Stef Cooke Inventory Services

23/05/2022

https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/buses4us?utm_term=e2zkQa4QG

Give what you can. Newent needs this service.

Weʼre raising money to Start a New Bus Service Between Ross-on-Wye, Newent and Ledbury. Support this JustGiving Crowdfunding Page.

15/04/2022

I always like seeing those posts that ask you to post the last picture you took with your phone. As a clerk there is always some trepidation when I have a look.

Today it is a dirty worktop :)

06/04/2022

Right to Rent - changes to legislation

Landlords and Agents: did you know that a new Home Office directive comes into force today?

As of today the new Codes of Practice changes what you need to do to carry out a Right to Rent check. As part of the introduction of a digitial identity service some documents, e.g. hard copies of biometric cards/frontiers worker permits for seasonal workers, will no longer be acceptable. In effect, this cancels the Covid-19 changes made last year.

The Home Office have confirmed that there is no requirement to conduct retrospective checks on any tenants who underwent the adjusted checks last year.

See links below for more information

Agent Alert: new government code in force today … (lettingagenttoday.co.uk)

Right To Rent: Government U-turn follows ARLA Propert… (lettingagenttoday.co.uk)

01/09/2020

And, because I missed it when it first came in, back in June... here is a link to the government information on the new electrical safety requirements. Information for landlords and tenants alike!

Guidance setting out how the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020 affect landlords, tenants and local authorities.

01/09/2020

New notice periods in England.
New legislation came into force on Saturday 29th August. Landlords must now give 6 months notice to tenants to terminate their tenancy. This will continue until the end of March 2021, with very few exceptions.

Regulations outlining how six month notice periods will work in England, have been published today and will come into force on Saturday 29 August 2020. Following on from the intention announced last week by Secretary of State, Robert Jenrick, today's development effectively extends the Coronavirus A...

17/03/2020

Corona Virus / COVID 19

I thought I would let you know that I am trying to keep it business as usual. However, as I am immuno compromised, I thought it best to add couple of simple precautions to my usual procedures and to let you know what I am doing.

I have received emails from some agents confirming that tenants have been asked not to attend check outs, or to be brief if they do. Thank you. That leaves check ins. I am happy to continue to do these with the ingoing tenants. I will be keeping it brief and will attempt to keep a pace or two space between us. I will also be adding basic hygiene precautions.

Fortunately hand sanitiser and wipes are standard issue for clerks, so I am fully stocked up. I also have a dog and so have a MudDaddy dog cleaner in the back of the car. So I can take all cleaning precautions. so:

- I will clean my hands with soap and water before entering each property
- I will use a hand wipe on all keys as I collect them, and as I hand them over to ingoing tenants
- I will also sanitise my phone before asking tenants to sign off on any key report. I will also sign in their stead if they prefer not to sign on my phone. They can sign online via their own devices later.

Stay well!

20/01/2020

Some new legislation coming in.

It applies to all new tenancies from July 1st 2020 and ALL tenancies from July 1st 2021.

Five-year safety checks will be mandatory for landlords for all new tenancies from July 1.This will be rolled out to existing tenancies from April 2021.

16/01/2020

Just left a great local network meeting, Newent Network, at The Bar and Kitchen with GMT Solutions, Pippa's Web - web design
and Evolution Lettings, amongst others.

05/09/2019

Oh I do love a MailChimp thingy. A new era? Hopefully itwill all be as easy as pie :)

Firstly I want to thank you for a very busy summer and for bearing with me when I didn't meet my usual timescales for returning work. It has been incredibly busy, so much so my current 500G hard drive, which would usually hold 2 full years worth of original pictures, with a bit of room to spare, is...

14/02/2019

I have just emailed all the landlords I work with about the Tenant Fees Ban. If you are a landlord you might find some of the lnks interesting.

01/02/2019

If you want to hear more about the letting fee ban Radio 4 will be discussing it just after Noon

No more letting fees for tenants in England. The cinema streaming its movies direct to TVs

25/01/2019

The government unveiled a new Housing Redress system yesterday. Whether you are buying a new build home or renting from a private landlord, this could be an invaluable resource.

Yesterday the government announced a new redress system that will cover the whole market, from new builds to private landlords.