An umbrella organisation representing parts of the private rented sector is to be put before the Scottish parliament in a bid to prevent the introduction of rent controls.
The petition seeks support for the view that “there is no role for the regulation of area-based rent limitations in Scotland” and has been instigated by PRS4 Scotland, a pressure group including letting agents, landlords, portals and investors.
It has been raised in reaction to the current government consultation on the private rented sector – including the issue of rent controls – which closed yesterday.
One of the figures behind the petition, veteran letting agent David Alexander, says politicians could find that rent controls lead to a negative response from tenants as well as landlords.
“Potential landlords will be scared off from entering the sector while many existing ones are likely to disinvest, which can only lead to a reduction in stock. At a time when young couples are finding difficulty in raising the large deposits required by mortgage lenders, what we need are more, not less, homes for rent” he says.
Alexander is also against efforts by Scottish MSPs to prevent a landlord repossessing a property unless he or she wishes to sell it or make it his or her own home.
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