Stay on the safe side

A recent survey found that almost 20% of landlords are not properly ensuring their rented properties, instead relying on standard home insurance policies. It seems like a simple way to cover yourself, but there are a number of pitfalls.

Read the small print and you will see that not only do most of those policies specifically exclude properties permanently rented out, but they're also missing a few areas of cover essential to landlords.

One of the most likely issues with rented property is water ingress or flooding which may require a tenant to be housed elsewhere until the problem is fixed. This is something landlord policies will cover, but ordinary home insurance usually doesn't.

A solid landlord insurance policy will also cover public liability insurance for the landlord. Why do you need that? It covers injuries sustained on your property and damage to neighbouring property. In practice, the Cullen Property team has seen claims varying from a tenant attempting to pull cupboards of a wall, which fell onto him and hurt his back to a postman slipping and falling in a communal stairway and claiming against every flat in the stairway.

As a worst case scenario, regular home insurers may refuse claims outright when they discover a property has been rented out without their permission.

Looking on the bright side, there are plenty of great deals available as it's a very competitive market. Shop around for a good deal - it won't take too long.

Tenancy Deposit Schemes start NOW

Are you ready to change how you deal with your tenants' deposits?

As of today, Scottish landlords are obliged to place their tenants' deposits in one of three approved tenancy deposit schemes.

These schemes, which have been the norm in England and Wales since 2006, are said to offer tenants the security of knowing their deposit is kept safe for the duration of their stay in a property. Should disputes arise when a tenant moves out, they provide an independent person to decide what repairs need to be done following 'ill treatment' of a property and what constitutes fair wear and tear.

In Scotland, landlords have so far been obliged to keep their tenants' deposits safe, but it was up to them how they dealt with deposits in practice.

The Scottish Government has approved three tenancy deposit schemes and as of today, all landlords need to have transferred their deposits into a scheme of their choice.

It's come as a surprise to us how little information has been made available about the impending changes, especially as consequences for landlords could be drastic and they could be fined up to three times the value of the deposit for missing today's deadline.

A recent ruling has shown that the courts are prepared to be strict on the issue, imposing the maximum penalty on a residential landlord for 'minor' omissions.

We're not about to start scare-mongering. However, this is a huge change for landlords, so if you do need additional information, please contact us directly.

It's back - the 90% LTV mortgage

Today, the Co-op has announced it's preparing to make 90% LTV mortgages available to first time buyers. Part of the Co-operative's commitment to lend £360million to first time buyers this year, it's also another definite step forward for the mortgage market.

Is it a step in the right direction, though? A lot of that will depend on how first time buyers are assessed and how conservatively the properties they are interested in are valued. Add to that the length of the mortgage deal, the security of the buyer's job etc and it only becomes harder to make an assessment.

If today's news from Castle Trust are anything to go by, first time buyers are still being rigorously assessed and 60% have been turned down for a mortgage. Good news for landlords to a degree as people continue to stay in the rental market.

Also in mortgage news, HSBC has increased its share of the mortgage market by nearly three percent over the first nine months of this year. Altogether, whether it's in residential or buy-to-let mortgages - and we've said this in this blog before, raised activity across the property industry can only be good for all of us.

Renting out your flat - who would you trust?

Whether you've bought a rental property as an investment from day one or are now finding yourself a more or less reluctant landlord, who do you trust with your property?

We're predicting that there will be a bit of a change in the lettings & management 'scene' following new legislation that outlaws any premiums charged to (prospective) tenants - except deposit and rent.

What that means for lettings agencies is that they need to look at covering their costs elsewhere - or cutting their service to you. Whilst higher charges to you as the landlord might not sound like a great option, don't forget the alternative may be that your property is less well looked after.

Scare mongers, I hear you say! Far from it, but now is the time to ask your lettings agent how they are adjusting to the situation. To find out about our solution, visit us at the National Landlord Day at Edinburgh's Our Dynamic Earth on Tuesday, 6 November or drop us a line.

National Landlord Day - We're here to help

It's less than a week until the doors open to the Scottish Association of Landlords' National Landlord Day next Tuesday, 6 November.

There's hardly ever been a better time for the UK's largest national landlord conference: whilst the private rental market continues to grow, a few new developments and regulations mean landlords have got to make sure they have the right information available to them.

Over the next few days, we'll be highlighting some of those developments in the market. If you'd like more information, please just come and see one of our team at the National Landlord Day on Tuesday.

The biggest change facing Scottish landlords are the new Tenancy Deposit Schemes (TDS). Introduced over the summer to safeguard tenants' deposits, many landlords have not had to act on TDS until this month, when placing deposits with your chosen TDS operator becomes mandatory for all deposits received from 7 March 2011 to 2 October 2012.

If your tenant has moved in since then, the deposit must be placed within 30 working days of the lease commencing. But where to place it? Three schemes have been approved by the Scottish Government, each offering different benefits.

If all this sounds somewhat confusing, please contact us or see us on Tuesday and we'll be happy to advise you on your specific situation.

Green shoots all around on the property market

Hot on the heels of our recent stories about movement in the mortgage market and more finance available to landlords, it looks like these green shoots were far more than one-off good news stories for property investors and other buyers.

First of all, the number of house sales and purchases seems to be increasing steadily. Over the last couple of days alone, the British Bankers' Association, Lloyds TSB and The Land Registry have published statistics for England and Wales. Whilst the individual numbers vary, all report an increase in mortgage approvals and the number of transactions.

According to the Council for Mortgage Lenders (CML), remortgaging figures are on their way up as well. The CML published its estimate for September which shows a near 10% increase on August. Having said that, remortgaging is still noticeably lower than it was this time last year. However, CML do expect the upwards trend to continue.

And in more upbeat news, Halifax has joined the ranks of banks and building societies who have recently dropped their mortgage interest rates for first time buyers and remortgaging, offering up to 90% LTV for first timers.

We've said it before in this blog - whilst the good news in the mortgage market have only spread slightly into the buy-to-let side of the market, they are showing a trend towards more choice in mortgage finance, which can only be good news.

More loans for landlords

One of the UK's newest banks, Shawbrook, has not only broken even after just one year in business, but they have also teamed up with The Loan Engine to offer short term secured loans.

Buy-to-let investors are among their key target markets and among the products specifically developed for this audience are: loans for investors looking to buy, refurbish or release equity from the after-works value of a property as well as short-term loans for acquisitions such as at auction. Light refurbishment work can also be financed through one of the bank's loans.

After a number of stories on mortgage funding becoming more easily available to home buyers, this may be the beginning of further good news for the BTL market. Watch this space!

Mortgage market on the move - Good news for property investors?

If the mortgage market is anything to go by we should expect movement across all of the property market soon. By movement, we mean an increase in the number of transactions per month, year etc.

What makes us think that? Quite simply, an astonishing amount of new mortgage deals have been introduced into the market recently and yesterday's announcement by HSBC is just one recent example. Without a doubt it appears that the 90% mortgage is back - HSBC is following Nationwide in offering one - at least for those buying to live in a property.

At the same time, mortgage interest rates seem to be falling, not only for HSBC clients but also for ING Direct customers.

In further mortgage news, intermediary lender Precise has launched a range of prime mortgages and Tesco Bank are extending their range of mortgage products, to name just a couple.

Meantime in the buy-to-let market, rental yields have increased almost across the board in the third quarter of this year, mostly due to high tenant demand and still falling property prices in some locations.

The high demand is certainly something we are seeing in Edinburgh this year. With students just back at university and the holiday season over, virtually none of our clients' properties are empty. On the contrary, we've been able to source properties to buy for investor clients which are now successfully let and we envisage this trend to continue.

Tenants staying longer?

We've come across a couple of interesting stories on the rental market today: Shelter are asking for new, long-term rental contracts to be created in England. The objecive of those contracts would be to offer tenants stability in their (temporary) home.

These contracts would be valid for a period of five years, and Shelter's request comes on the back of research by Jones Lang showing that this 'Stable Rental Contract' could create better returns for landlords. However, according to this story there are no opinions from lenders yet.

However, Shelter's suggestion has been thrown out in a survey of flatsharers conducted by website Spareroom. Out of 1,000 users surveyed a whopping 82% said they are against extended contracts, fearing being tied in for longer and having less flexibility to move and change location. Tenants also feared landlords being more 'choosy' when it comes to selecting potential tenants in the long term.

At Cullen Property we believe both long and short term contracts have benefits for both tenants and landlords, depending on the individual's situation. Most students are keen to rent for the period of one academic year at a time as their plans may change, including study abroad years, changing course or taking time out.

Green shoots for prospective buyers

There's movement in the property market and some of it is upward, too.

The Office of National Statistics (ONS) has published figures today that state property prices have risen in England, although they are still trailing in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales. Overall, property prices are up 2.3% in the 12 months to June 2012.

Looking at Scotland in more detail, as LSL Academetrics have done, shows that things are also looking up for property sales in Midlothian and the city of Edinburgh, where average sales prices have risen by £17,000 and £14,000, respectively, since July 2011. Over the same period the number of loans to new buyers has risen by 1,100.

According to the same figures, finance appears easier to come by for first time buyers north of the border, too.

Time to get excited? Not quite yet. Whilst the figures are definitely a reason to be hopeful, especially in a double-dip recession, it's not yet time to open the Champagne. However, they do show that the market is stabilising.

Geographically, the upward trend can be linked to regions of high employment and prosperity, where buyers are more likely to have equity and require less finance. At the same time, with mortgage providers starting to offer a larger number of high loan-to-value products, the property market appears to be moving in the right direction.

For a more detailed assessment, contact our team.

An investor's wish list

It may still be a few months' time until Christmas, but with retailers starting to stock chocolate Santas, it may be time to consider what would be on a property investor's wish list this year.

Judging by some of the most recent news pieces tidy tenants would be top of most investor's wish list. Whilst few would concern themselves with teh day-to-day running of the household, investors and landlords like to see their properties returned to the initial state when tenants move out.

And many tenants - keen to receive their deposit back - return their flat in perfect condition. However, approximately five percent hand over 'complete wrecks'. Nearly four in ten landlords have had to fully refurbish a flat after tenants moved out and ten percent said their repairs bill topped £2,500.

Joint second on our wish list are flats and terraced houses, as Paragon Mortgages reports that 16% of landlords are looking to increase their portfolio. According to their survey, flats and terraced houses appear much more popular than HMO properties which are typically shared by students. 58% of landlords are looking to invest in the former, with only 6% interested in the latter.

It's an interesting figure, especially considering the substantial returns achieved by well placed student flats in Edinburgh which have historically outperformed one and two bedroom flats for rental growth and occupancy.

Therefore, for Edinburgh property investors we'd like to add traditional four and five bedroom flats popular with students to our wish list, followed by a good choice of competitive finance products.

Olympic slump? The opposite's the case!

Mortgage lending and remortgaging appear to have gone through a busy few weeks.

With a number of lenders starting to offer under-3% interest rates for four to five year terms, home owners have submitted a rather large number of remortgage applications in late July and August, according to conveyancing specialists LMS.

Whilst experts had expected the Olympic Games to take precendence and deter home owners for a few weeks, it seems like shopping for a mortgage deal has still been high on the agenda.

Overall, July has proven to be a busy month for mortgage lending. The British Bankers Association (BBA) reports that high street banks' lending increased by 0.8% in July - maybe not a huge jump, but possibly showing a trend?

There may be trouble ahead...

... for unprepared landlords.

It sounds like a fairly basic statement, but after weeks of stories highlighting how bou-to-let mortgages were leading the market, we've come across a number of more troubling news today.

Specialist broker Mortgages for Business reports that one in ten residential landlords has been asked by their lender to move on to another lender, mainly due to RBS and Brandford & Bingley wanting to reduce their exposure to the property market or - as is the case for Bradford & Bingley - looking to exit the market completely.

At the same time, UK Asset Resolution (UKAR), the state-owned lender, reports 100,000 customers in danger of defaulting on their mortgage. Many of them are landlords whose interest-only mortgages are due to mature by 2020 and who have no idea how to pay off the loan, according to UKAR. 

On Friday, BDRC Continental reported that single-property landlords were struggling to keep on top of payments.

All doom & gloom? Not necessarily. As with much of the news we've had on property investment since the recession started, it goes to show that well-prepared landlords with solid finance models and well chosen properties can weather a storm.

At the same time, the current recession will hopefully serve as a cautionary tale to those looking to invest in property in the future - and here are a few things to consider no matter what the economy is doing: ensure you have the funds and finance in place, don't fall for deals that look too good to be true (they usually are) and select your property(ies) wisely.

Sunny & dry weather? No, thanks

While we were all enjoying yesterday's sunshine, 'our' trees in Teaghlach Wood in Perthshire would have breathed a sigh of relief when today turned out to be a little cloudier.

Believe it or not, when the whole country was complaining about the never-ending rain over the past couple of weeks, our trees couldn't have been happier. Trees4Scotland's Angus Crabbie explains: "Trees really do love rain as it helps them grow, especially when they're young."

And while we were rejoicing about finally dusting off the barbecue again, forests are looking forward to the next rainy day to continue to develop.

There is a more serious side to this story as well: While trees need rain to grow, reforestation in general is one way to prevent landslides etc as the roots help avoid soil erosion - a natural contribution to our flood defences.

Cullen Property has teamed up with Trees4Scotland to offset the carbon footprint of our managed flats. To find out more or to get involved, please email us.

Olympics let down?

Summer time lets in cities with large events tend to be popular and increase rates well above and beyond average rentals achieved. Edinburgh's Festival season is a great example.

This summer, with the Olympic Games due to start at the end of the week, a number of landlords in London and other Games locations were looking to cash in on their properties. However, while Buy-To-Let mortgages continue to be in demand, Olympic lets simply are not flavour of the month and many remain available.

Research by online publication Landlord Today has shown that Olympic lets in Chelsea and Stratford remain available, to name only two locations. One of the reasons may be the rates offered which are in some cases nearly triple the rate that would normally be achieved in the area and landlords are now facing voids.

On the other hand, there are positive Olympics-related property news as well: Lloyds TSB reports a 33% increase in property prices in the 14 postal districts closest to the mains sites of the Olympic and Paralympic Games in London's East End. In March 2012, average properties sold for just over £270,000 whilst the going rate was just over £205,000 in July 2005 when London was awarded the Games.

A new breed of landlords

Accidental landlords have been one of the property industry's buzz words for a few years now. However, there appears to be a new breed of landlord out there now.

An insurance company has looked at thousands of applications from new landlords and noticed a distinct trend towards pensioners renting out property.

One of the reasons will be the slowdown in the property sales market, making it harder to sell up and downsize - especially when renting out and downsizing are a great alternative. Whether these more mature accidental landlords are willing to stay in the market for the long run or will take the first exit when it becomes available remains to be seen. In any case, accidental landlords are here to stay until the economic climate changes.

How popular is Buy-to-let really?

Over the past few months, there's been any number of stories about buy-to-let mortgages buoying up the property market. Interestingly, Moneyfacts.co.uk has now published research that shows the number of BTL mortgage products on the market has dwindled from over 2,000 in 2007 to just over 400 today.

What looks like bad news at first is actually a sign of improvement compared to 2009 when the number of mortgage products dropped to less than 200 for those looking to rent out that home.

On a daily basis, therefore, what does it mean for our investor clients? On average, buy to let mortgages are still easier to arrange than residential mortgages, especially when it comes to those with smaller deposits.

However, if you are looking to invest in property, being able to put down a sizeable deposit will give you a much bigger choice of mortgage products and access to better deals. As a consequence, it may be worth looking at a slightly smaller buy-to-let property - three or four bedrooms rather than six, for example.

One thing to bear in mind, though, is the fact that you should not compromise on the location. It's the one thing that can't be changed.

Paris tops for student property - what about Edinburgh?

In a recent poll by Knight Frank, Paris just topped London for the title of best place to invest in student property, closely followed by Vienna, Dublin and Barcelona. So where does that leave Edinburgh? Should we take our eyes off the city and look for investment opportunities elsewhere?

Not so fast. First, the Scottish capital comes fourth in Knight Frank’s UK-wide student property report – after London, Kingston and Brighton – and is far ahead of St Andrews and Glasgow. No other Scottish city made the top 20.

Second, the UK student property market has been a safe investment throughout the credit crunch, not just according to our own findings which have seen Edinburgh properties delivering constant high rental yields. Knight Frank’s Head of Student Property James Pullan agrees that student accommodation has delivered solid and consistent returns throughout every year of the economic downturn.

Third, property investment in Edinburgh is by far more accessible than in London: there’s a larger number of suitable properties available and they can usually be purchased at more reasonable prices. Another advantage is the capital’s size – whilst it offers all the amenities of a large cosmopolitan city, it’s also easily navigated on foot or by bike, making Edinburgh more accessible and affordable for future students. The growing applicant numbers across Edinburgh’s universities prove the city’s popularity even further.

So, while Paris might have topped this survey, Edinburgh is certainly more than second best when it comes to student accommodation.

How many trees to buy?

Last week, we introduced our partnership with Trees4Scotland, aiming to neutralise the carbon footprint of all 320+ properties managed by us.

We've done our figures and here are some of them: initially, we'll be investing over £1,600 on behalf of three clients which will buy us 232 trees. Those trees will also offset the carbon footprint of our office and the company vehicles.

The properties are rated depending on their size: a 2 bed flat with kitchen, bathroom and living room would need 5 trees whereas a 5 bed flat with 2 bathrooms and a combined living kitchen would need 9 trees in total.

So far, so good! Over the next couple of weeks, the team will be hands-on at Teaghlach Wood, planting trees and we're delighted to be joined by a couple of clients based locally.

We can't wait to see with our own eyes what our contribution will mean to Trees4 Scotland's project and pictures will follow.

It's all Chinese to me...

Normally, we're blogging about topics close to home, especially Edinburgh properties. There are some intriguing news from China today though which made a digression worthwhile. Chinese construction company Broad Group is poised to break a few records over the next few months, creating the world's tallest building in record time at less than half the price of the world's current tallest building, Dubai's Burj Khalifa Tower (pictured).

They've vowed to achieve their goal in 90 days. Sky City One's 220 stories will be 838 metres high, 10 metres taller than the Dubai property. The tower will accommodate 100,000 people in a mixture of offices, apartments and shops. It's not the first time Broad Group have broken records for speedy building, so we'll be watching closely.

Cullen Property goes green(er) with Trees4Scotland

No matter what industry a business is in, each will have an impact on the environment. At Cullen Property, we're well aware that our responsibility stretches beyond our offices and company vehicles to the over 300 managed properties we look after in Edinburgh.

To do our share for the environment, we've set an ambitious goal - to offset the carbon footprint for all of our managed properties.

It's not something we'll be able to achieve on our own, so we've teamed up with Trees4Scotland, a fantastic initiative to restore native Scottish woodlands. For each property, Angus Crabbie of Trees4Scotland will help calculate the amount of trees we need to plant to offset its carbon footprint.

We're starting with three clients initially, but all of our investor and landlord clients will be invited to join us with their properties and go carbon neutral.

In our blog we'll follow the progress of the project, i.e. the growth of the trees quite literally and will keep you updated on how it all goes.

Let us know if you have any questions at all!

Asking prices on the up = property prices increase?

A story posted by Rightmove yesterday suggests that property asking prices are now higher than they were in August 2007 - before the Northern Rock crisis.

Does that mean that property values are increasing as well and are now higher than they were in 2007? Not necessarily. First off, Rightmove's figures for asking prices are still far higher than the Nationwide's and Halifax' average house prices. In fact, the difference is over £70,000.

However,  it's certainly an investor's market out there, with sellers keen to move properties on at reasonable prices and landlords looking to increase portfolios. The statement we agree with most in Rightmove's story, however, is that it is a 'very local market' were property values are more than ever determined by location and demand specific to that location.

Featured on Myiproperty.co.uk - Update on tenancy deposit schemes

We're featured on property website myiproperty.co.uk with an update on the soon-to-be-launched Tenancy Deposit Schemes in Scotlands. It's less than a month until 2 July when the schemes become mandatory. Find out what landlords and investors with Scottish properties need to know now here

Second toilet anyone? 41% say yes!

During the week of the Diamond Jubilee, statistics wizards at Lloyds TSB have looked at what’s happened to the private rental market over the past sixty years. Whilst their findings are specifically for England, it’s a similar picture in Scotland showing that not only do 41% of households now have a second toilet – but also reminding us that renting a home was very popular in the 1950s. The number of home owners grew in the 1970s and 1980s, but now renting’s on the up once again.

And as renting is getting more expensive overall, landlords are being warned that they can’t increase rents much more as affordability is becoming a problem. Having said that, one residential lettings agency is seeing a decline in rents today. Overall though, rents are still on the up, especially for high quality properties. What’s important, both in the interest of the tenant and the landlord, is to ensure that the tenant can afford the property long term and while checks on income and employment status may feel intrusive, they benefit all parties in the long run.

House prices on the up - though owners need to 'accept reality'

We've come across a few interesting stories on house prices this week which we thought we'd share.

In Scotland, property owners looking to sell have had to settle for less than their asking price, although Lindsays Solicitors have noticed an increase in closing dates, suggesting more properties are being sold. So whilst prices may not yet be back to what they used to be, it looks like there is more activity in the property market, particularly in the city's most popular areas.

It's a different story south of the border. Here, the slowdown of property sales has now created a shortage of properties on the market, leading to increased house prices.

Whilst Edinburgh isn't currently showing any such trend, there has certainly always been competition for properties that are well placed and - especially for investors - bound to generate great yields. Contact the team for more information

Competitive BTL rates buoy up mortgage market

Buy-to-let mortgage rates are being credited with buoying up the UK mortgage market: whilst residential rates are climbing, BTL finance remains competitive. At the same time, there are news of property prices rising slightly in Edinburgh. If you are considering investing in the city, now would be a great time to start looking for suitable property. Contact the team with any questions!

Which way for house prices?

It seems house prices are able to create two trends at the same time and even mortgage providers are somewhat perplexed as this story based on the Nationwide's information shows. Let's see if May will produce a clearer trend!

Buy-to-let gaining in popularity

The last few days have seen quite a number of stories related to lettings and buy-to-let finance being published. Some of those are especially interesting to those considering property investments in Edinburgh: while the Association of Residential Letting Agents reports a decline in demand for rental property, we’ve seen evidence that the opposite is the case and are still enjoying over 99% occupancy rates throughout the year.

Mortgage providers are starting to see an increase in buy-to-let investments, suggesting that overall confidence is growing. Where Edinburgh is concerned, we have seen the city continuously outperform UK averages where rental yields are concerned. The city’s secret? Its universities are attracting larger numbers of students each year, but as always with property it’s choosing the right flat in the right location to ensure maximum returns.

Going up or going down?

Is there a negative trend for rents achieved by private property in Edinburgh? Some property managers seem to feel the pressure of more property becoming available and rents not continuously growing anymore.

In our experience, rents in the capital are stable or growing, depending on the type of property on offer. On average, our larger (3 bedrooms and more) properties achieved a 3% growth in rent while one and 2 bedroom properties stayed at the same rate or showed a smaller increase.

Watch this space for Citylets’ quarterly figures which are due out shortly….

Making property a long(er)-term game

The Scottish government is today embarking on a review of the private lettings market with a view to creating a more long-term culture, both for tenancies and for property investors and landlords. Germany has been cited as an example. Over the next few weeks, property managers such as Cullen will be consulted and we look forward to contributing our views and sharing our experience to help the process.

Click here for more information and follow our blog for regular updates.

First Scottish presence at Property Investor Show

The Cullen Property team is off to London later this month for the Property Investor Show. We'll be the only independent Scottish exhibitor at the show at London's ExCeL centre on 19 and 20 April. If you're in town and have any questions, please join us at stand 82. You can also make an appointment in advance by phoning the team on 0131 221 1818 or emailing Operations Director Steve Coyle.

Don’t get caught out with tenants in rent arrears

As a landlord, safeguarding your property investment starts by making sure rent is paid each month. A good letting agent will ensure tenants set up regular payments such as standing orders or ideally direct debits, but in reality the work starts much earlier – by making sure the new tenant(s) can afford the flat.
 
At Cullen Property, we operate some of the industry’s most stringent checking procedures before a tenant signs a lease: 

·        Professionals must earn at least three times their share of the annual rent of the property

·        Students have to provide a UK-based guarantor or pay the equivalent of three months’ rent as a security rent

·        All prospective tenants must provide solid employer and previous landlord references as a minimum and everyone is subject to a credit check

The result? No tenants in arrears, no evictions – and happy landlords.

Whilst across the industry problems with arrears are growing - mostly due to economic circumstances - our managed properties are experiencing continuously high demand from reliable tenants.

'Capital' rental growth for student lets above Scotland and Edinburgh average

Well-placed student properties in Edinburgh are giving investors the edge over buy-to-lets throughout most of the UK and Scotland. 

While there's no question over the growing demand for rental properties in general, both experienced by our team on a daily basis and highlighted by recent Savills research, it's once again about location. And here's where Edinburgh comes up trumps: the city's excellent universities continue to attract higher numbers of applicants each year and the majority of students know exactly where they want to live - in the likes of Marchmont, Bruntsfield and Newington. 

The growing demand has lead to an average increase in rent of 3% over the past year, more than four times the figure noted for Scotland overall by BM Solutions. A more detailed review of the areas popular for investment in student flats highlights that even within the growing private rental market  of Edinburgh, properties in those parts of the city are the top performers.  

For more information, just contact one of our team. 

Latest Update on the Tenancy Deposit Scheme

Keeping up to speed with the new TDS (Tenancy Deposit Scheme) Regulations and how landlords and agents should be preparing, we attended a very informative seminar by Lindsays Solicitors today. The likely launch date for the TDS is 2nd July which doesn't leave much time for landlords to ensure their policies, leases and tenancy processes and procedures are sufficiently robust to avoid being caught out - and the penalty could be up to £50k.

To quantify this, all deposits will have to be paid into a scheme and the scheme will ask for the landlords registration number at the point of entering the tenants information. The TDS scheme operators are duty bound to report the Landlords who answer ‘no’ to the ‘are you registered’ question and the maximum fine for not being registered is £50k.

More likely is that the tenant would sue the landlord if the  deposit was not put into the scheme and Sheriffs can award up to ‘3x deposit amount’ payable by the landlord to the tenant in such cases.

Lindsays have provided excellent advice and guidance on the subject of TDS as well as some other advice on recent regulation changes.

Investment Injection for the Edinburgh Student Community

Good news for Edinburgh as the European Invesment Bank has granted a £50m loan to the University of Edinburgh for the Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Innovation.

The Centre is being built in association with Napier University and Heriot Watt University and is aimed at developing solutions to reduce carbon emissions, as well as provide professional skills training and Masters courses.

To view the full article please click below:

http://www.studentnewspaper.org/news/1212-edinburgh-targets-low-carbon-future

Fantastic Start to the Year

Cullen Property have seen a fantastic start to 2012 by letting 6 properties within just the last week!

All the properties were very competitively priced and we are delighted that the letting season has started so quickly and with such gusto!

If you would like information on our Landlord Services contact Susan@cullenproperty.com or alternatively, on our Investor Services contact Malcolm@cullenproperty.com or Steve@cullenproperty.com