LandlordZONE

1 week ago | landlordzone.co.uk | Tom Entwistle

Landlords face higher bills as EPC assessment demands get tougherChanges to EPC assessments meant higher energy assessment costs for landlord, that's on top of what it will cost landlords to upgrade properties. The Reduced Data Standard Assessment Procedure (RdSAP) is a simplified methodology used to produce energy performance certificates. It uses a lot of assumptions about how buildings are constructed to save the energy assessors’ time and generate a rating of a property's energy efficiency.

1 week ago | landlordzone.co.uk | Tom Entwistle

LEGAL update: Consumer protection laws – what landlords need to knowThe Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCC) came into force in stages. The digital markets and competition aspects came into effect on 1 January 2025 and the consumer law aspects, including new enforcement powers for the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), came into force on April 6, 2025. This Act has important implications for private landlords when letting their properties.

2 weeks ago | landlordzone.co.uk | Tom Entwistle

Law Commission rules out major change to security of tenure rules for commercial leasesThe Law Commission has published an interim report on its initial conclusions about security of tenure for business leases. The recommendation published last week in the Law Commission’s part one first stage consultation paper says that there should be no change to the basic "security of tenure" rule under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 part 2.

2 weeks ago | landlordzone.co.uk | Nigel Lewis

The Scottish Government has launched a consultation on its plans to introduce a minimum EPC level for rented homes. This would see all properties rented privately to tenants required to meet a band C level EPC by January 4th, 2028, for new tenancies, and by 2033 for existing ones. Justifying this, the official statement says that among Scotland’s 300,000 rented homes, 48% are under a band C and 14% have the lowest E/F/G bands.

2 weeks ago | landlordzone.co.uk | Nigel Lewis

Landlords seeking to recoup money from tenants now have an alternative to a lengthy and expensive battle through the courts. A TV programme is under development with a working title of The Court, whose producer says it will offer a ‘swift and cost-free’ access to justice.