliver 200 homes and up to 3,000 square metres of commercial space to support business start-ups and small and medium sized companies.

Legal & General, which is already a major employer in Brighton, now has a Build To Rent platform of almost 2,000 units. It aims to have 6,000 in planning, development or operation by the end of 2019.
It now has sites in Leeds, Bristol,

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Analysis of the latest English Housing Survey data reveals that the private rental sector provides homes to a fifth of the population, including nearly two million families with children.
The latest figures from this official source show that the private rented sector remains larger than the social rented sector, accounting for some 4.7 million households; it is now the biggest tenure of all in London.
Over the last decade, the number of families with children in private rented housing increased by nearly a million to represent 38 per cent of all households in the sector. This compares to 35 per cent in social housing.
The proportion of those aged 35-44 has also substantially increased over this period to over a quarter.

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The Times reported today that Mortgage Approvals at a 4 year low as Housing Market slows. Lenders approved 36,115 mortgages in December down 19% from the previous year and the lowest figure since April 2013. The montlhy average approvals for the last 20 years has been 51,609.

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Rents in the UK rose 1.7 per cent in 2017 says HomeLet - Rental price inflation exceeded 3.0 per cent in three other regions last month: the South West, the North East and Northern Ireland.

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Kingswood Accommodation has launched its Free New App. Try It Now kingswoodaccommodation.iifou.com

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All the staff would like to wish all our Landlords and Tenants a very Happy New 2017

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