News from the Residential Property Investor, the bi-monthly magazine for RLA members other artilces from the April / May 2000 issue RPI news archive

In brief - April / May 2000

Total mortgage lending topped £7.8bn in February, £500m up on the previous month and £1.7bn up on February 1999. Some 65 per cent of loans were on variable rate terms with the rate of interest of all new loans averaging 6.38 per cent.

Neither tenants nor taxpayers may be getting good value for money from the housing benefit system, according to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. Introducing a 'shopping incentive' into the scheme would provide a simpler and more transparent way of ensuring benefits are not paid on unreasonable rents, said researchers.

More people were killed in the home in 1998 than on the roads. In all 400 died as a result of accidents in the home, and 2.8m were treated in hospital accident and emergency departments.

Four British Property Federation corporate members are taking part in a pilot of the custodial version of two tenancy deposit schemes being tested over the next two years. From 1 May all deposits taken by BPT, Dorrington, Grainger Trust and Mountview Estates will be held by the scheme. The other version of the deposit scheme is based on landlords taking out deposit protection insurance.

Merseyside estate agent Venmore Thomas & Jones has launched an Internet version of its auction catalogue go to www.vtj.co.uk.
 

other artilces from the April / May 2000 issue

• Green paper
• Prescott targets 'bad landlords'
• Stamp duties worries eased by Budget change
• 'Mentally ill' chide at asylum seekers
• Cheltenham branch opens for business
• ARLA seeks help
• Tough tactics
• In brief