Property Compliance

Property compliance is vital for all property professionals, including landlords, agents, property managers and freeholders in the UK. As the legislation is constantly changing, keeping up with licensing and planning requirements, certification, documentation, building regulations, energy efficiency, damp and fire safety laws is becoming increasingly overwhelming. 

Yuno simplifies property compliance, helping you meet your legal obligations, maintain compliant properties, and avoid penalties. Our comprehensive services cover everything from single lets to large property portfolios, covering flats, houses and buildings, ensuring your properties meet all necessary compliance and licensing regulations. Let Yuno handle the compliance so you can focus on your business. 

Stay Legally Compliant with Our Property Compliance

UK property laws continuously evolve, vary from country to country, and can be hard to keep up with. However, failing to comply can have serious consequences. 

Non-compliance can lead to:

• Hefty fines: Penalties can reach £30,000 per offence in England and Wales, and £50,000 in Scotland. As stated on GOV.UK, regarding HMO licensing, “You could get an unlimited fine for renting out an unlicensed HMO”
• Rent repayment orders:  Tenants may be able to claim back up to 12 months of rent (England and Wales).
• Property restrictions: Local authorities may enforce restrictions that prevent landlords from renting out their properties.
• Legal action: A severe breach can lead to the prosecution of any persons managing or controlling the property; this includes company directors.

With the above in mind, it is vital to stay ahead of these regulations as a landlord, agent, property manager or freeholder. However, keeping track of compliance obligations can quickly become time-consuming and confusing. Yuno is here to simplify property compliance and ensure that your properties meet all legal requirements without unnecessary stress and hassle. We do everything from compliance training, licensing, planning, certification, fire safety assessments, and more, all end to end, from identifying what is required to applying to the councils on your behalf, getting certification arranged, and compliance upgrades.

Yuno’s Comprehensive Property Compliance Services

Yuno is proud to offer a wide range of property compliance solutions that are tailored to landlords, freeholders, letting agents, and property professionals. Our services include:

Planning and Licensing Support: Navigating Selective, Additional HMO, Mandatory HMO, HMO and Short-Term Let

Depending on local council regulations, rental properties in the UK can require mandatory, additional, selective, HMO or short-term let licensing and/or Article 4 HMO, HMO, Sui-Generis HMO, lawful-use (lawful development certificate (LDC), or Short-term Let Planning permission. Mandatory HMO licensing is required in England and Wales (here, it has to be three or more stories) if your property is rented to five or more people who form more than one household and they share facilities like the bathroom and kitchen, with at least one tenant paying rent. However, even smaller properties, even when let to 1 person, may need a licence depending on the area, requiring you to check with your local council.  With this in mind, Yuno provides expert guidance on:

• Understanding which licences and planning permission your property requires, considering local authority variations. As highlighted in “Property and HMO Licensing & Planning by Local Authority,” planning and licensing rules can “vary significantly between locations, and can be determined by council, ward, street or area specified on a map by the council.”
• Determining if you will actually get the licence before you apply and reporting on what your property needs to get compliant, before you move ahead with costly decisions and changes to your property.
• Preparing and submitting accurate planning and licence applications, with all supporting certification and documentation, to meet council standards.
• Managing ongoing compliance and renewals to ensure continued legality.

HMO Design & Planning: Creating Compliant and Tenant-Friendly Solutions

Compliance for Houses of Multiple Occupancy, Shared Living, BTR and Serviced accommodation goes well beyond standard rental regulations. Effective property design is crucial for complying with licensing and planning requirements and attracting tenants. Our HMO design and planning services help ensure:

• Room size and occupancy requirements are met, aligning with HMO standards.  Yuno assists landlords in understanding room sizes and the minimum size requirements for single bedrooms
• Amenity and facility regulations are adhered to
• Fire safety and emergency escape route standards are integrated into the design.  Proper layouts ensure that fire safety regulations are adhered to.  Yuno can connect landlords with specialist architects to balance aesthetics with functionality and compliance.

Fire Safety Compliance & Risk Assessments

Fire safety is a critical aspect of property management, and landlords have a legal responsibility to ensure their properties meet stringent fire safety standards. This includes complying with regulations such as the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (FSO), Fire Safety Act 2021 and the Building Safety Act 2022. According to GOV.UK, as a landlord, “It’s your responsibility to: fit and test smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarms”, though in many cases, this minimum standard is superseded by the British Standards guidance BS 5839-6: 2019 Yuno’s services help landlords and property managers navigate fire safety compliance, including:

• Conducting comprehensive Fire Risk Assessments in order to identify and mitigate potential hazards. As mandated by the Fire Safety Order and the Building Safety Act 2022, all residential buildings, including HMO’s with common parts, must undergo regular fire risk assessments by competent assessors.
• Fire compartmentation, fire stopping and fire doors.
• Early warning systems, advising on the installation and maintenance of CO detectors and smoke alarms, ensuring compliance with the Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm Regulations 2022 and BS 5839-6: 2019
• Ensuring compliance with safe fire escape routes and emergency lighting requirements. Landlords must ensure that fire escape routes are accessible, clearly marked, and free from obstructions.
• Yuno also carries out peer reviews on council licensing requirements, enforcement and other Fire Risk Assessors’ actions to ensure they are in line with the guidance.

Our services are designed to help landlords, freeholders, letting agents, and property professionals navigate fire safety compliance to ensure properties meet all necessary standards without overspending.

Property, Building and HMO Training & Compliance Education

With frequent legal updates, keeping up with property compliance is challenging for property professionals. Yuno offers CPD-accredited training courses to help property professionals:

• Understand key compliance responsibilities.
• Stay up-to-date on changing property law, including the recent larger updates related to the Building Safety Act 2022 and the amendments to the Fire Safety Order.
• Improve you and your teams’ Short-term Let, HMO management, Planning and Licensing knowledge.

Property Management & Compliance Software: 

Managing multiple properties comes with a variety of ever-evolving compliance obligations. Yuno’s property management compliance software (Yuno Tech) provides:

• Identify the compliance requirements
• Real-time compliance tracking to help property professionals stay ahead of legal changes.
• Automated alerts and reminders for renewals and deadlines.
• Comprehensive insights into property compliance risks.
• The ability to manage the implementation of all property compliance recommendations through Yuno’s integrated Support Services. 

Our software is designed to help property professionals stay compliant and organised, all while reducing risk and streamlining operations.

Why Choose Yuno for Property Compliance?

Yuno is trusted by letting agents, landlords, freeholders, and property professionals across the UK for our property compliance expertise. Our technology platform and API, coupled with our team of experts, provide the assurance you need with guidance and support to stay ahead of ever-changing regulations. 

We offer comprehensive, end-to-end, integrated property management support designed to simplify compliance. From individual landlords to large-scale property managers, our services ensure your properties meet all necessary standards, keeping you legally secure while providing tenants with safe, well-managed homes.

Yuno is connected with a wide range of CRMs and industry technology. We have a live direct API integration with Reapit, SME Professional, GreenhouseOS and SMS Speedway and through our partnership with Gluedog, it includes MRI Software, Apex27, Acquaint, Street, Loop, and many others, with more being added regularly.

Take the first step towards stress-free compliance today.