The Property Podcast

The Renters' Rights Act has been live for five months. The changes it's caused aren't the ones anyone was arguing about beforehand...

Rob & Rob get into the bidding ban that backfired, the financially secure tenants now struggling to rent at all, and the new fees letting agents are testing on landlords. Then they work out what £100,000 in savings is really earning once tax and inflation have taken their share, and what the same money does over five years in property.

(02:05) Inverse bidding wars, and why landlords are advertising rents above what they expect to get

(06:54) Is the ban on rent in advance shutting out the tenants who can most afford it?

(08:25) The fee one agent quoted Rob B for a £25 a month increase

(13:06) Why a 5% savings rate is a trap, and who is walking into it

(15:26) What £100,000 in the bank really pays you after tax and inflation

(17:18) The same money in property, and the gap after five years of modest growth

(21:16) Hub Extra - which side of AI your income lands.

Links mentioned:

London landlords' latest tactic: inverse bidding wars

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Should you add the mortgage fee to your loan, or pay it upfront? And if your tenant's running a business from your rental, what does that mean for your insurance and mortgage?

Rob & Rob tackle both questions on Tuesday’s Ask Rob & Rob.

(00:41) Esther is buying her first property through Property Hub and weighing mortgage deals with and without an arrangement fee. Should she pay the fee upfront or add it to the loan? Rob D breaks down the two options.

(04:00) Lawrence and his brother have discovered their long-term tenants are running a commercial business from the property. Does this invalidate the landlord insurance and mortgage, and what should he do about it? Rob B sets out the checks to make and the steps to take before it becomes a bigger problem.

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Whatever the national rent headline says this month, there's a good chance it isn't describing everything...

Rob & Rob are joined by Richard Donnell, Executive Director of Research at Zoopla, who tracks what 9 million monthly users do on the site and how landlords and agents set rents in real time.

He takes them through what's driving the gap between one town and the next, and why the case for owning rental property looks nothing like it did 10 years ago. There's also a free tool to check what your own property should be letting for.

(02:30) The number that took everyone by surprise, and why it has completely reversed

(04:47) Where rents are climbing fastest right now, and what those markets have in common

(10:01) Does the data prove the Renters' Rights Act has pushed advertised rents up?

(14:49) Why huge demand for rented homes in London still isn't pushing rents up much

(17:51) Why the reason for owning rental property has flipped since the tax changes

(22:56) Richard's call on rents over the next 12 months

(24:58) Hub Extra

Links mentioned:

Zoopla's rental estimate calculator

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What would you do differently if you were buying your first buy-to-let today? And can you get a mortgage on a property you're planning to rent to a family member?

Your questions answered on this week's episode of Ask Rob & Rob.

(00:48) Anya is renovating her own home and plans to put the equity into her first buy-to-let, but she's hesitant about taking the plunge. How do you buy with confidence when it's your first? Rob B sets out what he'd put in place to take the guesswork out of it.

(03:59) Sarah's second buy-to-let stacks up on paper, but she wants to rent it to a family member and has been told no lender will touch it. Is that right, and does buying in her own name solve it? Rob D explains what changes when a let is regulated, and what that does to the terms on offer.

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Bond markets are under pressure across the UK, the US and much of the world. That sounds like a problem for economists, but it has a direct impact on your mortgage...

Rob & Rob explain what's pushing government borrowing costs up, and why that's already showing up in swap rates and lender pricing.

With the October Budget on the horizon, fresh data on prices and rents, as well as a striking number on where professional investors are putting their money - there's a lot here that could change the maths on your next purchase.

(00:56) The bond market is moving, here's why that matters more than the Bank of England rate

(04:30) Swap rates at their highest. What that means for your borrowing costs

(05:22) The first lender has already repriced, so why moving fast on paperwork pays

(08:14) The Budget lands in October, and the tax Rob D thinks is most exposed

(11:57) House price growth looks flat, but the real-terms picture is very different

(13:22) Rents up year on year, outpacing both inflation and house price growth

(13:53) Why the number of professional investors who plan to buy in the next 12 months surprised Rob B

(17:00) What England should read into rented homes in Wales

(18:25) Hub Extra

Links mentioned:

Bank of England holds at 3.75%

NRLA: Budget 2026, what we know so far

Ultra concentrated coffee in a can

House prices:

Nationwide's House Price Index

Lloyds' House Price Index

Mortgages and lending:

Landlord mortgage rates fall across lenders

Lender cuts buy-to-let rates to woo landlords

Fewer buy-to-let applications

Rents:

ONS private rent and house prices

London landlords' latest tactic: inverse bidding wars

Landlord behaviour:

Buy-to-let costs soar twice as fast as rental income

Just 5% of Welsh landlords control a third of rental homes

Handelsbanken Property Investor Report

Investors missing the older-renter opportunity

Planning and supply:

HBF: Planning on Empty 2026

Centre for Cities: building near stations

Regulation:

Renters demand rent and eviction data in the PRS Database

Short-let landlord register coming soon

NRLA warns of risk of unqualified agents

UK CertifID trust mark for digital ID

Enjoy the show?

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