Landlord Law Newsround brings you all the latest housing news, this week is no exception.
Tenant-landlord relationship ranks highest reason tenants remain
A good landlord-tenant relationship goes a long way in many aspects of renting, but 68% of tenants rated this as the main factor for staying in a property. It ranked above speedy maintenance and repair issues at 44% and being settled in an area at 50%.
72% of landlords prefer tenants to stay in their properties for longer, according to LRG. 28% of landlords prefer fixed term tenancies as they allow for rent reviews. However, 24% of tenants are expected to remain in their rental property for longer once the Renters’ Rights Act comes into force with periodic tenancies.
The LRG survey also mentions that there is less choice of properties than in previous years, so tenants are staying long-term in properties. Allison Thompson of LRG states that tenants are looking for ‘somewhere to settle, not just live’.
Council enforcement fine data is an unknown
The government does not know how many civil penalties have been issued to landlords or how many have actually been paid. These figures are somewhat key to knowing how much councils will need to enforce the Renters Right Act. They have up until now, relied upon ad hoc reporting and the Freedom of Information requests.
Previous figures from the Freedom of Information for 285 councils between 2023-2025 that was sourced by the NRLA, found that 3,695 civil penalties to the value of £30 million were issued, but only £7.5 million was actually paid.
Furthermore, some activists claim that penalty amounts vary for the same offence. The government does not know how many council staff work in enforcement for the PRS. Despite funding £68 million to support councils with their new responsibilities, there is uncertainty if even this amount will be enough. Pretty grim reading!
Although we understand that Justice for Tenants is looking to set up a debt enforcement legal service to support Councils.
Promises that the PRS Database will not be onerous to landlords
There is still no exact timeline for landlords to sign up to the new Private Rented Sector Database save for it being ‘later this year’. However, there have been concerns raised in parliament that it could be an onerous task for large portfolio landlords. MP Gareth Bacon asked if it would allow for ‘block registrations’. Matthew Pennycock said they are looking to ‘minimise administrative requirements on private landlords’.
He added
Fees to register on the PRS Database will be set out in secondary legislation and will take account a range of factors, including burden on landlords.
Once the Renters Right Act is in force, fines for landlords can be up to £7000 if they advertise a property without being on the new database and £40,000 if landlords enter fraudulent information onto the new database. Fees are yet to be announced.
Eviction rates grow over 5 year period
A report carried out by county court bailiffs claims that repossessions have gradually increased over the past five years by 562%. This is higher than pre covid in 2020. This means that 93,000 tenants have been evicted. In 2024 there were 27,117 evictions.
Tenants aged between 25 to 34 years were the highest group to be served with a repossession order, whilst in London, 8 in 10 renters were evicted. Newham had on record 737 repossessions.
You can read more here.
Snippets
Renters Right Act will stop tenants being evicted for holiday lets – Government
Alarm bells ring over London housing crisis
Landmark gas safety eviction case goes to Court of Appeal
EPC rent refunds demanded by activists
What happens to rental properties when landlords sell up?
See also our Quick News Updates on Landlord Law
Newsround will be back again next week
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