Umbra Lettings

Umbra Lettings Letting Agency covering Gosport, Fareham, Portsmouth & Southampton.

What happens to the deposit when you switch agents?This catches more landlords out than you'd think. When a tenancy move...
25/09/2026

What happens to the deposit when you switch agents?

This catches more landlords out than you'd think. When a tenancy moves between agents, or into self-management, the deposit has to move with it, protected and on time.

A landlord switching from self-managing to an agent partway through a tenancy is the classic version of this going wrong. The old scheme registration doesn't automatically transfer, and if there's a three-week gap while paperwork catches up, the deposit's technically unprotected for that whole period. The tenant doesn't need to have noticed for it to matter later.

■ Get written confirmation of exactly when protection transfers to the new scheme
■ Check who's holding the prescribed information after the switch
■ Any gap where the deposit sits unprotected is a real risk, however short
■ Claims for an unprotected deposit can reach three times the deposit amount

A five-minute check before you switch anyone saves a genuinely expensive mistake later.

Is your property actually going to need EPC C, and by when?The 2030 date is confirmed now, not just proposed. The govern...
24/09/2026

Is your property actually going to need EPC C, and by when?

The 2030 date is confirmed now, not just proposed. The government's January 2026 response to the consultation set a single deadline, 1 October 2030, for every privately rented property in England and Wales, existing tenancies included. The earlier idea of new tenancies needing it sooner has been dropped, so there's genuinely one date for everyone.

Worth flagging though, it's still not actually in statute. The government needs a fresh Act of Parliament to bring it into force, expected in 2027, so the requirement isn't yet legally binding. That's not a reason to ignore it, more a reason not to panic and spend money you don't need to yet.

■ Single deadline, 1 October 2030, applies to all tenancies, not just new ones
■ A cost cap of £10,000 per property is proposed, so you shouldn't be spending beyond that to comply
■ Fines could reach £30,000 per property once the requirement's actually law
■ A property already sitting at D with straightforward loft or cavity insulation options has time to plan around natural replacement cycles rather than rushing

If you're at D or below, get a fresh assessment done so you actually know your starting point, then plan the work around things you'd likely do anyway rather than treating 2030 as an emergency.

How much notice should you really give yourself for a gas safety renewal?Out of everything landlords get wrong, this is ...
23/09/2026

How much notice should you really give yourself for a gas safety renewal?

Out of everything landlords get wrong, this is the one with no grey area. Annual check, full stop, and it has to be in place before a tenancy starts.

The scenario that comes up every winter is a landlord who leaves booking the engineer until the certificate's a week from expiring, only to find every local engineer's fully booked for a fortnight over Christmas. The certificate lapses, sometimes by days, and that's enough to cause problems if you need to rely on certain possession grounds in the meantime.

■ Book the renewal engineer 6 weeks out, not 6 days
■ A lapsed certificate can affect which possession grounds are available to you
■ Confirm in writing who's actually responsible for booking it, you or the agent
■ Keep the previous certificate on file even once it's been renewed

Set the reminder earlier than feels necessary. Engineers get booked up fastest exactly when everyone else has left it too late.

Are you sure your property doesn't need an HMO licence?The thresholds trip up more landlords than you'd expect, particul...
22/09/2026

Are you sure your property doesn't need an HMO licence?

The thresholds trip up more landlords than you'd expect, particularly with local selective licensing schemes layered on top of the national rules.

A common version of this, a landlord with a four-bed shared house takes on a fifth tenant to cover a gap in rent, without realising that fifth tenant from a separate household just pushed the property over the mandatory licensing threshold. No licence applied for, and suddenly there's a real problem if anything else goes wrong at the property.

■ Five or more tenants from two or more households sharing facilities usually triggers mandatory licensing
■ Some councils apply additional or selective licensing well below that threshold
■ Letting without a required licence can block a rent repayment order defence
■ It can also complicate a possession claim later on

Worth checking your specific council's scheme directly before you add a tenant, rather than assuming the national rules are the whole picture.

Do you need to recheck a tenant's right to rent after the tenancy starts?Easy to assume it's sorted once at the start an...
21/09/2026

Do you need to recheck a tenant's right to rent after the tenancy starts?

Easy to assume it's sorted once at the start and forget about it. Not always that simple, particularly with time-limited permissions.

Say a tenant's visa or leave to remain had an expiry date noted at referencing stage. If nobody's flagged that date and a follow-up check never happens, you can end up letting to someone without a valid right to rent without realising it, sometimes months after the original check was perfectly fine.

■ Check and keep evidence of every adult occupier's right to rent before the tenancy starts
■ Where someone has time-limited status, a follow-up check is required before it expires
■ Civil penalties for missed checks have gone up, not down
■ A simple spreadsheet with recheck dates flagged is usually enough

It's a small bit of admin that's easy to let slide, right up until it isn't.

Can you still say no to a tenant's pet request?Tenants now have the right to request a pet, and a blanket refusal isn't ...
18/09/2026

Can you still say no to a tenant's pet request?

Tenants now have the right to request a pet, and a blanket refusal isn't really an option any more. That doesn't mean you've lost all say in it.

The situation that comes up most is a tenant with a well-behaved older dog asking to bring it into a property with a small garden. An outright "no pets, full stop" reply isn't really defensible any more. Asking for pet insurance and having a proper look at whether the property's actually suitable is the right response, not an automatic refusal.

■ You can ask for pet insurance to cover potential damage
■ Reasonable grounds for refusal still exist, an unsuitable property or a superior lease that bans pets, for example
■ A blanket "no pets" policy on its own isn't a valid reason
■ Each request should be considered on its own facts

In practice it's likely to be less dramatic than it sounds on paper, but it's worth having your response ready before the first request lands.

🏠 ONE HMO Rooms Left!West Street, Fareham£700PCM (First Month is Half Price at £350)We've only got one rooms left availa...
17/09/2026

🏠 ONE HMO Rooms Left!
West Street, Fareham
£700PCM (First Month is Half Price at £350)

We've only got one rooms left available right in the heart of Fareham High Street. All the rooms in this building are en-suite.

Prime location and your own private bathroom. If you're looking for somewhere central with a bit more than the average room, these are worth a look.

Drop us a message to find out more or book a viewing 👇

📞 02393 960 161
✉️ [email protected]

What's the correct way to increase rent mid-tenancy now?There's one formal route left, a Section 13 notice, and that's i...
17/09/2026

What's the correct way to increase rent mid-tenancy now?

There's one formal route left, a Section 13 notice, and that's it. No clauses in the tenancy agreement letting you raise rent some other way, and no informal "just let me know if that's alright" conversation either, however well it goes down at the time.

A landlord who's had a good relationship with a tenant for years might be tempted to just mention a rent increase in a text message and leave it there. It might well get accepted without complaint. But it's not enforceable, and if the tenant later disputes it, you're the one without a leg to stand on.

■ A Section 13 notice is now the only valid method for a mid-tenancy increase
■ Tenants can challenge the amount at tribunal if they think it's above market rate
■ The tribunal can only reduce the figure or leave it unchanged, never increase it further
■ Comparable local listings are your best evidence if it does go to tribunal

There's not much downside to proposing a fair, well-evidenced figure through the proper notice. Going in aggressive, or informal, mostly just invites a challenge and a delay.

Address

42a, Basepoint Business Centre
Gosport
PO130FQ

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Monday 9am - 8pm
Tuesday 9am - 8pm
Wednesday 9am - 8pm
Thursday 9am - 8pm
Friday 9am - 8pm
Saturday 9am - 8pm

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