lettings

It’s a tough time to be a private landlord. Rent freezes during Covid, which looks to be sticking around in places like Scotland, and a recent crackdown on laws regulating the private rental sector, with wide-sweeping reform to keep up to date with - and it looks like it’s only going to get stricter. With all this in mind, now might be the time for private landlords to take that next step with their...

New tax rules for Swindon buy-to-let landlords from 2026 We at Richard James want to make you aware of some important changes that are coming into effect from April 2026. The UK Government is introducing Making Tax Digital (MTD) for Income Tax, which will affect how landlords report their income tax to HMRC. The original plan was for Landlords’ income of £10,000 or more from their properties must file...

With mortgage rates tripling over the last 12 months, one could be forgiven for thinking buying a Swindon home as a first-time buyer would out of the question.Yet, what if I told you, it is £622 a year cheaper to buy a Swindon home as a first-time buyer than renting, would you be surprised? The average 2-bed home in Swindon is worth £202,879. The monthly homeownership cost of such a Swindon home...

Over the last five years, life has become a little trickier for Swindon landlords, with changes to their taxation status, mortgage interest relief and an additional 3% stamp duty for a buy-to-let property, and has made lots of Swindon landlords ask themselves: ‘Is buy-to-let in Swindon still worth the risk?’ Regarding taxation, in 2016, the Government added a 3% supplement in stamp duty on...

The number of properties available to rent in Swindon has dropped from 1,394 to 597 since February 2020. The average rent a tenant has had to pay in Swindon has risen from £767 to £984 since February 2020. Many Swindon landlords have cashed in on the post-lockdown property boom of the last two years and sold their properties to owner-occupiers - not fellow landlords. The supply of...

This April (2022) sees us celebrate the 30th anniversary of Richard James, after opening our doors in Wroughton back in 1992. Since then, we’ve been fortunate enough to help clients of multiple generations find their dream homes and have expanded across 8 offices that cover Wiltshire, Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire. As well as Sales, we are also home to Richard James Lettings, Land & New Homes,...

With our Sales and Lettings businesses under one roof, we regularly hear from investors looking to invest in properties that they will later rent out using our property management service. That coupled with the abundance of apartments in Swindon, which in our opinion are ideal buy-to-let investments, means we often get asked the same questions regarding the local area, the current market and other...

Landlords should be aware that they could be liable for any unpaid utility bills, and even reconnection fees if they don’t correctly manage the end of tenancy process with regards to utilities. We've put together a ‘best practice' guide regarding tenants’ utility services to help you have a successful tenancy, without facing any unexpected fees.  Who is responsible for paying utility...

A lot of landlords are still unaware of the regulations for MEES (minimum energy efficiency standard) and what it entails. So, we thought we'd break it down for you: The previous changes that came about in 2018, meant that landlords of low scoring properties were required to conduct repairs or changes to their properties to upgrade them to band E or higher, once their current tenant had vacated....

Are you a first-time landlord, considering the benefits of using a letting agent to manage your property?Perhaps you're an experienced landlord, who's tired of being at your tenants' beck and call. Not to mention having the time and experience to keep up (and comply with) over 170 government regulations!Let's break down the top 10 benefits of a fully managed service, and how it could help you... 1....