The Bradshaws Lettings Blog

A Very Warm Welcome.

Despite the cold conditions we are currently all experiencing, we would like to offer a warm welcome to the first Bradshaws Blog. This is a new blog specifically for our landlords to learn about important industry changes & updates and to hear what we are doing at Bradshaws to support you.

As we enter the festive season we have been reflecting on a busy and productive year at Bradshaws. We are continuing to grow our brand in Bedfordshire, and surrounding counties, and we’ve seen a positive level of sales and lettings activity in 2022, despite negative media coverage surrounding the housing market and inflation & mortgage rate challenges.

As an independent business we are nimble and quick to react to industry changes, we are working hard to prepare our landlords for the upcoming Rent Reform Bill (see our quick reference summary below) and will be inviting our landlords to have a one to one chat with us to discuss key changes and how we can support you through this.

We have had some team changes and we are pleased to welcome Heather Lightfoot to Bradshaws. Heather joined Bradshaws earlier in the year to lead the lettings side of the business. Heather has spent her career to date heading up Recruitment departments in the automotive, retail and luxury good sectors. She brings with her a wealth of experience, as well as a passion for relationship management and commercial business management.

We have been working hard to streamline business processes to ensure you, our valued customers, get the continued high quality of service that we are proud to deliver. We have been investing in technology to improve landlord and tenant experience. Firstly PayProp has significantly improved our rent payment processes and helps you with your financial management and end of year accounting. This system means all information is in one central place making it quick and easy to access via the app.

Tenant experience is important to us and we are making it easier and quicker for tenants to report urgent and non-urgent maintenance issues to us 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We will be launching FixFlo in Q1 2023. A digital tool whereby tenants can log property issues, seek resolutions and work with contractors under one seamless platform. FixFlo significantly reduces the need for expensive call outs and provides tenants with solutions to resolve simple issues quickly and effectively.

We are placing more focus on regular and more detailed inspections of your properties. It is important tenants are looking after your properties and are happy in their home. We are launching digital inspection tools that allow us to upload photography and detailed commentary about your property into one integrated report. We are also focusing on recommended maintenance works for you to consider to ensure your property remains at the highest of standards.

Finally, we have been spending a lot of time reviewing and updating our supplier base. We are committed to working with the best suppliers and ensuring you as landlords get competitive rates on products and services. We have recently partnered with new insurance providers, plumbers & gas engineers, decorators, electricians, cleaners and general maintenance contractors. We have trialed each supplier and we are incredibly pleased with our selection process and the quality of service they provide to you and to your tenants.

Rewards for you.

We are always looking to expand our lettings portfolio and would welcome recommendations of our services from our current landlords to their friends, family or work colleagues.

For every new rental property Bradshaws acquires via a referral, before 1st June 2023 you and your referee will receive a £250 gift card of your choice.

This is also open to current landlords who may have additional properties outside of Bradshaws lettings.

Rent Guarantee Insurance.

There is no escaping the cost of living crisis in the media and we are keen to ensure all our landlords have the right level of protection.

In 2022, 40% of a private renters income goes on rent payments (compared with 31% previously), this coupled with an increase in the cost of food, energy and fuel is leaving people with less and less savings.

Should the worst happen and your tenants struggle with rent, it is important you are covered with rent guarantee insurance and legal protection. Bradshaws can work with you to build the right bespoke package at competitive rates.

Rent Reform is Coming…..

Following the announcement of the Rent Reform White Paper we have broken down the Governments’ 12 point plan into the following quick reference guide:

  • Half the number of non-decent rented homes by 2030 under the decent homes standards (DHS).

  • Abolition of Section 21 non-fault evictions and introduction of periodic secure tenancy structure.

  • Landlords only able to increase rent once a year and tenants can now challenge excessive rent increases.

  • Introduction of alternative dispute resolution to enable landlords and tenants to avoid court proceedings.

  • Strengthening of local councils’ enforcement powers to crack down on criminal landlords.

  • Tenants have the right to request a pet in a property, landlord cannot unreasonably refuse.

  • Housing Improvement Programme to receive investment of £20m to increase enforcement.

  • Reform new grounds for possession under Section 8.

  • New single ombudsmen that private landlords must join, allowing redress for tenancy disputes.

  • New property portal to ensure tenants, landlords and local councils have information they need.

  • No blanket bans on renting to families with children or those in receipt of benefits.

  • Working with industry experts to monitor passport deposits.

If this sounds a little complicated or overwhelming – fear not, Bradshaws will be inviting you to a face to face or virtual meeting to discuss if this impacts you.

Seasons Greetings

We hope you have found this first instalment of the Bradshaws Blog both interesting and informative.

We will be sending further blogs to you throughout 2023 to ensure you are kept abreast of the latest industry developments and supported by Bradshaws to ensure you are maximising the potential of your lettings portfolio.

We would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all the team at Bradshaws.