NorthWest6

29/11/2022

Thanks for visiting my fundraising page. I’m going to do 100 push ups a day in November to help raise money for Cancer Research UK. Please show your support and help fund life-saving research by donating to my page.

27/10/2022

Going to be a tough one

Thanks for visiting my fundraising page. I’m going to do 100 push ups a day in November to help raise money for Cancer Research UK. Please show your support and help fund life-saving research by donating to my page.

20/10/2022

RECORD RENTAL PRICES ACHIEVED

Here at Northwest 6 we have recently rented the following flats ,

Kilburn/Queens park Borders 1 Bedroom converted flat £1650 a Month

Kilburn /Queens Park Borders 2 Bed , 2 bath Purpose built apartment £2750 a month

as the areas leading and most established agent we are keen to replenish our instructions for many waiting Clients

special offers available throughout October for new instructions

Call us

17/10/2022

Stamp Duty - Chancellor Hunt reveals what happens next

The new Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, says the limited cut in stamp duty in England and Northern Ireland announced in the mini-Budget two weeks ago will continue - although almost every other tax cut announced at the time will be reversed.

In a video statement this morning Hunt says: "We will continue with the abolition of health and social care levy and the stamp duty change, off payroll working reforms, the new VAT-free shopping scheme for non-UK visitors and the freeze on alcohol duty rates."

But every other change put forward by Prime Minister Liz Truss and the former Chancellor Kwarzi Kwarteng is being reversed.

In particular the cutting of the basic rate of income tax to 19 per cent from April 2023 - a flagship policy of Truss in the recent past - will now not happen. The statement says: "The basic rate of income tax will therefore remain at 20 per cent indefinitely. This is worth around £6 billion a year."

Hunt also says a Treasury-led review will take place into how people are helped with energy bills from April next year. The objective, he suggests, is to design a new approach to save taxpayers money while targeting support to those most in need. He adds: "Business support will also go to those most affected and will incentivise energy efficiency."

10/05/2022

Radical reform of private rental sector announced by government

The Queen’s Speech has confirmed that a radical re-shaping of the rental sector is being pushed ahead by the government.

Although the relatively brief speech delivered by Prince Charles - deputising for Her Majesty - made superficial reference to housing and planning, details released just after the speech and reported by Sky News put flesh on the bones.

A Bill will abolish what the government has called 'no fault' evictions - section 21 evictions - “giving renters better rights when they are told to leave despite complying with the terms of their tenancy.”

The details also say that there will be additional reform of landlords' grounds for possession to give them greater powers to tackle repeated rent arrears or anti-social behaviour among tenants.

In addition, a new ombudsman for private rented landlords will ensure disputes can be easily resolved without going to court.

“These reforms will help more people own their own homes” according to the government.

The Leasehold Reform Act 2022 will come into force on 30 June, and this will - amongst other things - stop landlords requiring ground rent for new long residential leases.

It will also mean banning new leasehold houses to ensure that all new houses built are freehold.

04/02/2022

How to cut your energy bills at home using geothermal imaging cameras

The first thing Rupert Gregory did when he got his hands on a Flir thermal imaging camera was to point it at the family cat and then a cup of tea before turning the lens on his intended target: his four-bedroom Victorian end-of-terrace in Twyford, Hampshire.

“It’s quite entertaining,” says the 37-year-old IT consultant, who is one of a growing number of homeowners who are taking advantage of new — and more affordable — technology to detect draughts, cold spots and unexpected sources of energy loss from a property. They are taking the decision to prioritise what eco-efficiencies are needed not just to cut their bills but to avoid being ripped off by unscrupulous home improvement companies.

“After you’ve played around with the camera for a bit you move on to the job at hand,” says Gregory, who borrowed a Flir camera from the energy supplier Octopus Energy. “Ideally you want the house hot and outside cold, so do this exercise in winter. You should always look at junctions, corners, cracks, around door frames. You’ll see the cold coming in as dark blue and purples. The picture almost looks like water coming under the door.”

The images provide a vivid and immediate snapshot of sometimes hidden and unforseen problem areas
The images provide a vivid and immediate snapshot of sometimes hidden and unforseen problem areas
The images provide a vivid and immediate snapshot of sometimes hidden and unexpected problem areas. Heat-dominated bodies, including humans and other warm-blooded creatures, show up as yellows, oranges and pinks through to red. Taken from outdoors, a thermal image of a well-insulated and heat-retentive house should be mostly on the blue spectrum. A rosier hue suggests warmth is escaping from indoors.

Gregory discovered draughts along floors and skirting boards and under the front door. He also spotted dislodged insulation in a bedroom ceiling, shaded blue on his images. “I would never have seen that if I hadn’t had the camera,” he says. He has also helped neighbours track down escaping energy in their own homes.

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After spending £250 to £300 on draught-proofing and insulation measures, Gregory and his wife, Gemma, have managed to cut their family home’s £125 monthly dual fuel bill substantially. “Post-works this went down to £100, so a 25 per cent saving. What’s good is that even though the cost of gas and electricity has increased, my monthly bill has only gone up to £105.”

Until the new generation of mobile phone-friendly cameras came along and opened up a whole new world of possibility, thermal imaging cameras were the handheld preserve of professionals, used by emergency and rescue services to locate missing people and by surveyors, electricians and plumbers to find “hotspots” in wiring and heating systems.

Chris Williams with his wife Becky and son Cassian
Chris Williams with his wife Becky and son Cassian
LORNE CAMPBELL/GUZELIAN
Now the relatively affordable cost of thermal imaging camera attachments, suitable for iPhones and other mobile phones, is helping thermal imaging to take off. While professional stand-alone cameras (also known as heat cameras, thermal detection cameras or infrared cameras) such as the Bosch GTC 400C thermal imaging camera (Screwfix, £938.99) can easily cost four figures, the Flir camera starts at £226.80.

Chris Williams, 34, a project manager for Evergreen Energy, an energy equipment company, was surprised at the colour spectrum he found when he borrowed a thermal imaging camera from Greater Manchester Carbon Co-op, an energy services and advocacy co-operative, for a week in January to assess his 20-year-old four-bedroom detached house in Sharston, south Manchester.

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“When my house was built they put in cavity wall insulation that looks like bubble wrap,” says Williams, who lives with his wife, Becky, and three-month-old son, Cassian. “It’s not great insulation and because it’s got foil in, it can’t be upgraded. They can’t blow anything in case it gets stuck on the foil as this could create voids, which could lead to damp forming. I expected the walls to show up as seriously leaking heat, but actually they were OK. From the outside the walls came up blue and the windows were bright red.” As a result Williams is now looking to upgrade his windows rather than spend more on the walls.

Mick Wall, 50, an IT support worker who lives in a 1930s semi in the Sheffield suburb of Loxley with his wife, Emily, a nurse, and two children, James, 8, and Lauren, 12, was similarly empowered when he borrowed a thermal imaging camera from Octopus Energy last year and pointed it at his front bedroom, which had felt cold for two decades. He discovered that underneath the bay window there was nothing at all between the internal plasterboard and the outside tiles. “A local builder from Practical Property Services stripped it back for us to prove there was nothing but fresh air there,” he says. He then put it all back together using 75mm of insulation board and air-tight tape. From memory the whole of the work, including redecoration, was about £1,000.”

Using a thermal camera, Mick Wall discovered that underneath the bay window there was nothing at all between the internal plasterboard and the outside tiles
Using a thermal camera, Mick Wall discovered that underneath the bay window there was nothing at all between the internal plasterboard and the outside tiles
One of the challenges is how to interpret the data. Many local organisations such as the Greater Manchester Carbon Co-op, which has an online forum, will offer advice — or you could use it as a starting point for a professional home-energy assessment.

Think of a thermal imaging camera as similar to a smart meter in terms of giving you direct access to information about your home, says the retrofitting expert Charlie Baker, the founder of Red, a Manchester-based consultancy specialising in renewable and sustainable projects. His company charges from £95 for a diagnostic visit and discussion to £500 for a detailed assessment of the whole house, with budgeted costs for improvements: “In both cases, where timing of the visit and weather make it feasible, the infrared camera is one of the tools we use, alongside a meter to measure temperature and air humidity.”

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Jenny Turner, property expert at the insulation distributor Insulation Express, says the benefits of hiring a professional “will come down to detailed reporting on cold spots, which may offer more insight than a DIY approach”; but not half as much fun, we suspect — especially for the cat.

Need to know
● A thermal imaging camera works more or less like a normal camera, except the image sensor makes pictures from heat, not visible light.

● Look for a camera that digitally overlays the thermal image with a high-resolution “visible” one so you can understand the picture more easily.

● If you use a thermal imaging camera designed to work with a mobile phone, you’ll be required to download an app to operate it. You can store the images you take on your phone and send or share when necessary.

● Some cameras, including the Flir models, come with software that allows you to interpret data, such as the Flir Home Inspect, which is only on iOS and in selected countries including the UK. Victoria Lind of Flir says that there are also apps developed by other companies for use with Flir cameras, such as Heat3D, using augmented reality and advanced technology to calculate heat flow through buildings.

● Thermal cameras have pixels, like a normal camera, but start at lower resolutions, typically 80 x 60. If maximum detail is important to you look for models with the highest resolution possible: up to 1280 × 1024 pixels or more.

04/02/2022

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£675 PER WEEK

13/01/2022

Estate agents share their property predictions for 2022

What will the property market look like in 2022? With the threat of Omicron looming, and interest rates set to rise further, there are plenty of factors at play.

Several estate agents and members of The Guild of Property Professionals, have shares their predictions for 2022 and the property market over the next 12 months.

Andrew Simmonds, director at Bristol-based Parker’s Estate Agents, said: “Although prices this year will grow at a slower rate than in 2021 due to rising rates, taxation and the energy crisis, the market certainly won’t go off a cliff due to the lack of supply. I am expecting to see many vendors sell and move to rented with a view to onward purchasing later in 2022 or 2023.”



Simon Bradbury, managing director of seven branch Thomas Sales & Lettings in Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire, commented: “As with any predictions about the housing market in the UK, there is a huge amount of uncertainty when it comes to anticipating what may or may not happen in 2022 – particularly in view of what impact the Covid situation may have and the expectation that there will be no further boost in respect of Stamp Duty exemptions in the year ahead.

“There are undoubtedly some general economic headwinds that need to be factored into any predictions. These include an expected increase in interest rates, higher rates of inflation, continued Covid restrictions and general economic uncertainty as the consequences of Brexit become clearer – probably!

“I would suggest that the rental market in 2022 will probably be a repeat of 2021 – a gradual increase in rents with volumes remaining about the same. As for the sales market, I expect that volumes of housing transactions across the UK will reduce from the anticipated 2021 figure of 1.1 million to a more modest 890,000 and that this 20% reduction will be broadly reflected in our own Eastern region. This reduction will be mainly due to the continued lack of instructions, which will in turn, impact house prices which I expect to increase by a UK average of 7% and a regional average of approximately 6%.

“The two big themes of 2022 for the property market will be a continued lack of instructions and a general increase in interest rates.”



According to John Newhouse, from Roseberry Newhouse in Stokesley, early signs in the market indicate high demand and low stock availability similar to 2021.

He explained: “Looking for the ideal purchase or rental will have its challenges and I would advise buyers and tenants to work closely with their estate agent. Landlords will continue to enjoy choice of tenant to suit their need. And sellers may continue to expect premium prices but should be wary of overzealous price guidance,” adds Newhouse.



Charlotte Demaine, from Edkins & Holmes Estate Agents, remarked: “Looking forward to 2022, I am confident that it will continue to be a sellers’ market for the first quarter. As the year progresses, I think property prices will begin to level off as more properties come to market and property price increases will begin to slow down, however, I feel overall the market will remain strong throughout 2022. The lack of properties available for rent means that the cost of renting continues to increase – great news for our landlords but not so good for people looking to rent.”



Zoe Napier, director of The Zoe Napier Group who specialises in selling unique homes in Essex, said: “The new year has started with spring in its step with an increased level of buyers leaving London and the city suburbs for that lifestyle move. Essex offers a surprising amount of beauty in the villages, coastal and rural areas and property prices in these areas continue to rise, not least due to the number of proceedable buyers bidding on any single property.

She continued: “The message we have for buyers is once you have decided to move, get yourself in a position of strength from already having a buyer and complete chain behind you. Alternatively, if you are fortunate enough to be a cash buyer, to have proof of funding available and even demonstrate this to any selling agent at the earliest possible opportunity.

“For those requiring a mortgage, then ensure to obtain an advanced ‘approval in principal’ – a document which can be made readily available by most lenders of mortgage brokers. This will be requested by any agent at point of offer and those first off the block with their evidence can place their offer, strong intentions, readiness to co-operate and commitment in an advantageous situation.”



Director of Kelvin Francis Estate Agents in Cardiff, Kelvin Francis, says that the residential property market in Cardiff has remained buoyant throughout 2021 and the early signs are that this is continuing in 2022.

He commented: “Large numbers of requests for valuations and instructions are being received after the festive period, indicating continuing optimism and confidence in the market. Values for the most attractive properties have proved strong, with large numbers of viewings leading to several offers, often having to go to sealed bids, achieving prices which on average are 5% to 10% over the asking prices.

“The average house price in Cardiff for 2021 is £289,596 showing an average annual change of 16.5% increase. Demand is particularly strong in the popular two-bed starter homes and traditional three-bed, semi-detached dwellings, where continued pent-up demand has led to a record level of viewings for most listings. In the rental market, rents have increased on average by 20%, which has encouraged many established landlords to increase their portfolio, competing with would-be first-time buyers in the sales market, adding fuel to demand and house price increases.”

Francis added: “Many housing analysts are predicting a 5% increase in house prices for 2022. However, we feel that in 2021, house prices increased on average by 15% plus, which cannot be sustained, so our view is that house prices for 2022 will stabilise and at best increase marginally by 1% or 2%.”

07/01/2022

Should I invest in a buy-to-let property in 2022?

Buy-to-let boomed along with the rest of the property market last year; now banks are gearing up for the momentum to pick up this year. So is now the time to consider becoming a landlord?

In 2021 buy-to-let investors borrowed a record £18 billion, according to UK Finance, the body that represents mortgage lenders — an 83 per cent increase on the previous year. What is more, 34 per cent of landlords in the UK are planning to buy at least one more property within the next 12 months, according to research from Shawbrook Bank.

Meanwhile, banks are doing all they can to attract landlords in 2022: interest rates on buy-to-let mortgages are low (Mortgage Works, Nationwide’s buy-to-let arm, has a two-year fixed deal at 0.99 per cent) and several lenders are offering higher than usual loan-to-value (LTV) deals, including TSB, which has an 80 per cent LTV mortgage.

Others, such as NatWest, have recently removed the minimum income requirement for buy-to-let applicants. Many lenders had previously insisted that landlords must earn at least £25,000, aside from rent, which made it impossible for some in retirement to take out a loan.

“The changes in the buy-to-let lending market are indicative of the confidence that lenders have in this space and the scope that they believe they have for growth,” says Chris Sykes, a mortgage consultant at the brokerage Private Finance.

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Rents outside London have also been increasing. Aneisha Beveridge, the head of research at Hamptons estate agency, says: “Across Great Britain rents have risen 7.9 per cent over the last year [to November]. A lack of stock and a continuation in tenants’ willingness to pay for more space has fuelled growth. In particular this has benefited southern regions [outside London], which have seen the biggest rent rises since the pandemic began.”

There still good yields to be had too. Analysis of 1,350 postcodes by Track Capital, a property investment company, shows that the top place to invest in 2022 is Nottingham, along with buy-to-let hotspots Manchester and Newcastle. The only place in southern England in the top ten is Southampton (see table).

Interest rates on buy-to-let mortgages are low and several lenders are offering higher than usual loan-to-value deals
Interest rates on buy-to-let mortgages are low and several lenders are offering higher than usual loan-to-value deals
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There are, admittedly, hurdles. About half of Britain’s landlords are said to be considering selling rather than upgrading properties to meet the government’s energy efficiency targets (new rental properties need to have an EPC rating of C by 2025 and existing tenancies the same by 2028), according to a survey by Mortgage Works.

It is the latest in a series of financial and regulatory disincentives that have dented the private rental market since the chancellor at the time George Osborne slapped a 3 per cent additional stamp duty levy on buy-to-let investors in April 2016. In the past year the number of rental properties in Britain fell by 17,150 as investors sold 201,300 homes, a figure only partially offset by the 184,100 homes purchased by landlords — the highest number bought by landlords in the past decade, according to Hamptons.

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Beveridge says: “We would expect the percentage of homes bought by investors to remain around 12 per cent, perhaps even fall a little in 2022, since the changes to EPC regulations will limit the types of homes investors will buy. On the flip side there are still investors who have racked up savings and will be looking for ways to protect their money against inflation and rising interest rates.”

We asked landlords who all plan to expand their portfolios in 2022 what tips they had for those looking to buy-to-let this year.

Stay local
Surveys may show the highest yields are miles away, but experienced landlords urge investors to stick to what they know. “The problem is if you invest in an area that you don’t know you can end up making bad decisions,” says Simon Pither, 42, from Redhill in Surrey. “Nottingham might offer good yields, but if you don’t know the good areas from the bad you could end up making a bad decision. One street might be an excellent investment, but the very next street not so, you need that local knowledge.” Pither rents out four family homes near where he lives. He is the founder of PaTma, a landlord software service, and co-presents the Business of Property podcast.

Stuart Lordan, 46, from Reigate in Surrey, owns about ten rental properties, most of which are multiple occupancy homes for students and young professionals in Plymouth in Devon. He co-presents the Business of Property podcast with Pither. “My properties are four hours away,” Lordan says. “Ideally, given what I know now, I would have properties within an hour’s circumference of where I live. The challenge for me is that I have built up relationships with a lot of good people locally: builders, letting agents, surveyors and those relationships take a good couple of years to build.”

Swansea is also in the top ten for buy-to-let investors in 2022
Swansea is also in the top ten for buy-to-let investors in 2022
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Decide on your strategy
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“My investment strategy is to stay fairly local geographically, choose something I can manage myself and that is freehold. I look for two to three-bedroom family homes and a return on investment of at least 4 per cent. Family homes offer a stable and fairly passive [low-maintenance] investment strategy,” Pither says.

Lordan, on the otherhand, says: “I have HMOs [houses in multiple occupation] where the objective is cash flow, and single flats where capital appreciation is the objective.”

Get specialist advice
“My top tip? Take your time, don’t rush; this is going to be a long-term investment and you need to make sure you check your financial forecasts carefully. There are lots of rules and regulations around letting, so either you put in the time to learn them or use a letting agent to help you — at least to start with,” Pither says.

Buddy Kadri, 58, who rents out six student houses in Norwich and two flats and a house near Cambridge close to where he lives, recommends joining a local Property Investors Network (PIN), where you can meet other landlords locally. He also recommends Simon Zutshi’s books and landlord courses.

Think long-term
“I have had one tenant, a retired architect, for four to five years,” says Xiao Ming Liu, 70, a doctor who is soon to complete on her second buy-to-let flat close to where she lives in Hendon Waterside in north London. “He is very happy there and says he’d like to buy it, if I sell. He is a single person with no children or animals, which is very good. I’m not greedy and the rent is lower than similar places. In four to five years years I have only put the rent up by £60, but I am happy and he is happy. It is better than lots of different tenants coming and going.”

Be flexible
“Student numbers have been falling over the past five years, so those properties within two miles of the university I still rent to students, but those further out I have started dressing up and renting to postgrads and young professionals, and getting higher rental rates into my portfolio,” Lordan says.

Consider joining a local Property Investors Network (PIN), where you can meet other landlords locally
Consider joining a local Property Investors Network (PIN), where you can meet other landlords locally
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Plan ahead
“Things always take longer and cost more than you expect,” Lordan says. “Just budget for that, plan for voids and build it into your cash flow forecasting. Run each property as its own business unit and be very clear on the profit and loss.”

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You also need to plan for the unexpected. Lordan had one group of students who “absolutely trashed the place, it was knee-deep in waste and you couldn’t even see the kitchen counter tops”.

Do it yourself
“I have a one-bedroom buy-to-let flat close to where I live that is important to me because I am the kind of person who wants to do most of the minor repairs and DIY myself. It saves me getting tradesmen and I don’t want to employ a management agency,” says Martin Bull, 64, a semi-retired health and safety specialist who is looking to buy a second buy-to-let in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, where he lives this year.

Or don’t
“I definitely do not want to manage them myself and I always have more than one letting agent,” Kadri says. “The quality of the service can go up and down. If you have more than one then you can move agent, plus they compete with one another to gain your favour.”

Stay positive
“You’d probably think now is not a good time to buy a buy-to-let because the market is so hot, but I am open to buying and holding property regardless of the costs,” says Kadri, an electrical engineer who retired at 55 and lives off his rental portfolio. “Property prices have literally spiked in the past four months, but it creates an opportunity for me to release equity and invest without digging into my savings. Do not hesitate to remortgage your own property to invest in another place, just take the plunge and do it. Your first deal probably isn’t going to be your best deal, but it will give you a better return on your money than the bank.”

29/11/2021

Great flat reduced to £465,000 in the heart of Queens Park

13/10/2021

London rents rise for first time since the Covid pandemic hit as tenants flock back to centre of the capital

Tenants are returning to the city centre, with rental growth fuelled by the increased demand as well as limited stock.

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Daniel Lynch
By Anna White
3 hours ago
R
ents in London have risen for the first time since the pandemic took hold, as tenants finally return to the city centre.

The cost of renting a home in the capital was 3.6 per cent higher this summer than the previous year – according to the latest rental tracker from Rightmove. This takes the average rent in the capital to £2,019.

In the second quarter of the year (April, May, June) rents slid by 3.1 per cent on an annual basis but reversed in the third quarter (July, August, September) as people started to drift back to the office.

“A year of various lockdowns saw many city centres hit with either a complete standstill in rental growth or falls of over ten per cent, as tenants moved further out or back in with family temporarily,” says Tim Bannister.

READ MORE
Renting affects tenant health — improving it should be a no-brainer
Renting affects tenant health — improving it should be a no-brainer
London first-time buyers: ‘I moved in with my parents and used Help to Buy for my Barking home’
London first-time buyers: ‘I moved in with my parents and used Help to Buy for my Barking home’
Leaving London: meet the family who rented in London and Surrey before settling in Thame
Leaving London: meet the family who rented in London and Surrey before settling in Thame
“But as society opened up again cities have not only bounced back but are now seeing strong rental growth, fuelled by increased demand and limited stock.”

More are returning to inner London than outer in a bid to be close to the office and much-missed culture and amenities. This quarter rents rose 5.6 per cent on the previous year in the centre of the capital compared to 1.7 per cent in outer London.

Rents across London and beyond
Inner London asking rent: £2,348 (up 5.6pc in Q3)
Outer London asking rent: £1,777 (up 1.7pc in Q3)
Average asking rent for London: £2,019
National asking rent: £1,047
London gripped by a rental supply crisis
Rental supply is the lowest in almost a decade, according to a study from the website Spareroom.com. The number of ‘rooms wanted’ adverts on the site outweighed the ‘rooms available’ notices for just the third time in six years.

The imbalance is the most acute in London where enquiries to rent are up 165 per cent this autumn on the previous year. In fact, LonRes has 2,800 properties register for rent versus 13,000 this time last year.

The majority of demand is coming from those who moved back home with parents or shared with friends during the pandemic and lockdowns. Students are returning too.

“I have not seen such little rental stock in 12 years of working in the sector,” says Olivia McSweeney of Rokstone. There’s a combination of factors, she explains. Some tenants locked in low rents last year mid-pandemic for the next two to three years and some landlords have decided to sell up.

This September everyone came back to the rental market in central London at the same time, she continues, including the 2021/2022 new university undergraduate intake, along with those who were studying remotely last year.

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“One student told me that there are a record number of people on his course because colleges can operate a hybrid model of remote and in-person learning,” says McSweeney.

Demand is highest for one-to-two bedroom flats and family-sized houses.