Our Newsround is here this week, bringing you the latest housing news and more straight to your inbox.
Licensing scheme review promises government
It is now well known that Jacob Young, the Minister for Levelling Up has promised a review of all local authority licensing schemes. But he has gone further to say that it will also cover all current licensing for HMOs (mandatory and additional) not just selective licensing.
This could leave alot of local authorities in limbo who are currently either in the consultation period of a new licensing scheme or about to implement a new licensing scheme or waiting on government approval for one.
Richard Tacagni, MD of London Property Licensing says
Exactly who will lead this property licensing review, it’s scope and timescale, remain unclear. If this is a comprehensive review, it seems highly unlikely the process will be completed and recommendations made before the general election.
Anyone thinking property licensing is about to be abolished will be sorely disappointed. Having said that, it does present an opportunity to improve the disjointed licensing framework, standardise licensing conditions and slow the upward trajectory of licensing fees which risk becoming a barrier to landlords entering the market.
Licensing scheme launches that is largest yet
And with licensing schemes becoming ever more prevalent in the news it is probably no surprise that councils are widening their scope on their current schemes and Redbridge Council has done just that. As of the beginning of this week, 8th April its licensing scheme was expanded and now applies to most private rented properties in 15 of its wards.
It was keen to point out that this was necessary to address significant issues within their borough concerning their private rented sector. Their report details
The council believes with the current evidence and data available, that there remains a persistent and significant problem with ASB and crime in the borough.
Although property licensing will not eradicate ASB and crime, it does provide the intelligence, key tools and levers for the council, the Metropolitan Police and other enforcement partners to deal with those problems as they occur, including imposing essential obligations on landlords and agents.
Their fees have also been increased, is this a sign that other local authorities will follow their lead?
Propertymark pushes on for agent regulation
Propertymark is continuing its pressure on the government to make sure that agents are qualified and meet minimum competency standards as this will ensure that standards of service are kept high and will remove bad practices in the the letting sector. They are pushing for professional qualifications for letting agents in England and for uniformity between both social and private sectors.
Henry Griffith, policy campaigns officer at Propertymark says
If Mr Gove [housing secretary] is serious about improving standards throughout the housing sector in general, then he must ensure that private tenants receive the same protections that social tenants do by enacting the Regulation of Property Agents Working Group’s recommendations from 2019. This will ensure that standards are raised throughout the housing market and ensure that anyone who is dealing with the complexities of housing legislation is appropriately qualified to do so.
Propertymark argue that the social sector standards should be the same for private sector so that all tenants benefit from higher standards regardless of where they rent from. It has been proven that compulsory qualifications for letting agents in Scotland has driven up standards and made significant improvements throughout the letting industry.
Landlords and the media
A prominent landlord and tenant solicitor Gina Peters of Dutton Gregory Solicitors (one of the panel solicitors for our telephone advice service) is reported as blaming the media for anti-landlord sentiment, saying:
This is very much a case of perception versus reality, with the media creating this story that all landlords are not to be trusted. Most landlords are in fact compliant but lack support from the Government.
Due to little funding and incentives for the industry, yes, we have seen a rise in disputes. The Government has created a very hostile environment, with the intended abolishment of Section 21 causing an increase in notices being served, more landlords selling up their portfolios due to financial pressure and uncertainty, and little to no support to make properties more energy efficient and safer for tenants. This together with a rise in these new anti-landlord style companies for tenant disputes, have led to a belief that many landlords are failing to comply with the legalities of renting property in England.
Local authorities who would normally investigate these claims and disputes are underfunded and under-resourced. There are now many licence schemes in place, which differ in each borough and can catch landlords out unintentionally.
With the rise in these new style tenant-oriented companies it is painting, in many cases, a landscape that suggests landlords are there to be sued. Many of the applications that these new companies are handling can be made to the First Tier Tribunal by tenants themselves as there are no costs to be gained from such action from a landlord.
I accept that some tenants may not be aware of their rights, but there is a fine line between providing legal advice and jumping on the bandwagon to ensure landlords are sued at the first hint of non-compliance. It is not helping the overall landscape within the private rented sector.
Agreed!
Landlords seeking guidance on their rights can find support on Landlord Law.
Snippets
UK rent rises forecast to outpace wage growth for three years
Court costs for landlords ‘will keep on rising’ predicts lawyer
Fines for non-compliant landlords skyrocket as councils cash in
NRLA “disappointed” about big rises in landlords’ court costs
Landlords warned of huge rise in tenant fraud attempts
Nearly Legal: Reforming Renters (Reform) Bill – ‘pragmatic’ intrusiveness
Newsround will be back next week.