David Cox, the former chief executive of ARLA Propertymark and now a senior executive at Rightmove, says it’s unlikely we’ll see the details of the new Renters Rights Bill until October.
The new Bill - announced yesterday at the King’s Speech - has so far had few details fleshed out, although it is believed it will include many of the main pillars of the old Renters Reform Bill.
These are the abolition of Section 21 eviction powers, empowering tenants to challenge undefined ‘unreasonable’ rent increases, banning rental bidding wars, allowing pets unless there are exceptional reasons, pas sporting the Decent Homes Standard from the public to the private sectors, a digital database of landlords, increased redress rights for tenants, and stricter rules for agents and landlords to fix damp and mould problems quickly.
No timeframe for implementation was mentioned as part of the King’s Speech on Wednesday, but in its manifesto Labour pledged to “immediately abolish Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions”.
Other industry figures have also spoken out about the Bill.
Timothy Douglas, policy head at Propertymark, says: “The reforms to the rental market are long expected and we will ensure that rent controls are avoided, new grounds are effective, and the court system is fit for purpose to coincide with any removal of Section 21.”
Chris Norris, policy director at the National Residential Landlords Association, adds: “With an average of 15 households chasing every available home to rent it is vital that rental reform does not make an already serious supply crisis in the private rented sector worse. The system that replaces Section 21 needs to be fair, workable and sustainable for both responsible landlords and renters. That means fixing a broken justice system which too often fails those reliant upon it.
“The Housing Minister has rightly noted that landlords need the courts to operate quickly where they have a good reason to repossess a property. This includes cases of tenant anti-social behaviour and serious rent arrears, which currently take almost seven months to process. This is far too long. Tenants are no better served by delays, which increase hardship, stress, and uncertainty.
“We need action from the Government, alongside the Bill, to ensure all are able to access justice in a timely fashion when they need to do so.
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On that basis can I ask on behalf of our profession to please stop bombarding us with online seminars discussing what no one knows anything about yet.
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