Open News

New government figures reveal that local authorities spent £2.8 billion on temporary accommodation in 2024/25 to house homeless households—a 25% increase in just one year. The data, covering April 2024 to March 2025, highlights the growing pressure on councils in...

Croydon Council has announced plans to introduce a selective licensing scheme aimed at tackling poor housing conditions and clamping down on irresponsible landlords whose actions can affect tenants’ health and wellbeing. The proposed scheme would require all private...

The Property Energy Professionals Association (PEPA), which represents Energy Assessor Accreditation Schemes, has called for urgent reform of the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) system amid growing concern from landlords about its accuracy and usefulness. The...

The House of Commons has just released it's monthly housing figures.  They can be seen here, and in summary: House Prices UK house prices rose 2.8% year-on-year (July 2024 → July 2025). Prices fell 0.7% month-on-month (June → July 2025, seasonally adjusted). Strongest...

New Anti-Money Laundering regulations (AML) came into force on May 14, 2025, whereby agents must check that all their clients meet the new AML regulations. It is unclear whether landlords have to meet this as well, so we wrote to the body that oversees this, and got...

A senior government official has confirmed that landlords and agents will not see implementation dates for specific measures in the Renters’ Rights Bill until the legislation formally becomes law. Guy Horsington, deputy director of the private rented sector at the...

Speculation over wide-ranging property tax reforms is already hitting the housing market, with research showing fewer listings, more withdrawals, and nervous buyers and sellers holding back ahead of the Autumn Budget. Chancellor Rachel Reeves is reported to be...

New research suggests the government’s pledge to build 1.5 million homes over the course of this Parliament may still fall short of what is needed to meet demand. Anna Clarke, director of policy and public affairs at The Housing Forum, argues that while the target is...

According to an article by Ella Jessel, here is a summary of the two new ministers in the housing department: Alison McGovern: Local Government and Homelessness Minister Previous Role: Minister for Employment at the Department of Work and Pensions. Background: MP for...

Propertymark, the letting agents' professional body, is demanding a fundamental reform of how rental figures are calculated across the UK. In its response to an Office for National Statistics (ONS) consultation on the Price Index of Private Rents (PIPR), Propertymark...