September 10, 2010

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2,500 jobs saved at Connaught

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by Kay Mitchell

It has emerged this morning that Connaught’s social housing division has been acquired by construction group Morgan Sindall, saving around 2,500 jobs. The deal, arranged by administrators KPMG, will see Morgan Sindall pay £28 million cash for the company and take over the ...

September 9, 2010

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HMO planning requirements reformed

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by Gill Montia

Landlords with Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) may no longer need planning consent, Housing Minister Grant Shapps has confirmed. Previously, landlords have had to submit a planning application to rent their properties to unrelated tenants but new regulations published this week will ensure that ...

September 8, 2010

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LHA cuts a “recipe for destitution”

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by Gill Montia

The British Property Federation (BPF) has described the Government’s proposed cuts to housing benefit as a “recipe for destitution” for up to 800,000 claimants of Local Housing Allowance (LHA). From April 2011, LHA will be capped, in what the BPF has condemned ...

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Connaught calls in the administrators

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by Kay Mitchell

Connaught, the social housing maintenance group, has called in the administrators after failing to secure funding to pay off a mountain of debt. The news has put thousands of jobs at risk after lenders refused to offer further support to the crisis-torn company. However, ...

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Halifax reports 0.2% rise in house prices in August

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by Kay Mitchell

The Halifax has today revealed a 0.2% rise in house prices for the month of August compared with July. The latest house price rise takes the annual rate of inflation down from 4.9% to 4.6%. The figures differ ...

September 3, 2010

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Landlords unmoved by new LHA limits

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by Gill Montia

Changes to Local Housing Allowance (LHA) could leave a third of claimant tenants in the private rental sector unable to pay their rent in full. In June's emergency budget, Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, announced that LHA would be capped at ...