Recap of holiday home news : 26 May 2009
Thieves break into Dolph Lundgren’s Spanish home – telegraph
Burglars in Spain abandoned their robbery after discovering the home they had broken into belonged to Dolph Lundgren, the Swedish actor who is 6ft 5in tall and has a black belt in Karate. The burglars fled after recognising the actor in a family photograph.
Rather than put photos of hardmen actors around your home, consider these holiday home security tips to deter burglars.
Buying a holiday let in the UK can be a smart investment – timesonline
With a combination of declining property prices, low interest rates on savings and UK tourism on the increase, investing in a UK holiday home could be a smart investment. Prices in Devon are down by 24% from the 2007 peak and those in Cornwall by 21%. The article has some insights on where to buy and what rental returns to expect.
The number of second homes in England has now reached a record high of 245,000, so do you buy in one of the top 10 locations for holiday homes in the UK, or avoid these areas due to the competition?
Homes with a self-contained annexe could be in for a council tax shock - timesonline
Homes whose property include a self catering annexe which is holiday let, could be given a separate council tax banding of its own.
The 10 weirdest MP expense claims – timesonline
Following all the recent controversy regarding MP’s expense claims for their second homes, here are the 10 weirdest MP expense claims from the times – including the £2,200 it cost taxpayers to clear a moat on a country estate.
Licensing scheme for landlords – guardian
In an attempt to crackdown on rogue landlords and offer tenants more protection, private landlords in England will have to sign up to a national register before they can let their properties to tenants, government proposals have confirmed.
As well as requiring landlords to be registered, the government plans to introduce full regulation of all letting and managing agents. It is estimated that only around half of the 8,000 agents in England are signed up with professional schemes.
Any homeowner who lets a property will have to pay an annual fee to join a national register and would receive a unique landlord registration in return.
The government plans to curb a growing number of rogue landlords who are exploiting tenants, and hopes to set up a scheme allowing tenants to register official complaints about sub-standard landlords.