The residential property rental reforms may not have the landlords’ interests in mind. It may even put them at risk.
The bill intended to create balanced and well-executed regulations for the private rented sector. However, industry organisations like the National Residential Landlords Association, see it otherwise. The Renters Reform Bill serves exactly that: the renters. The property rental reforms put landlords and property investors at a disadvantage.
One property rental reform is the outright ban of Section 21 evictions. If this passes into law, landlords will no longer be allowed to apply for “no-fault evictions”. This, states Ben Beadle, chief executive of NRLA, will put landlords at risk from anti-social tenants with violent behaviour tendencies.
This risk of physical attack on their person or damage to their properties is something that landlords worry about. If the ban becomes law, landlords and property investors may be able to evict tenants in just one way. Landlords may only evict anti-social tenants from their property by relying on criminal convictions.
This option may be too dire, if not too late.
Changes To The Property Rental Reforms Are Needed To Make Them Fair For Tenants and Landlords
As compensation for banning Section 21 evictions, the Renters Reform Bill is strengthening the Section 8 notices.
The property rental reforms for Section 8 allows property investors and landlords to give notice to tenants to vacate their properties on three valid grounds. One of these grounds is dealing with tenants with serious anti-social or criminal behaviour. However, that might not be enough.
As of this writing, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) committee is currently undertaking an enquiry. The committee is inviting private renting sector experts and leaders, as well as property investors and landlords, to gauge the bill’s effectiveness. (Check out this article to know more.)
Addressing the Committee, Beadle states that having to wait until something bad happens on the property, or for anti-social behaviour to occur is not enough. Instead, these property rental reforms will likely affect fellow tenants and neighbours, and concern the local community.
The ban is essentially a reactive measure instead of an effective regulation. It puts the landlord, her/his property, as well as fellow tenants and neighbours at serious risk.
Current Reform Bill Lacking; Leaves Landlords On Their Own
Worse, not all landlords and property investors report their tenants’ anti-social behaviour. The Tony Blair Institute for Global Change did a study that included landlords and property investors who experienced anti-social behaviour the last year. The study found that only 26% reported their troubles to the local authorities.
The sentiment behind this is that the local councils and the police do not often have the effectiveness to carry out criminal convictions against anti-social tenants.
In a survey of nearly 3,500 landlords who served notices to tenants due to anti-social behaviour, the NRLA found that 84% received no assistance from their local council serving the notices. 75% of landlords and property investors stated they received no help from the police at all.
Beadle states that if, after this enquiry, no change is made to the bill, evicting anti-social tenants will become much more difficult. Not only that, banning Section 21 may increase the possession cases that end up in the courts, which has not been able to process them quickly enough.
“The government’s proposals simply do not achieve this, and we are calling on new Ministers to look again at the plans. Without change, the reforms will become a charter for anti-social behaviour.”
Want to know more about the private renting sector, compliance legislation, and the ongoing enquiry that affects our industry? Book a chat or call our team today on 02079236100.
