Leading London estate agent Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices | Kay &Co highlights legal changes affecting property owners and tenants, including the new landlord legislation.
Several important new pieces of property legislation have been implemented recently. If you are a homeowner, a landlord or a tenant, it’s vital to know how these laws will affect you. Some of this year’s key legal developments are explained here.
Capital Gains Tax changes
When you sell any property that isn’t your main home, you will pay Capital Gains Tax (CGT). Legislation that came into effect in April this year swept away the lettings relief that was previously available to landlords who once lived in the home they now rent out. The changes mean that they can only claim lettings relief now if they share their property with a tenant.
With an autumn budget on the way, rumours suggest that Capital Gains Tax rules may be revised again. Changes could include increasing CGT to bring it in line with income tax.
New landlord rules for energy efficiency
Since 2018 a minimum energy efficiency rating of E has been required on a property’s Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) for all new tenancies. From April 2020 this new landlord legislation was extended to apply to all existing tenancies. This means that landlords can no longer let a property out if it has a rating of F or G. The government expects landlords to pay up to £3,500 for energy efficiency improvements to their properties. However, if the work costs more, they can apply for an exemption.
The Tenant Fees Act
One of the essential new rental property laws to come into force recently is the Tenant Fees Act of 2019. This prevents letting agencies and landlords from demanding additional fees from their tenants.
Under the new tenancy laws, landlords and agents can only charge for deposits, rent, holding deposits and any charges relating to default. In June this year, the rules were extended to cover all existing tenancies.
No fault evictions
Section 21 reforms, which aimed to abolish ‘no-fault’ evictions, have come under the spotlight recently due to Covid-19 restrictions. Landlords in England were banned from evicting tenants until September 20th 2020 and required to give six months’ notice to tenants they planned to evict. However, the regulations were changed on August 29th, so tenants guilty of anti-social behaviour (or who have built up six months of rent arrears) can now be given four weeks’ notice, dropping to two weeks for cases of domestic violence.
Berkshire Hathaway Home Services has been a trusted name in the capital’s luxury property market since 1982: keeping up with the latest property legislation is an integral part of our work as London estate agents. Whether you are a landlord, tenant or a home buyer looking for properties for sale in London, we look forward to talking to you soon.
