GDPR – 7 steps to landlord compliance

In part one of this article (https://senecarooms.com/2018/04/15/gdpr-for-landlords/), I covered the main elements of the General Data Protection Regulations and gave some explanations of the terminology and how it all relates to landlords.  If GDPR is new to you, I suggest you go back and read part one to help you understand what it’s all about first.  In part two here, …

Understanding GDPR for landlords.

Throughout the course of running a landlord business, we collect, use, hold onto and share our tenant’s personal data.  Because of this, we will need to comply with the new General Data Protection Regulations, coming into force on May 25th 2018. GDPR is about seeing our customer’s (tenant’s) data as a valuable asset and treating it with the due care …

The crucial steps you need to take BEFORE you hire your first assistant

The first business I ran (together with my brother in the 90’s) was in an industry that was exploding with popularity at the time. We were at the crest of a pretty powerful and exciting wave, I was working long hours, six or seven days a week, I barely ate (because I didn’t have time), and was mostly functioning on …

How to reduce HMO voids and achieve 100% occupancy in your rooms

VOID. It’s a four letter word alright! And one that puts a shudder through many a landlord’s bones. I know it certainly puts some fire under my pants if I have a room coming empty soon and I haven’t yet found a replacement, let alone the stress I feel if a room or more are empty for any period of …

10 Simple Tips to Maximise the Value of Your HMO Rents Pt 1

Times are changing in HMO land. The marketplace is highly saturated and tenants have a plethora of choice from sharing in a Luxury Mini-Mo (as small as a two bedroom flat with concierge and gym), to a Mega-Mo (complete with cinema room, pizzeria, even a yoga studio). So, to attract the best professional tenants and reduce voids, you need to …

New HMO Licensing Regs – get clear, get ready.

There are so many different laws, regulations and guidelines we need to consider as HMO landlords, so it’s no wonder that a relatively minor change to the HMO Mandatory Licensing regulations has sent a lot of people’s heads into a spin. The current (as at March 2018) arrangements are that any HMO occupied by 5 or more people over 3 …

Licenses vs Leases in HMO’s – which should I use?

Despite being a really simple answer, this seems to be a question that confuses many in the HMO world – with potentially disastrous consequences.  I’m not pointing the finger in judgement here – as I too was one of the landlords who didn’t understand the difference, and made an incorrect choice on one occasion as a result. After discovering my …