Posts with tag: tenants

Labour propose minimum standards for sector

Published On: May 2, 2017 at 8:44 am

Tags: general election,landlords,rental market,tenants

The General Election campaigns are beginning to gather pace, ahead of the big vote on the 8^th June.

Labour has now moved to pledge a ‘consumer rights revolution’ that will introduce legal minimum standards for all rental homes.

Proposals

These proposals, which will be introduced should Labour win the election, include a raft of new standards that would see electrical safety, sanitation and cooking facilities. This is to ensure that homes are, ‘fit for human habitation’ according to shadow housing secretary John Healey.

Landlords who fail to meet this tougher standards could face fines of up to £100,000.

Healey feels that these new measures will allow tenants to, ‘call time on bad landlords.’

In response, the Conservatives said that these standards added up to a tenants tax, that will only serve to push up rents. This has been met with scorn from Labour, given the fact that the Tories have introduced increased Stamp Duty surcharges and phased out mortgage interest tax relief.

Labour propose minimum standards for sector

Renter’s Rights

Mr Healey commented: ‘Our homes are at the centre of our lives, but at the moment renters too often don’t have basic consumer rights that we take for granted in other areas. In practice, you have fewer rights renting a family home than you do buying a fridge-freezer. As a result, too many are forced to put up with unacceptable, unfit and downright dangerous housing.’[1]

‘Most landlords provide decent homes that tenants are happy with, but these rogue landlords are ripping off both renters and the taxpayer by making billions from rent and housing benefit letting out sub-standard homes. After seven years of failure the Conservatives have no plan to fix the housing crisis,’ he added.[1]

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/5/labour-unveil-plans-to-call-time-on-bad-landlords

RLA Calls for New Housing Court for Landlords and Tenants

Published On: April 27, 2017 at 9:14 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Landlord News

Tags: general election,housing court,private rental sector,repossession,tenants

The Residential Landlords Association (RLA) is calling on the next government to set up a new housing court to speed up justice for landlords and tenants.

Statistics show that it takes an average of 43 weeks for a landlord to regain possession of a property through the courts, during which time they may not receive any rent.

Tenants would also benefit from the new housing court, as they would be able to take quicker action against rogue landlords that fail to provide accommodation to legally required standards.

RLA Calls for New Housing Court for Landlords and Tenants

Freedom of Information (FOI) data obtained by the RLA last year shows that, among the 255 councils that responded, just 827 prosecutions were brought against landlords over the preceding five years following notices to improve a property being issued.

The RLA argues that establishing a new housing court would enable landlords and tenants to more swiftly access justice to uphold their contractual rights.

The Chairman of the RLA, Alan Ward, says: “The current court system is not fit for purpose. It takes too long and is too costly for landlords to repossess a property where tenants are not paying their rent, as well as for tenants to uphold their rights when faced with a landlord providing substandard housing.

“New housing courts would greatly improve the situation, enabling justice for good landlords and tenants to be provided more swiftly.

“Landlords are more likely to rent property out to tenants for longer periods if they can more easily regain possession of a home where tenants are not paying their rent or committing anti-social behaviour.”

He urges the political parties: “We call on all parties to support this common sense proposal.”

The new housing court proposal is just one of six practical policy suggestions put forward by the RLA ahead of 8^th June’s snap General Election:

Boost the supply of new homes by bringing unused public land and empty properties back into use for private rental homes, coupled with positive taxation policies that promote growth.
Establish a new housing court to deliver quick and cost-effective justice, to help landlords and tenants enforce their rights.
A fairer approach to welfare reform, giving tenants that claim Universal Credit the choice of having rent paid directly to their landlord and speeding up the claim process.

Effective enforcement against rogue landlords through guaranteed long-term funding for local authorities, backed by a system of co-regulation for the majority of law-abiding landlords.
Support landlords to improve energy efficiency in private rental homes, for the benefit of tenants and the environment.
Create a new deposit trust for tenants, enabling them to transfer deposits seamlessly between tenancies.

These proposals form part of the RLA’s ongoing campaigning around tax, the Right to Rent scheme, rent controls and landlord licensing schemes.

Lettings Fee Ban Consultation Should be Extended or Suspended, Insists ARLA

Published On: April 26, 2017 at 9:39 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Property News

Tags: letting agent fee ban,letting agents,lettings fee ban,tenants

The lettings fee ban consultation should either be extended or suspended until after 8^th June’s General Election, insists ARLA Propertymark.

The organisation believes that the consultation period for the proposed ban on letting agent fees charged to tenants should either be extended or suspended until after the vote.

Lettings Fee Ban Consultation Should be Extended or Suspended, Insists ARLA

ARLA Propertymark’s Chief Exectuive, David Cox, sent a letter to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government , Sajid Javid, yesterday, also requesting that workshops on the lettings fee ban be reintroduced as part of the consultation process.

The full letter is here:

“Dear Secretary of State,

As the UK’s largest professional body for the lettings industry with over 9,000 members, ARLA Propertymark requests that you extend the time limit for the consultation to ban letting agent fees in light of the recently announced General Election.

We were pleased that a key part of this consultation process, as set out by DCLG [the Department for Communities and Local Government], was to engage the sector and host a number of workshops throughout the country to discuss the implementation of the fee ban and proposals in the consultation. This was most welcome, as it would have allowed agents to gain clarity from officials on some of the points raised in the document and share their views on the proposals. However, as it is likely the fee ban will become a manifesto pledge in the coming weeks, and therefore a political issue, this work cannot properly take place during purdah; when civil servants will need to take extra care to remain impartial and objective. General Election guidance also makes clear that statements which refer to future intentions of the Government should not be handled by a Department.

Therefore, ARLA Propertymark asks that the Government either extends the consultation for a further period beyond the election, or suspends it until a new Government is in place.

Either way, we request that the consultation does not close until the now cancelled workshops have taken place; as the Department originally committed to do as part of the consultation process.

I look forward to hearing from you in due course.

Yours sincerely,

David Cox

ARLA Propertymark Chief Executive”

Do you agree with Cox’s calls?

In addition, ARLA Propertymark has recently released its Private Rented Sector report for March: /tenants-lower-rents-lettings-fee-ban/

Tenants Securing Lower Rents Ahead of Lettings Fee Ban

Published On: April 26, 2017 at 9:22 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Landlord News

Tags: landlord taxes,letting agent fee ban,rent prices,tax changes,tenants

Tenants are getting savvier, by securing lower rents ahead of the lettings fee ban, according to a study of letting agents by ARLA Propertymark.

In the March Private Rented Sector report from the organisation, 3.6% of letting agents had seen rents drop, compared with 2.2% in February. There were still increases, however, with 25% of agents reporting that landlords had put their rents up, down from 32% last year.

Tenants Securing Lower Rents Ahead of Lettings Fee Ban

Worryingly, however, letting agents also reported an increasing number of landlords selling their rental properties during March. An average of four landlords per letting agent branch had announced plans to sell up last month.

No reason was given for the decision, but it does coincide with the reduction in mortgage interest tax relief and forthcoming letting agent fee ban.

The last time the number of landlords selling their properties rose above three per branch was in November last year, when the fee ban was announced.

David Cox, the Chief Executive of ARLA Propertymark, believes that this shows that tenants are already being affected by the Government’s buy-to-let tax changes.

It is believed that rent prices will go up following the lettings fee ban, as landlords will instead be forced to foot the charges.

Meanwhile, the supply of rental stock remained flat, at an average of 183, but was 8% higher than March 2016.

Letting agents also had a higher number of tenants registered, at 36 per branch, up from 34 in February.

Cox comments on the report: “It’s concerning that, despite supply increasing over last year, stock failed to return to the market after dipping in February.

“When we also consider that this is coupled with a rise in the number of landlords selling their properties, this is bad news for those searching for a rental property.

“The introduction of mortgage interest relief means the market is becoming less and less attractive to investors, and it appears some landlords are, as we predicted, choosing to exit the market rather than pay the higher taxes.”

He continues: “What’s more, two thirds of our members are concerned the Government will introduce even more landlord taxes in 2017, which will only further dampen supply.

“Following the announcement of the ban on letting agent fees, we expect the situation to only get worse for tenants when, inevitably, the costs are passed on to tenants through higher rents.

“However, it’s positive that more tenants are taking action and negotiating rent reductions before the consultation ends and they see their rents increase.”

Have your tenants been requesting lower rents recently?

40% of renters feel the marketplace is ‘ruthless and unethical’

Published On: April 26, 2017 at 9:07 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Property News

Tags: letting agents,private rental sector,rental market,tenants

A new survey over 2,000 UK adults by online estate agent LetBritain has uncovered the sentiments of those in Britain’s rental market.

According to the data, 40% of UK renters, or 7.21m people, called the marketplace, ‘ruthless and unethical,’ citing unscrupulous letting agents and gazumping as their main irks.

Demand

37% said that the present rental system is unfit for purpose as it cannot meet demand and cannot adapt to the changing speeds in the market. Another 37% said that they have been misled by an estate agent with regards to the competition that they faced from rival renters.

In addition, 38% of UK renters said that they were knowingly advertised properties that were never available, while 31% feel they lost out as their estate agent preferred another tenant.

40% of renters feel the marketplace is ‘ruthless and unethical’

Given that there are 4.3m rented households across Britain, a large number of tenants are seemingly disillusioned by the process of securing a property through a high street agent.

Fareed Nabir, founder and CEO of LetBritain, noted: ‘Today’s research delivers some revealing insights into the opinions of generation rent. It is obvious that renters up and down the country feel let down by their estate agent – from luring them in with properties that aren’t available to misleading potential tenants about the competition they face, the country’s rental population is suffering at the hands of questionable practices. Clearly a faster, fairer and more transparent system is required to alleviate the time and stress involved in securing a rental property.’[1]

[1] http://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/landlords/uk-renter-sentiment-revealed-in-new-survey.html

It’s a Tenant’s Market in the Home Counties, Reports Knight Frank

Published On: April 21, 2017 at 9:39 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Landlord News

Tags: Home Counties,private rental sector,rental market,tenants

With significantly more rental properties to choose from, it’s a tenant’s market in the Home Counties, as reflected by a drop in rent prices so far this year, reports Knight Frank.

It’s a Tenant’s Market in the Home Counties, Reports Knight Frank

Despite a 23% annual rise in the volume of new tenancies agreed in the first three months of the year, prime rental values dropped by 2.3% across the Home Counties, following a 1.8% decline in the previous quarter.

The estate agent was instructed to let 33% more properties in the first quarter (Q1) of 2017 compared with the previous year, while the number of market appraisals – a good indicator of future stock levels – rose by 39% year-on-year, placing downward pressure on rent prices in the Home Counties.

The volume of new prospective tenants increased by 15% over the year, with demand highest in the sub-£2,000 per month price bracket.

Around 60% of new tenants in Q1 were from the UK, followed by those from North America, the data shows.

Corporate enquiries from individuals relocating to the Home Counties for work were fairly robust over the quarter, up by 17% on the same period last year. Indications suggest that interest from corporate tenants will rise further over the summer months, ahead of the start of new school terms.

A Partner at Knight Frank’s Home Counties lettings team, Jemma Scott, says: “The figures very much reflect the feedback that we have been getting and the general sentiment within the market.

“After a challenging summer last year, we saw a surge in rental deal volumes at the beginning of 2017, which, coupled with the heightened level of enquiries from prospective tenants, means we head into the traditionally busy spring and summer market with great optimism.”

Do you let properties in the Home Counties? If so, have you seen conditions shift towards being a tenant’s market?