Welcome to the spring newsletter 2018, keeping you updated on what we have been getting up to, and what has been moving and shaking in our industry. We hope you find it informative and a useful check in.  We look forward to hearing from you in the future. 

Want to read our previous newsletter? Click here.

What’s going on in our Industry?

During the last quarter we have seen several significant changes in landlord laws, Wi-Fi technology and the financial sector.

Legal:

Last quarter we saw the announcement of a letting agent fee ban. This quarter we have seen the rumbling reactions throughout the property world. Estate agents and lettings firm Belvoir has said that increased government regulation is expected to see independent companies exit the sector, with bigger players poised to take advantage. Furthermore, the governmental pledge came amid concerns that some letting agents were double charging tenants and property owners for the same service.

Technology:

Donald Trump has announced he wants to Nationalise Wi-Fi.  This demonstrates the importance and relevance of the internet of things and enhances quite how important it is in everyday life. Furthermore, Trump believes that free nationwide Wi-Fi would create jobs, improve the economy and increase social inclusion (Big Think).

Financial:

The UK economy expanded by a better-than-expected 0.5% in the last three months of 2017, official figures say. Economists had expected a 0.4% expansion in the three months to December. Despite this the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the broader picture was “slower and more uneven” growth. In 2017 as a whole, growth was 1.8% compared with 1.9% in 2016 – the slowest since 2012. “The boost to the economy at the end of the year came from a range of services including recruitment agencies, letting agents and office management,” said Darren Morgan, head of GDP at the ONS.Housing: The supply of rental stock in the UK increased at the end of 2017 to the highest since records began, according to the latest letting agents report. The number of properties letting agents managed rose from 192 in November to 200 in December, some 6% higher than in the same month in 2016, the data from the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA) shows.

What are we working on?

Professional Lets:

Increasingly, Wi-Fi is becoming a must for young professionals and the demand from the Wi-Fi service is soaring. This aligns itself to more landlords getting into the professional multi-let market.

Serviced accommodation:

This is a real growth area for us as more landlord and property organisations enter the market, particularly as it is regulated by industry review sites.

Construction:

The requirement for a Wi-Fi design and post installation service/management is becoming vital (people used to look over Wi-Fi as an add on, however, it’s just as important as water). More property organisations are considering Wi-Fi as part of the scope of works. As a result, we are now building a portfolio of projects where we can deliver Wi-Fi friendly accommodation.

Social Housing:

As highlighted by the USA, social inclusion includes Wi-Fi. This will also be a big facilitator to access digital inclusion and The Internet Of Things, which will bring huge benefits to the housing associations, tenants and service providers.

Students:

We are getting increasing interests in the standards we instill in properties that we accredit as Wi-Fi Friendly Accommodation. We are increasingly working with the student community on raising awareness on types of engineered solutions that can be achieved with our Wi-Fi friendly accommodation

Meet the team?

Meet Fantastic Fin, our Wi-Fi Friendly Genius/ Marketing expert:
One of the best opportunities I have had at The University of York is working for Landlord Broadband. I currently work in the marketing team and specifically focus on Wi-Fi Friendly Accommodation. Not only has this given me the opportunity to enhance my C.V. but it is also satisfying positively influencing a market that I am a party of, as a student.

I am currently in my second year of an undergraduate degree in English Literature and History of Art. In my spare time I enjoy playing the piano. I also run a dodgeball club that I co-founded with some friends from my first year. The best thing I have done at university is going skydiving with the skydiving club. It is great fun and I would thoroughly recommend it to everyone.

Landlord Broadband
(The champions of Wi-Fi friendly accommodation) 

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Fun Fact – Wi-Fi stands for Wireless Fidelity