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Student landlords urged to check insurance for summer
Landlords who let out property to university students are being urged by a specialist
insurance provider to make sure they have the right coverage during times of unoccupancy, it has emerged.
According to Leaseguard, summer holidays may mean that properties have a higher than usual rate of unoccupancy, IFAonline.co.uk reports.
Buy-to-let landlords should therefore contact their buildings and contents insurers to see if they need to notify them regarding these continuous periods when the property is unoccupied, said Maryann McGee, insurance manager at the firm.
"Check your policy wording as the period of unoccupancy can vary from 30 or more days to in excess of 90 days before notification to the insurer is required - it just depends on the insurer," she explained, according to the news provider.
"Some insurers impose terms, reduce the cover on the policy or increase the premium for the period of unoccupancy - and some do all three."
Additionally, Ms McGee advises buy-to-let investors that they should ensure the property is covered if it is undergoing any structural work over the summer and that tradesmen working on the site have insurance.
Leaseguard provides specialist insurance to the lettings industry.
Student rent sees 7% rise
The average weekly student rent has risen from £56 to £60 in the past year, a new report shows.
Renting a property out to students is a popular option with many landlords, as rents can be charged on a by-room basis to multiple tenants, which can often generate larger returns than a property with just one tenant.
The figures from Accommodation for Students show a seven per cent climb in rents paid by students across Britain, although levels differ considerably according to area.
London remained the most expensive location for students with rents averaging £102 per week, followed by Cambridge at £84 per week, then Guildford at £83 per week.
Meanwhile the cheapest student rent could be found in Crewe, at just £37 per week on average, followed by Middlesbrough at £38.
"Although southern universities are still more expensive for accommodation, with London way out front, some increasingly popular university locations have seen a corresponding rise in rents: Durham, Warwick and Loughborough are three good examples," said Simon Thompson, Accommodation for Students co-founder and director.
However, just because a rent rises does not mean the change will be reflected in rental returns, with continually rising house prices meaning yields on
buy-to-let property remained "relatively static" in February, according to Association of Residential
Lettings Agents data.
Consumers' financial services "knowledge gap"
Britons are a lot less savvy when it comes to taking out a loan than they are about buying clothing or electronic gadgets, it has been found.
In the UK, adults are four times more likely to know their rights when buying everyday items than when buying a financial product, research from secured loan company Picture Financial indicated.
While 21 per cent of consumers spend six days or more shopping around for the best deal when buying cars or computers, just a quarter review their finances less than every six months and just six per cent are aware of their consumer rights when buying a financial product.
A key reason for the comparative ignorance surrounding financial purchases was that Britons said that they were just not interested in money (34 per cent), while 25 per cent admitted that the vast number of options on offer confused them.
Meanwhile, sixteen per cent said that they were put off by jargon surrounding financial products.
Picture Financial marketing director Julia Dallimore said: "We are a nation of increasingly savvy shoppers, able to take on vast amounts of information to evaluate what best meets our needs.
"However, our research shows that this doesn't extend to financial services and many people could be missing out on better deals on their finances as a result of this knowledge gap," she warned.
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