Climate change is one of the burning issues of our time, as my daughter reminds me every day. Here at Heaton Property, we are doing our best. All our cars are electric, and we supported halving the pavement outside our office to accommodate velocipedes. There have been some OMG moments as a flying cyclist and an old lady have narrowly avoided injury, but it is progress.
Which leaves us with petrol and diesel vehicles. Our government promises all new cars will be electric by 2030. This is not good enough according to my daughter. But fear not. I have the solution!
All manufactures of petrol and diesel cars should be price capped at ten thousand pounds. Bentley Continental? Ten grand. Fiat Punto? The same. Car manufacturers would stop producing fume emitting dinosaurs and switch to electric. Sorted.
What? Ridiculous you say? But this is precisely what government has done with the Tenant Fees Act and specifically a ‘change of sharer’ or what is legally called an ‘Assignment of Tenancy’. I could explain the detail, but you may have drying paint to watch.
In a nutshell, government has decided £50 should cover all costs for ‘change of sharers’. I am never sure, with legislation in the lettings sector, if government has thought it through before consulting professionals and coming to a rational decision. Or if they are just going for likes and retweets on social media. I have my suspicions.
Now it is time for double maths unless you have a note from your Mum! £50 less VAT is £41.67. Our costs are – referencing £20. If a guarantor is needed, they need to be referenced and Land Registry checked. £23. Preparing and cross-checking tenancy paperwork, £60. Digital signature on documents £3. Update deposit with Tenancy Deposit Scheme £25. Inventory clerk to update inventory – site visit £90. Accounts to deal with outgoing tenant deposit and bank transfers £20.50.
I bet you wish you had gone for geography and history. Sometimes I do! But maths is unequivocal. Government says a ‘change of sharers’ agreement can be charged at £50, yet it costs £221. And you though a Bentley Continental for ten grand was ridiculous? As a result of this legislation, £179.33 is outstanding. Who shall pay? Take a wild guess.
Landlords, already burdened by often wellmeaning legislation may look at a buoyant housing market and decide to cash their chips. Invest in a Chinese molybdenum mine and sleep well again at night. Lettings agencies run lean. We must do to remain competitive and deliver the best service for landlords and tenants.
So, who shall pay? Could it be the tenant? My brother Zeno runs Punto Italian Kitchen next door to our Heaton Road office. In addition to the finest pizza and pasta this side of Naples, they serve chips.
Imagine if Government announced, “All chips will be £1”. That would cover everything from Heston Blumenthal’s hand cut triple fried goose fat chips through to the revolting things they knock out at fast food joints. What could possibly go wrong with an idea like that?
