Shelter's non-stop attack on rental sector is "plain wrong"

An industry group says the seemingly non-stop attack on the private rental sector by campaigning charity Shelter is “plain wrong.”

After a claim about a million tenants a year being subject to some form of problem with landlords allegedly acting illegally, the Residential Landlords Association - citing data from the latest English Housing Survey - asks why Shelter fails to explain how 82 per cent of tenants in the private sector are satisfied with their accommodation.

This figure is higher than in the social rented sector, it says.

Shelter also refers to the apparent instability private tenants face yet the most recent EHS shows that tenants are on average living in their homes for four years - hardly a sign of instability - with just eight per cent of tenancies ended by the landlord rather than a tenant.

“Shelter is once again making extravagant claims about the standard of all housing in Britain, let alone private rented property. Though we share Shelter’s ambition for every rented home to be of a decent standard the answer is not more regulation” says RLA vice chairman Chris Town. 

“With over 400 regulations covering the sector, what is needed is not new powers but better enforcement of existing powers to root out the crooks, rather than tying the majority of good landlords up in excessive red tape” he adds.

“The most effective way of ensuring housing is affordable is to increase supply. We hope Shelter will support landlords in calling on the government to change recent tax policies and on councils to scrap ineffective, but costly, licensing schemes all of which discourage investment.”