LetSafe one of the UK premiere providers of tenant referencing, tenant checks , buy to let insurance and property rental services wish all our readers a very happy christmas and a very prosperous new year.

Wishing a merry christmas to you all

LetSafe providers of landlords insurance, lettings insurance to a growing number of UK letting agents and landlords in the UK buy to let market wish all our clients a very merry festive season.

Looking forward into 2009 LetSafe envision another fantastic year of growth as we continue to strive to deliver a portfolio of products and services that bring cost benefits to an ever growing portfolio of client landlords and letting agents who use LetSafe for their tenant referencing, tenant checks and their tenant vetting services. In addition we plan to roll out further additions to our extensive catalogue of landlord insurance products in 2009.

As we drive forward to being placed as the UK's number one provider for property rental insurance and property management services we will be keeping a close eye on the feedback we receive from our clients and aim to continue to be synonymous with the best possible service available to letting agents and landlords.

We hope that all our clients new, old and prospective have a great festive season. We sincerely hope that you are looking forward to a prosperous new year and that LetSafe will be a part of the overall picture that helps you as a landlord or letting agent continue your own success stories.

Regards, The LetSafe team.

www.letsafe.net

Letting agents the competition heats up

As always the property market and specifically the buy to let market are hot topics of conversation at LetSafe. Despite the economy being in it's current state of ill health there are winners out there. Certainly in the current climate landlords and letting agents seem to be winners. On the downside since the housing market (as far as people buying properties as homes rather than buy to let investment is concerned) has slowed down considerably estate agents have found it difficult to maintain a healthy business.

We have noticed an ever increasing number of estate agents creating letting arms within their organisations or converting completely to letting agents. This has caused a supply and demand stricture when it comes to available homes for letting stock as more and more letting agents find their ability to attract landlords on to their books and thus increase their portfolio of properties they have available to prospective tenants for rent. This dynamic has created an environment where the increase in competition from letting agents and converters to letting agent status for the finite amount of house has never been more fierce.

A greater number of property management and letting companies are being creative when it comes to luring landlords to their umbrella with offers of free rent guarantee, cheap landlord insurance and a variety of schemes and plans designed to offer the client landlord as much profit on their rent per calendar month as possible. Naturally this is good news for the landlord, however for letting agents who are attempting to increase their portfolio of properties it becomes a difficult proposition as their profits decrease.

Luckily for some letting agents they have the support of organisations such as ourselves at LetSafe who offer a wide variety of services aimed at providing them with many options to create an attractive proposition for landlords. While rent guarantee or rent insurance as it is also known is sure to be at the fore front of most landlords minds there are also many other services that should not go un-noticed. Services such as our landlord emergency repair cover is a very competitive way to lure landlords into the fold in seasonal times most often associated with very expensive disasters such as broken boilers. With a portfolio of products designed to be modular (you can take them individually) LetSafe offer letting agents many ways to create a proposal to prospective and existing landlords that will be sure to attract new business and create an environment where existing client landlords are retained, thus leading to expansion rather than the spectre of increased churn.

LetSafe will be constantly looking to roll out new services to market and with an extensive range of property management insurance, letting agent services and insurance for landlords we are best placed to make sure that letting agents maintain profits and have access to a range of products and services so they can be creative with the way they create new opportunities for themselves.

Buy to Let Guide

At LetSafe we are trusted by some of the nations largest landlords and letting agents to bring you excellent products and services aimed at the property management, buy to let and lettings markets. As part of our quest to ensure that we offer the best service possible we look for important news from the internet relating to the landlord and letting agent market in the uk as well as keeping a keen eye on the overall dynamics of the property management market.

The Buy to Let Guide was published on the 24th November and the annual report asserts the need for a strong, robust, private rental sector as being a prime element of the housing market overall. The report is in two formats and the results are expected to encourage sensible investment into the rental sector. This also reflects the view taken in the recent Rugg Report, which also stressed the need to encourage and nurture small portfolio owners and individual private landlords.

The report is available through various outlets and the guide (also published electronically) is readily available through ARLA registered letting agents, mortgage brokers and mortgage lenders.

The guide examines the rental market as it stands in today's credit crunch environment and examines factors such as investment in Buy to Let, the tightening of lending criteria and how to find the right mortgage to suit individual circumstances. The guide also also examines the market place, external influences and the changing demands for rental property as well as giving updates to property investors on legal obligations, tenancy agreements, insurance cover, tax and the mandatory requirements of tenancy deposit protection.

Head of Operations for ARLA Ian Potter said, "In troubled times like these, the health of the private rented sector is vital. This new edition of the very successful ARLA/CML annual guide to investment in the sector will help to keep current investors up-to-date and encourage new and long term investment in a part of the property market that will continue to grow. People need to be housed regardless of the kind of tenure they take. This Guide should be required reading for everyone with an interest in the rental market as it is important to understand current market conditions as well as the complexities of being a landlord today."

Most of us working as buy to let professionals, letting agents and property managers are aware that the consensus is that the Buy to Let industry is well placed to weather the storm of the conditions created by the credit crunch, despite the general tightening of mortgage criteria.

For those letting agents and private landlords who need and demand the very best services and products to protect their property investment make http://www.letsafe.net/ your first port of call. LetSafe provide buy to let professionals accross the uk with some of the best landlord insurance products and services available, all backed by our friendly and knowledgable staff at our UK based call centre. World Class service and excellence come as standard at LetSafe.

Landlords Read This

We always like to try to provide good articles that we find from the internet. Our latest pulled from the world wide web of letting agent news and landlord advice comes direct from ARLA. LetSafe recognise ARLA as one of the leading authorities and portals for landlord advice in the uk buy to let market.

ARLA are currently telling property management professionals through their site that amateur landlords need to exercise caution. This warning comes from ARLA's Ian Potter
Ian Potter as he gives us his thoughts relating to the RICS Residential Lettings Survey for 2008 quarter three.

Ian Potter said, "The rental market is clearly very robust in certain parts of the country but this trend is far from being uniform and, in fact, it could not even be said that it is a standard trend across certain cities. In London, for example, there is a huge discrepancy in the strength of rentals from area-to-area.

Many landlords have entered the lettings market in the last year without perhaps planning to do so and have taken this step out of necessity rather than desire. I would urge these amateur landlords to exercise caution and to research as much as possible as it is a position of no little responsibility. It is imperative that they seek out a regulated agent who is in a position to give them strong and independent advice, and who can protect funds that are being held on their behalf under client money protection schemes".

LetSafe pride themselves on offering landlords, letting agents and property management professionals with the best buy to let insurance products and services available. To find out more visit one of the UK's premiere providers of services and products to Landlords and Letting agents, www.letsafe.net

Landlords dont risk deep regret

As the credit crunch continues to bite in some letting agents are reporting that Landlords are holding back on taking out critical insurance cover for their buy to let properties.

The vast majority of property management professionals will always strongly recommend that landlords have property management insurance in place as well as quality tenant referencing.

Both will give the landlord the best opportunity to ensure that their prospective tenants can not only afford the rent being asked by the landlord but also that in the vent that the worst happens such as the tenants being made redundant that the landlord has insurance such as rent guarantee and rent insurance in place.

In these times of economic difficulty the temptation for landlords will be to try to shave off costs in an attempt to maximise their rental yield. This is clearly a false economy potentially leading to the landlord seeing major financial difficulties associated with having no property management insurance products in place to negate the impact of these possibilities.


At LetSafe we specialise in delivering products and services that allow Landlords to remove high levels of uncertainty when considering letting property. While our clients rank amongst the largest property management professionals and letting agents in the UK we are also protecting an ever increasing number of private landlords.

Find out for yourself why LetSafe has rapidly become the provider of choice for some many letting agents, property management professionals and landlords in the UK.

Visit us today http://www.letsafe.net/

Legal Protection News

It is expected that the OFT will demand greater legal protection for those who choose to sell their homes and then rent them from the new buyer.

As the credit crunch put more homeowners under pressure – many rogue operators offered to buy homes at a massive discount, charge large valuation fees and provide few long-term guarantees that people could remain in their homes.

Ahead of the OFT decision, the National Landlords Association (NLA) launched a voluntary code of practice – following consultation with the mortgage and housing industries and charities.

David Salusbury, NLA chairman, said he was committed to removing cowboys from the entire private-rented sector.

"Sale and rent back is not appropriate in all situations. However, for some families who can no longer afford the costs of home ownership, ethical sale and rent back should certainly be explored," he said."We are under no illusions that some property investors have seen the chance to make a quick buck. However, we firmly believe gambling with people’s homes is unacceptable.

"Changes to the sale and rent back market must begin now."

SHIP (Safe Home Income Plans) – which provides a code of conduct for the equity release industry – is calling on homeowners not to be confused by between sale and rent bank and equity release.
Andrea Rozario, director general of SHIP, said: "Whilst we acknowledge that there may be some ethical sale and rent back companies, we are concerned about the number of providers who are making misleading claims in their advertising.

"We recommend that consumers always take qualified financial advice before making any financial decisions which will ensure they are aware of all of their options."

For more information on property management, renting homes services for landlords and letting agents and a comprehensive view on property management insurance products then visit one of the UK's most trusted providers to landlords, letting agents and property management professionals at http://www.letsafe.net/