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Hi all. I'm looking for a bit of advice as I'm in a bit of a frustrating position with a remortgage I'm currently going through and it's costing me money the longer it goes on. I listen to the podcast religiously and know there is a great community here so really hoping to get some advice if anyone can provide any. I've outlined my predicament below. I own a flat in Hinckley, Leicestershire which I rent out. The building is three stories high, and my flat is on the top floor. I've been trying to get the flat remortgaged recently but the lenders are asking for an EWS1 form to confirm the cladding on the building isn't flammable. On the RICS website it states that these forms only really apply to apartment blocks over 18m, or six stories, in height, or with balconies. Mine doesn't sit within these guidelines but having pointed this out to the lender and showing that it is clad in brick, they are still requesting the form. I have been trying to get this EWS1 form from the management company, Warwick Estates, but it is taking a long time. I've been emailing them for well over a month as they are currently not taking calls due to reduced staff as a result of Covid-19, and a Property Assistance has been speaking with their risk assessment department, who have said they are starting to look at quotes to get the surveys done, but they can't confirm a timeline. I've asked for a direct line to someone in the risk assessment department, or someone higher up their, but I doubt I will get this as their communications are abysmal. The really frustrating thing is my other mortgage is now outside of its fixed rate terms so I am paying a lot more per month for that mortgage whilst this gets sorted. Rent is coming in, which I am very grateful for at this time, but the profit is taking a serious dent. I've looked into getting a survey done myself but have had a quote back of around £2000, which I'd rather not pay as it's not my responsibility to do so, it's the management companies. I was wondering if anyone has been through this situation at all and can provide any advice? Do I go to one of the governing bodies and put a complaint in about Warwick Estates? Or is there something else I can do? I fear this could go on for months and months. Thanks in advance for anyone that can impart any information. Cheers, Joe

These new regulations carry some hefty fines and come in to force today - April 1st 2021 In short, All properties rented out will require an ECIR completed by a competent or qualified person to confirm the property is safe. This applies to new and existing tenancies. The fine for non compliance is £5000 rising to £30000 if landlords re -offend There are a few exemptions but don't expect them to apply Here's a video explanation Good luck out there Steve Walker www.PromiseMoney.co.uk

Looking to convert a 3bed terraced with attic into a 4 bed hmo by simply adding a bed to the living room. However because of the attic this will be 3 floors and 4 tennants. Will I need to spend extra on installing a wired fire alarm system or wil it be fine with just fire doors etc? I really do not want to start ripping the walls out here as the property is in a relatively good condition.

I’ve been doing some digging into the changes that are being made to the HMO licensing regulations and this is going to affect a lot of people. Essentially, from the 1st October, if you have 5+ people in your property from 2 or more households, you willl need an HMO license, regardless of the number of floors (previously it needed to have 3 floors to qualify). So anyone with a 3-4 bed house that has been converted into 5 rooms will be affected, and so will anyone who has tenants sharing a double room with their partner (example: if you have a 4 bed and the partner of one tenant moves in and you put them on the agreement it suddenly needs licensing). I understand these changes are coming in to crack down on rogue landlords who pack people into their shabby, unsafe properties like sardines but there’s a fair few decent folk who will get caught with their pants down and have to either fork out upgrading their doors, smoke detectors, emergency lighting etc and get licensed, or reduce the number of people living in their property which will impact their yields. If you are planning on applying for a license, be aware that your lender will be notified, so if you are not on an HMO mortgage, you will breach the terms of your agreement. If this affects you and you’re not planning on applying for a license, be warned that councils are recruiting additional inspectors in anticipation of the changes and if your property gets inspected you will have a problem on your hands. HMOs are pretty easy to spot from the outside and tend to be clustered in the same streets so its not hard for inspectors to go door to door. We’re getting hit from all angles at the moment and I worry this could be the tipping point for some landlords to sell up and ship out.

Hi All I have read quite few articles on extensions and renovations and I would just like to share some of my experiences from one I am doing at the moment. 1 Choose your architect carefully as the one I had who should have known about how the planners were thinking was uninformed. I went for planning which was blocked because of a number of reasons but I felt the architect should have advised better on the reasons (in hindsight it stopped me over capitalising the house). In the end we went for permitted development which is a course I will follow first next time. 2. Useful tips get an independent building inspector on board as they are much more obliging than the local council who view these projects as money printing machines. 3. We got 3 quotes but take time to check the reputation of your builders as we had to disregard one as he had bad feedback. 4. What ever you think it will cost double it and don't forget the VAT. 5. Check if part of build can be VAT reduced your builder can help you with this. 6. Always do staged payments as part of your build agreement. I hope these lessons I learnt help all you renovators and flippers. Regards Paul

Hi All, I am wondering if anyone knows of any regulations for front door locks on a standard BTL flat? I am currently getting quotes for composite doors to replace an ageing wooden door. (FYI They seem to be averaging between £850-£1050 supplied and fitted) Apologies that I don't know the term for these types of locks so I will explain. The First lock type works so that when you close the door, you are then unable to move the outside handle and the door is 'locked' from the outside (much like a night latch). You would then need to lift the handle and lock the door with the key for the full deadbolt and hinge operation. The Second lock type doesn't lock at all when you close the door and you are still able to open the door with the handle from the outside. To lock the door you would need to lift the handle and lock the door with the key to enable the full deadbolt and hinge operation. I would rather have the second lock type fitted, so that if a tenant was to close the door by accident or it was to blow shut as they are taking the bins out, they wouldn't have to call me to let them back in - It only crossed my mind as I remember reading something about HMO's requiring thumb-turn locks on the inside, but it did get me thinking that there could possibly be a legal requirement for the First lock type? Additionally, if anyone has any recommendations on a person/company that fits composite doors in (South) London area or online company, I would be grateful for the info Thanks James

Hi! I was just going through some paperwork from my letting agent and came across the letter they sent last year informing me of these regulations which came into force on 1st Oct 2015, obliging landlords to fit working smoke and carbon monoxide detectors in their properties. I just thought I'd link to it for info in case anyone had not heard of it. (I was a bit surprised that landlords were not already legally obliged to fit these previously!) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/smoke-and-carbon-monoxide-alarms-explanatory-booklet-for-landlords Best wishes, Fiona