Clarification for London Homeowners on Renting your Home through Airbnb

To keep on the right side of planning laws in London, as of this month Airbnb is automatically limiting "entire homes listings" in Greater London to 90 nights a year.

The change only applies to London.  The change will not affect those who let spare rooms in their home or who let their entire home for fewer than 90 days in a year.

Even with these restrictions, renting your London home through Airbnb continues to be highly lucrative. According to the real estate valuation firm Propcision, rents for Airbnb properties in London are on average more than double the rents paid on longer term tenancies.

David
House-Saver

The growing pains of the sharing economy

The sharing economy has the potential to deliver great benefits to communities.

But it will only become mainstream if regulators give it a chance according to bosses at AirBnB and Uber who both delivered TED talks this week.

Forbes gives the lowdown on the latest TED talks on the The Sharing Economy / Giving Economy.

David
www.house-saver.co.uk

Repeal of 1973 legislation enables Londoners to rent out their homes on a short-term basis

Until last week, under a law dating back to 1973*, any Londoner who wanted to rent out their home for a few days had to apply for planning permission, or else face a fine of up to £20,000 for each ‘offence’.

The Deregulation Act 2015 repeals this legislation.  Londoners can now take advantage of websites allowing short-term rents without fear that they are committing an offence.

About time too!  1973 was the year that the UK entered the European Economic Community, the Vietnam War ended and the Watergate scandal erupted.  Much has happened over the 42 years since.

London residents can now participate in the sharing economy, and enjoy the same freedom and flexibility as the rest of the country to let their homes on a temporary basis.

Whilst red tape continues to hold back the sharing economy at least we are moving in the right direction.

David
House-saver

*The restrictions on short-term lets were contained within Section 25 of the Greater London Council (General Powers) Act 1973 

Need help finding a reliable solar panels installer?

We have long sung the praises of installing solar panels on your home. However, whilst there are many excellent installers out there, there are also a few that are underwhelming.

At last, help is on hand for UK residents seeking a reliable Solar PV installer?  Check out the latest YouGen blog post, which will help you sort the wheat from the chaff.

Now all we need is for spring to arrive to get those panels working properly.

David
House-saver