1. WISER LETTINGS

Strategy without tactics is the slowest road to victory - tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat                                                 - The Art of War - Sun Tzu

So lets get started. We have a simple breakdown of the first things you should consider at the start of your landlords journey - WISER LETTINGS

W - Why? What is your end goal with this enterprise? Property for the kids, pension? The end goal should colour all your decisions from the start.

I -  Insurance for landlords including legal fee cover - essential to cover the unforeseen

S - Style of ownership, Ltd co, LLP, Personal, Trust?

E - Extraneous outsourced obligations - Have a Gas engineer, handyman, electrician, plumber list.

R - Rent Smart Wales and Renting Homes Wales Act 2016 ( England Selective Licence?)

L - Lenders/ freeholders permission to let (any restrictions? benefits, HMO, etc) don't end up with an illegal tenancy/contract

E - Efficient customer service (more on that in customer service posts) The property is your product and the tenant/contract holders are your customers and effective customer service will avoid you becoming their servants!

T - Tenant/Contract Holder referencing - absolutely essential

T - Training - to keep up your required Continued Professional Development for licences

I - Inland revenue! How do you interact with them?

N - Knowledge (sic) do you have the knowledge to take on this enterprise (training courses?)

G - Guarantees on rent 

S - System for paperwork, marketing, operations and finance

So that's just a start, the days when we bought a property because we had the deposit and access to mortgage finance and then sat back are over, this is now a job and not just an investment. Of course sometimes a job can end up as just that Just Over Broke so lets get organised and not just survive but thrive in the new normal.

This is not what we signed up for! Event Management

 

Renting Homes Wales processes for Landlords to cope with the Transitional Information Period criteria

We recommend landlords to view the Welsh changes to the agency process as a series of ‘events’ evidenced in writing by use of a ‘written statement.’

The situation has gone back and forth with the Welsh government since Dec and no doubt will continue to do so in the future although we believe that after a few court judgements some common sense will gradually be applied in the same way as over the years Deposit protection laws, the deregulation act, etc have softened to acknowledge late service of documents and non-duplication of requirements. 

The first event that we encountered was Dec 1^st 2022 when the new Act was released. Obviously, the tenants were governed by the Housing Act 1988 until then and overnight became Contract Holders under the Renting Homes Wales Act 2016. This was a big change and hence a Written Statement of Conversion had to be provided to explain it to the tenants/Contract Holders by the end of the transition period at the end of May 2023. 

The next event we encounter is if a renewal Occupation Contract (a substitute contract) was agreed within the transition period and this will have to have been evidenced by the use of a Written Statement as per normal by writing and signing a contract by June 14^th 2023. 

Another event we may encounter is that a converted ast which was fixed term came to the end of that fixed term within the transition period and automatically becomes periodic. Unfortunately, in Wales that too gave rise to a Substitute Contract and needed to be evidenced by a written statement! Again, by the 14^th June 2023. 

With all of these, at present, an RHW2 form was required to be served at some point, we have always said that it is advisable to attach the RHW2 to a written statement as the government would not create a form unless they wanted it used. If this has been omitted, then you still have time to send by the end of May 2023 for a written statement (June 1^st 2023 for a substitute contract) and this can be by email as the written statement already served will have gained permission for this. 

After the transition period it has become apparent that many events will be referred to as needing Written Statements for example, rent increases, change of occupiers even changes in legislation that Contract Holders have to be made aware of, many of these will be covered by a written statement of variation. 

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The latest changes just before the deadline will have finally given some clarity on a much-debated question and will have some bearing on the agency process too regarding the events above.

It was decided that all converted asts needed a written statement telling the tenants about the conversion.

If a substitute contract was also arranged within the transition period, even though the Contract Holders have signed and agreed the new contract, a Written Statement still had to be served on them to cover the period from Dec 1st 2022 until the start date of the substitute contract. ie they were 2 separate events which both needed written statements and this applies also to fixed terms becoming periodic.

Also any substitute contracts signed or agreed within the transition period will be ‘deemed’ to have commenced on June 1^st 2023 which then means the written statement of that event will have to be served on the Contract Holder within 14 days – by June 14^TH 2023. This change of legislation is also  classed as an event and a written statement had to be issued to all Contract Holders in Wales about it.

We have become event managers and paper pushers!