Residential Land CEO, Bruce Ritchie was recently mentioned in a Property Week article titled ‘Ritchie and Palos Primed for more’.

The article discussed the joint venture between Residential Land boss Bruce Ritchie and entrepreneur Brett Palos, and mentions how recent trading is encouraging the landlords to purchase more residential assets to add to their portfolio.

Palos, the stepson of Topshop owner Sir Philip Green, paid Lloyds Banking Group and Ritchie’s Residential Land £400m last May for 21 apartment blocks across central London. Profitable trading over the last year has encouraged the landlords to start buying again.

Prime London Residential, the vehicle used for the purchase, is structured as a 50:50 joint venture between Palos and Ritchie. Residential Land will continue to manage the portfolio.

Nine blocks have been sold within the last eight months for a total of £80m with two more under offer for more than £20m.

In that time gross yields on the sales have fallen from 5.5% to 3.8%. Ritchie commented that this along with an average occupany rate of 94%, underlines the strength of prime residential.

All the sales were to overseas investors, but Ritchie argues there is more to the demand than simply weak sterling. “There’s a strong belief in the solidity of the return,” he says.

Prime London Residential feel the market is strong enough to make a return but this time buying “slightly flawed assets or even empty buildings” to turn into profitable investments.

“There’s no limit to the money we want to put into it,” Ritchie says.

Values have risen but he argues that London compares favourably with luxury residential prices in Hong Kong and Monte Carlo.

“We look cheap compared with the rest of the world,” he says.

The first acquisition since re-entering the market is due to complete soon in Regent’s Park. Ritchie anticipates that a lot of distressed stock from NAMA and UK banks will become available this year and says debt is becoming more freely available too.

“We’re finding favour with the banks because it’s Residential Land and Brett Palos and the fact that there is a yield,” he adds. “All that helps get us better banking terms than most people, but the reality is that it’s out there.”

Read the article in full here

Martin Roberts with Anthony Quinn (Residential Land Surveyor)

One of Residential Land’s Building Surveyors, Anthony Quin will be making his debut on the small screen on Friday 22nd October in series 14 of Homes Under The Hammer broadcasting on BBC 1 at 10am.  He caught the eye of the BBC team whilst purchasing property with his brother in Telford, Shropshire earlier this year.

Homes Under the Hammer is a programme where experts uncover the tricks of the property auction trade, presented by Martin Roberts and Lucy Alexander.

Residential Land are leading property experts, with investment properties for sale, and hundreds of flats to rent in London

Louise Savage, Sales & Marketing Director at Residential Land writes a monthly column for City AM offering readers advice on renting in London. Some of the most recent questions include:

Q. Dear Louise, I wanted to sell my flat last year, but I couldn’t find a buyer and so I rented it out. Now the market is moving again, I think the time is ripe to sell, but I still have tenants in there. Is that a problem?

A. The simple answer to your question is no. You can go ahead and sell your property while it is tenanted. If you are selling the property as a buy-to-let, then of course the tenants will not have to move out. It might be an idea to have a chat with them and reassure them about the whole process. You will have to tell the tenants when you want to show people round – you normally have to give 24 or 48 hours’ notice – it will be in the tenancy agreement. If you are intending to sell it as a home that will be lived in by the buyer, then you have to give the tenants two months’ notice that they have to move out, so it might be an idea to wait until two months before the end of the lease before you start trying to sell. Of course, if there is a break clause in the contract then you can set the wheels in motion earlier. Remember that you will have to show potential buyers around yourself, and make sure that you tell the estate agent that as sometimes they suggest that the tenants show people round. That is rarely a good idea as the tenants probably don’t have the same enthusiasm for keeping it presentable as you do. It can be worth taking some money off their rent to encourage them to keep it clean, tidy and smelling good. Alternatively, you can hire a cleaner to ensure that it is in a saleable state.

Q. Dear Louise, I have been renting a flat with two of my friends for a number of months, but one of them now says that she wants to move on elsewhere. The landlord says that we have to cover the whole rent, even if we haven’t found a new person to move in. Is this right?

A. I’m afraid so. It’s a common misconception of people who have been living in student accomodation that they are only responsible for their own portion of the rent, but in the open market things are different. I am assuming that you all signed a joint tenancy agreement, which is the usual practice. This would mean that you are all jointly liable to pay all bills, the council tax, telephone bill, and so on. If you think that it might be hard to find a new person to take the place and you are worried about being landed with a bill, then you might want to agree that the flatmate who is leaving is responsible for finding a replacement person, and that she has to keep paying the rent and bills until somebody else moves in. Remember too that you will have to notify the landlord of the change in tennant and he will expect to get full references. He will have to agree to the new tenant and there will have to be an addendum to the agreement. There shouldn’t be any problem, but giving as much notice as possible can’t hurt – remember that the landlord doesn’t have to agree and can say no if he wants. But he ought to feel more secure about getting the full rent if there are three rather than two people. Also remember that if there is a managing agent, they might charge you to make the change. Really, that shouldn’t be more than £50-£100. Either the old or the new tenant will have to pay that.

Residential Land own and rent out hundreds of properties in central London.  Current availability includes flats to rent in Bayswater, houses to rent in Pimlico, apartments to rent in Fitzrovia and apartments to rent in Hampstead.  Properties range from studio apartments to large houses and are all located in prime central London postcodes.

Louise Savage, Sales & Marketing Director at Residential Land writes a monthly column for City AM offering readers advice on renting flats in London. Some of the most recent questions include:

Q.I am moving in with my girlfriend but can’t sell my flat for the right price so have chosen to become a landlord. Can you give me any advice as to what I need to do?

A.Renting out a property is simple for a landlord who has been doing it for 20 years but for someone new to it, it can be difficult. If you want to be involved in the process, then here is a good checklist.

Firstly, you need to ensure your mortgage allows you to rent out the property. You also need to obtain certain checks. The energy performance certificate lasts for 10 years and costs about £100. The gas safety certificate lasts a year and is available from registered gas engineers while the electrics must be tested every five years.

Once you have a tenant you need to get references, including employer, previous landlord, bank statements and a copy of their passport. When you have the deposit you must make sure it is protected. Finally, have a list of repair firms that you can use if anything goes wrong with your property.

Q.I moved out of my rented flat, where there was a small ink stain on the carpet. My landlord says he needs to take £400 out of my deposit to replace the carpet. Can he do this?

A.The landlord should not end up in a financially or materially better position than when the tenancy started. The deposit is only used to put things back to the state they were in when you rented. However, an ink stain is not just general fair wear and tear so you should expect to pay something extra for cleaning. As with any deductions from your deposit for repairs you should expect receipts from the landlord.

If the landlord is still insisting then you need to contact the Tenancy Deposit Protection Scheme, which covers the vast majority of tenancies.

Louise Savage is director of Residential Land, London’s largest prime central London landlord, with Properties to rent in London, Investment properties for sale and acquisition - www.residentialland.com

Louise Savage, Sales & Marketing Director at Residential Land writes a monthly column for City AM offering readers advice on renting properties in the capital. Some of the most recent questions include:

 

Dear Louise, my neighbours make a lot of noise. Do my rights as a tenant mean that the landlord should deal with this?

 

This intrusive problem is very common and causes a huge amount of distress to thousands of people. Visit your neighbour first. They may not even realise how loud they are or that they are disturbing you and a polite chat may be enough to solve the problem without antagonising them and starting a feud.

 

If this doesn’t work, you can contact your landlord, but he is only likely to get involved if your neighbours are tenants of his and there is a clause in their contract relating to noise disturbance.

 

The next step would be to approach your local council.  Usually the environmental health department deal with noise issues. Prepare your case before you go so they can take the best possible action in the shortest space of time. You will need a note of regular times, dates and types of noise that have occurred. Action can vary from a council representative visiting the noise makers to a mediation company getting involved to help everyone come to a suitable agreement.

 

Dear Louise, our landlord has decided to sell our flat in Whitechapel. What are our rights?

 

You are entitled to stay in the property for the full fixed period of your tenancy agreement subject to any break clauses that are agreed before you move in. If your landlord decides to sell the property during this time, he must sell the flat as an occupied premises with you as a ‘tenant in place’. A change of landlord does not affect your tenancy in any way and you have exactly the same rights with the new owner as you did with the previous one.

 

If he wants to sell the flat as a vacant unit, he can ask you if you would be willing to leave before the end of your tenancy and may be willing to offer you compensation if you agree. If you don’t want to go, there are strict rules to protect you from harassment. 

 

You will need to allow your landlord access to the property to show prospective purchasers around. Check your tenancy agreement but he usually has to give between 24 and 48 hours notice.  This can be disruptive and you are entitled to ‘quiet enjoyment’ of your home so the landlord has to be reasonable.  

 

I suggest that you agree set times every week when you are happy for viewings to take place.  If this includes at least one weekday evening up to say 7.30pm and a morning or afternoon on a Saturday then everyone should be happy. I suggest you don’t agree to carrying out any viewings yourself and try to be strict with the times.

 

If you stay in the property and get a new landlord, make sure your security deposit has been transferred and speak to the new landlord or their managing agent before changing your rental payment method, both to introduce yourself and to provide yourself with comfort that you know what is going on.

 

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Residential Land are prime central London’s largest private landlord.  Properties to rent througout the capital with flats available in Bayswater, Marylebone, Pimlico, South Kensington and many more.

Louise Savage, Sales & Marketing Director at Residential Land writes a monthly column for City AM offering readers advice on renting properties in the capital. Some of the most recent questions include:

 

Dear Louise, What are the best ways to go about looking for a house share in a good part of London that is easy commuting distance from the City?

London is such a big and diverse city, you really need to narrow down your search to area and price. It is easy to commute into the city from most places that are near a tube station, so look at a tube map, preferably with someone who knows London well, and choose a few key areas to focus on that will suit your personal needs.

Work out what your living priorities are, such as price, size of accommodation, being near your friends, being in a ‘young’ area with lots of good bars, being in central London so you can walk to work, being in a greener, leafier area or being close to a park. If you will regularly be travelling to family or friends in another part of the country, you may want to be within easy access of the relevant mainline rail station. A number of websites, such as www.stuckinlondon.com  www.livinginlondon.net and www.upmystreet.com can give you more specific information on different areas in London.

Loot or other local newspapers often advertise for suitable house share opportunities and there are numerous websites that match house sharers such as:  www.gumtree.com  www.intolondon.com/houseshare and www.roombuddies.com. Again, have a list of criteria that are important to you so you can check them off before making a big mistake. E.g. do they like loud music / will they be able to tolerate yours? Are they tidy / will they be able to bear your mess?

Finally, if you are looking to house share don’t forget to meet the other sharers at least twice before you move in, understand how the rent and bills are split between you and make sure you won’t be liable for their rent if they default on payment.  

Dear Louise, my Pimlico landlord is dragging his feet in getting someone in to mend my broken boiler and I have no heating or hot water Can I legally threaten to withhold rent until it is sorted out?

A Landlord has an obligation to supply uninterrupted heating and hot water to a tenant, but there is also an obligation for a tenant to pay rent in full without withholding for any reason (a common clause in most Tenancy Agreements). While you are paying your rent, you are legally in a stronger position as the landlord is in breach of contract and you aren’t. For a serious problem like this, he should really provide alternative accommodation for the time that you have no heating and hot water.

 

You have three options. Firstly, you can give the landlord a deadline and tell him that if it isn’t mended by a given date you will arrange for it to be fixed yourself and deduct the amount from your next month’s rent. Make sure you have copies of all letters, receipts and proof of postage (send it recorded delivery).

Secondly, you can contact the Environmental Health Department at the local council. For example Westminster’s ‘Department of Community Protection’ deals specifically in such matters. 

If you did, as a last resort, decide to take the option of withholding rent you would be in breach of your lease and there is a risk that the landlord could take you to court for non-payment of rent. If you have proof of your broken boiler and evidence of the landlord failing to get it mended, this would usually be taken into consideration by the court.  

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Residential Land are prime central London’s largest private landlord.  Properties to rent througout the capital with flats available in Bayswater, Marylebone, Pimlico, South Kensington and many more.

Louise Savage, Sales & Marketing Director at Residential Land writes a monthly column for City AM offering readers advice on renting properties in the capital. Some of the most recent questions include:

Dear Louise, I am looking to rent out my flat in Putney as I can’t sell it for the price I want. Can you give me any tips on how to maximise the rental return? 

 

The easiest and cheapest way of adding immediate rental value to any home is by clearing the flat out and removing all of your personal effects. Leave your furniture, pictures and rugs but be prepared to remove them if a good prospective tenant requests it. Then clean it until it gleams and paint it. It’s so simple and very effective, but for some unknown reason, most landlords don’t do this, so it will automatically put your property ahead of most of your competition. 

Understand your potential market and tailor your property to attract that type of tenant. For example, a corporate tenant is likely to have higher expectations than a student. 

If you have time to rent the property out yourself you will save huge sums on estate agent fees. Advertise in Loot or on free websites such as Gumtree and put a sign up in your window. If you do it yourself, make sure viewings are safe and that you fulfill all of your legal requirements such as setting up a tenancy deposit scheme and organising an energy performance certificate.

Also, be realistic and flexible. Remember the longer your property is vacant, the less income you will have over the total term.  Your mortgage and bills still need to be paid so try to weigh up the costs against the advantages of holding out for more rent. You may need to offer rental terms of less than the standard year in order to achieve the best possible rental return.

Dear Louise, I have just moved out of a flat in Shoreditch and my landlord is withholding half my deposit on what I consider to be wear and tear. I have had a full inventory check-out and the flat was cleaned before I left. What are my rights on this?

Your deposit will be legally protected by the tenancy deposit scheme if you moved into the property after the 6th April 2007 and your rent is below £25,000 per year.  If this is the case, ask your landlord for details of the scheme that was used and contact them directly. They will be able to act as independent arbitrators between you and your landlord and will help you to agree on a sensible deposit refund.

If your tenancy is not protected by the tenancy deposit scheme you can contact your local Citizens Advice Bureau or a solicitor who will be able to advise you if you have a case for the small claims court.

Either way, you will need to provide information or evidence to substantiate your claim so put together a pack for the arbitrators or small claims court.  This should include your original signed check-in and check-out inventories, a letter from the inventory clerk detailing their findings, and any photographic evidence that you have of the condition of the property at check out.

Louise Savage is a director of Residential Land, London’s largest prime central London landlord.  www.residentialland.com 

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Residential Land are prime central London’s largest private landlord.  Properties to rent througout the capital with flats available in Bayswater, Marylebone, Pimlico, South Kensington and many more.

As prime central London’s largest privately owned landlord, Residential Land decided that it was time to join forces with the most widely read central London property supplement, the Evening Standard’s Homes and Property. The outcome is a sponsored page on the Homes and Property website featuring information and top tips on renting in London, a featured central London rental property of the week and lots more key information on renting in the capital. There will be a monthly article on the site, written by one of Homes and Properties writers, David Spittles covering a rentals related topic. The page aim’s to give information and guidance to anyone who is looking to rent in central London directly from an established landlord, like Residential Land, who have 100s of flats to rent in London. For the launch of this site we are giving away a two night stay at Grand Plaza serviced apartments, our short stay property so please visit the site to enter. All entries should be received by the 31st January 2009.

Visit the Homes and Property site here: www.homesandproperty.co.uk/rent

Click here to Search for Residential Land’s property to rent in London

In November 2008, Property Week’s Rupert Bates reviews RESI 08 and comments on Residential Land’s Bruce Ritchie’s appearance on the discussion panel. To read more about the residential Property conference which has been hailed “The MIPIM of the UK”, click on the link:

http://www.propertyweek.com/section.asp?navcode=3575

When Renting is the Smartest Move

Evening Standard journalist David Spittles has featured Residential Land in a recent Homes & Property article. To read about how Londoners are going back to renting click on the link:  http://es.homesandproperty.co.uk/property_news/gorgeous_homes/rentingsmart.html