New energy efficiency legislation will affect private rental sector Landlords with poorly insulated properties may not be able to put them on the market from April 2020 onwards – and the energy performance criteria will be stricter every year until 2025. On 1 April 2020, Scottish landlords will no longer be allowed to grant new...

These properties are not suitable for ghost-busters… nor witchers, vampire slayers or witch hunters. We offer a horrifyingly good selection of spooky houses with ghost rooms! Properties benefit from: Screaming Cupboards, Haunted Halls, Creepy Kitchens, Sleepless nights guaranteed!   Low rent, from 3 to 6 souls per month. Pets considered – werewolves only. References will be checked....

Seasonal lettings market update Citylets have just published their quarterly rental market report and its Edinburgh section makes an interesting read. The upward trend of rent increases has continued in Q3 2019, rents rose by 3.6% on an average year on year – but the rent growth has slowed down significantly from 5.8% annual average based on the...

How much will you have to spend on an HMO? One of the most frequent questions from prospective landlords or property investors is: ‘How much does it cost to get an HMO licence in Edinburgh?’ And obviously, landlords and investors are not just asking about the licence fee! Edinburgh Council’s Houses of Multiple Occupancy (HMO)...

What should you do to transfer an old Edinburgh HMO licence HMO (Houses in Multiple Occupation) licensed properties achieve higher rents and higher asking prices in comparison with similar non-HMO properties when they are put for sale. It means that obtaining an HMO licence, in Edinburgh or elsewhere, can add value to the property and...

How much do letting agents in Edinburgh really cost? If you think that your agent’s ‘full property management’ fee covers everything, you are more than likely to be wrong – most agents charge at least a marketing fee on top of the full management commission. Some letting agents in Edinburgh and beyond may entice you...

How to rent a property in Scotland if you are a full-time student Private rental sector in Scotland has its own rules, some of which are enforced by mortgage lenders, some stem from the guidelines of leading professional bodies (ARLA/Propertymark, The Property Ombudsman) or Scottish government legislation (for example Private Rental Tenancy Agreement, introduced in...

How to waive carpeting requirements The Edinburgh Council has recently upgraded their website and, unfortunately, the section with template HMO noise exemption forms is no longer active; the previous hyperlinks no longer work. As per our conversation with the Licencing Team in early January 2020 – the old forms available in 2019 are still acceptable....

New, more detailed HMO inspection reports In late 2019 the Edinburgh Council inspectors started using new electronic inspection forms, containing 10 to 36 fields per room. Hallway has 10 items, bedrooms 26 items, kitchen 36 items, so the new inspection regime is, in our opinion, more thorough than the previous system as it is less...

When can multiple tenants rent a flat without an HMO licence in Scotland? Most bigger flats with multiple sharers require an HMO licence, but it is a general rule with some exceptions. Sometimes 3 or even 4 students can legally rent a non-HMO property. In short, Houses of Multiple Occupation are any living accommodation occupied...