Author: ARQ HOMES

KEY TAKEAWAYS FOR LETTING AGENTS AND LANDLORDS FROM THE AUTUMN BUDGET 2022

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has presented his Autumn Budget 2022, aiming to “tackle inflation and keep mortgage rates down”. From extended support for energy bills to a number of tax changes, here’s what landlords and letting agents need to know about the new measures.

Capital gains tax relief allowance halved

From 2023, the Annual Exempt Amount for capital gains tax will be cut from £12,300 to £6,000, and then cut again to £3,000 from April 2024.

“This will be unwelcome news for landlords, second home owners and those looking to sell their property as capital gains tax is applied at a much higher rate for residential property sales,” says Jamie Morrison, Head of Tax at HW Fisher.

Stamp duty cut to remain – but only until 2025

The Chancellor shared that “the OBR expects housing activity to slow over the next two years, so the stamp duty cuts announced in the mini-budget will remain in place but only until March 31 2025.”

This means that the threshold of the price of a property before stamp duty is paid will stay at £250,000, up from the previous threshold of £125,000 – but now for a time limited period.

Social housing sector rent cap to be introduced

The social rented sector is currently expecting rent hikes of up to 11% next year, which is why the government has announced a 7% cap on rent increases for social rents in 2023-24. This will help tenants save around £200 next year.

Matt Cowen, the Senior Associate at Winckworth Sherwood, says: “No doubt there remain tough times ahead for many social housing tenants squeezed by the cost-of-living crisis, but the introduction of this rent cap will partly mitigate the 11.1% rent increases that would have otherwise taken effect from next April, being September’s CPI rate of 10.1% plus 1%.

“It should also be remembered that the rent cap announced today does not apply to shared ownership rents or private sector rents.”

Dividend allowance will be cut from 2023

The dividend allowance will be cut from £2,000 to £1,000 in 2023, and then drop further to £500 in April 2024.

This will affect any landlords using limited company structures – a growing band of landlords – as they pay themselves and other shareholders dividends from their rental profits.

Threshold for top rate of income tax cut

More high earning agents and landlords will start paying the 45% top rate of income tax, as the threshold will be brought down from £150,000 to £125,140.

This means that “those earning £150,000 or more will pay just over £1,200 more a year,” says Hunt.

Income, national insurance, and inheritance tax allowance thresholds frozen until 2028

Although the tax bands stay the same, freezing the current allowance threshold for income tax and national insurance tax means that more people will move into higher tax brackets as their wages increase in line with inflation.

Inheritance tax will also be frozen at the current rate of £325,000. “The extension means it is likely that more estates will become liable to inheritance tax, thanks to rising house prices and soaring inflation,” says the IFA Continuum.

The National Living Wage will increase

The National Living Wage in the UK is currently £9.50 an hour for over-23s. This will rise by 9.7% to £10.42 – an annual pay rise worth £1,600 to the average worker and the largest increase in the UK’s national living wage ever.

Although this will of course increase costs for businesses currently paying the living wage to staff members, including estate and letting agencies, it will also offer some extra financial security to any tenants currently receiving minimum wage.

Employer National Insurance threshold frozen until 2028

As with the personal allowance thresholds, this threshold will equate to employers paying more as wages increase and more fall into the higher brackets.

However, the Chancellor has also shared that the government will keep the Employment allowance at its current higher level of £5,000. This combination means that around 40% of businesses will pay no National Insurance Contributions.

Energy price guarantee extended for a further 12 months

The energy price guarantee will remain in place for a further 12 months from April 2023, but the price will increase to £3,000 per year for the average household, meaning an average of £500 support for every household in the country.

The chancellor will also introduce an additional cost of living payments next year:

£900 to households on means tested benefits

£300 for pensioner households

£150 for those on disability benefits

£1 billion of funding for the household support fund, extending the support for a further 12 months

It will also release details of the new targeted approach for businesses from next April by the end of the year.

Source: https://www.goodlord.co/newsagent

Introduction

Winter is coming and your home should be ready. Making sure your property is ready for winter means you’ll be able to keep the warmth in, save money, and protect your home during the cold months ahead. With this checklist, you can help us detect minor faults and prevent unexpected heating outages in your home.

This guide covers everything you need to know, including:

• Radiators and boiler checks
• How to maintain green spaces
• Information on looking after pipes and exteriors
• Tips on staying insulated
• What to do if you encounter an issue

Heating

You can do some simple radiator checks to make sure your heating is ready for winter:

• Check the pilot light for the boiler is turned on.
• You gas safety certificate should be valid and updated annually.
• Fireplaces and chimneys should have been cleaned before you moved in, but if you have been a resident for an extended period of time, please check that they are clean and clear.
• Check the radiators are working correctly. If you need to bleed radiators, you can either do this yourself or request a professional to do it for you.

Insulation

Efficient insulation helps keep the heat in. If your property isn’t properly insulated, you could end up losing warmth and money. To make sure your insulation is working the way it should:

• Check draught proof covers around letterboxes and keyholes.
• Check door and window frames for damage and report a repair if necessary.

Garden & outdoor areas

In the winter months, gardens and outdoor spaces tend to become neglected. To minimise damage to property caused by infrequent use, you should:

• Trim bushes and prune trees.
• Rake up any fallen leaves.
• Put away or cover any equipment or outdoor furniture.

Property exterior

The dry months are a good opportunity to check your property exterior before the wet and cold weather sets in. To get-ahead and prevent damages, you should:

• Check for peeling paint, which can be a sign of moisture penetrating the building.
• Check pipes, drains and guttering to make sure they’re clear and properly affixed.
• Clean windows before the wet months.
• Make sure vents are not obstructed.
• Check exterior lights are working correctly.

And remember, if you can’t access certain windows or gutters safely, please hire a professional to help.

Plumbing

Keeping the water flowing is even more important in the winter months. These quick checks will make sure you’re ready.

• Make sure you have enough insulation. Pipes should be insulated, especially in the loft or outside the home. For extra warmth, consider adding a draught excluder.
• Double check where the stopcock is located.
• Test all of your taps to make sure there are no blockages.

Something wrong?

However you report repairs, be sure to speak up about any issues you come across.

Your Property Manager needs to be made aware of any problems that need solving ahead of winter. Anything from clogged pipes to an expired gas safety certificate can make a huge difference to your comfort during the colder months, but with strong communication no-one will be left out in the cold.

Source: https://www.fixflo.com/

Whether you like it or not, competition is always there. There will be plenty of Agents, pitching for the same work and fighting to survive.

Having a holistic in depth understanding of the property industry I have been able to pitch to clients and secure listings despite being up against corporate competitors. My Unique Selling Proposition is my 20 Years’ experience in the industry and being a “Local, Born & Bred” resident of Newham. My honest and transparent nature has secured many listings which is supported in my reviews.

Please take a look at some of the testimonials for yourself:

Facebook page, Google Reviews or All Agent Reviews.

My passion is to bring a smile to clients faces and I am determined to make clients feel that no obstacle will ever be insurmountable.

• We thrive on providing excellent Customer Services
• We are empathetic towards our customers’ needs
• We Listen to our customer’s feedback
• We make clients feel part of the process 

We endeavour to eradicate the myth that “All Estate Agents are the same”

Come and visit ARQ Homes today!

The epic turmoil of Liz Truss’s ill-fated mini-budget has given way to a calmer market for mortgage lenders, with a number of providers lowering rates throughout the country in response to a slowdown in the volatile world of financial markets.

After a sustained period of interest rates, the mortgage market is at last showing signs of recovery. HSBC, Virgin Money, Accord Mortgages, Clydesdale Bank, Coventry Building Society, Halifax and NatWest are among lenders that have cut rates, helped by the launch of new deals that include attractive offers for landlords and first-time buyers.

The base rate was increased to 3% last week, but despite this swap rates – which reflect the cost of funding – have actually come down since new PM and chancellor Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt replaced Truss and Kwarteng.

The Mortgage Works

Mortgage Works have made a number of reductions to their rates today, with pricing being split between products for landlords acting as individuals and limited company. They start at 3.99% for individuals and 4.74% for limited company landlords.

Daniel Clinton, head of The Mortgage Works, said: “As one of the largest buy-to-let lenders in the UK, we are continually looking at ways we can support landlords by offering them a wide range of options. These latest reductions to our fixed rates will help those who want to maximise cashflow while maintaining certainty over their repayments.”

For individuals buy-to-let rates include: a one-year fixed at 3.99% with a 2% fee, available up to 75% LTV; a two-year fixed at 4.39% with a 3% fee, available up to 65% LTV; a five-year fixed at 4.89% with a 3% fee, available up to 65% LTV; and a two-year tracker at 3.24% (Bank Base Rate plus 0.24%) with a 3% fee, available up to 65% LTV.

For limited company landlords there is: a one-year fixed at 4.74% with a 2% fee, available up to 75% LTV; a two-year fixed at 4.99% with a 3% fee, available up to 75% LTV; a five-year fixed at 5.49% with a 3% fee, available up to 75% LTV; and a two-year tracker at 3.49% (Bank Base Rate plus 0.49%) with a 3% fee, available up to 75% LTV.

The above are available for purchase and re-mortgage with other rate/fee and benefit combinations also available.

TMW Tracker understand that, you may wish to change your tracker rate if the market conditions change or you want a lower rate. Therefore all their tracker products come with the switch to fix facility which allows customers to switch to an existing customer fixed rate at any time without incurring Early Repayment Charges.

As a result of these changes the buy to let stress rates will now be between 5.99% and 8.79% depending on the product selected.

Source: https://propertyinvestorpost.com/