Welcome to our weekly Newsround where we see no shortage of housing news this week.
Government launches consultation for Awaabs Law
The government has launched a consultation on extending Awaab’s Law in the PRS. In addition to this, the governments own impact assessment states that this could have a financial impact on landlords, causing some to leave the market.
However, they feel that the ones to leave would be the landlords offering the poorest quality of housing, which could then potentially be bought by professional landlords who would improve the standards in the sector.
They seek to address the ongoing ‘power imbalance’ between landlord and tenant, where a tenant is not in possession of all property details to the extent that a landlord is; neither do they know how quickly a landlord deals with repairs and issues when taking on a new tenancy. Rental reforms such as the Renters’ Rights Act, abolition of section 21 and the new Ombudsman are all steps in the right direction to re-address the power balance, but more needs to be done.
The consultation will help the government determine whether Awaab’s Law should also apply to supported housing, temporary accommodation for homeless people and care leaver accommodation. You can read the consultation here.
Greater transparency called for co-habiting HMO tenants
Tenants living in HMO accommodation are now asking for more details of fellow tenants that they will be sharing with. 21% of tenants say that they feel unsafe of a housemate and this rises to 27% for those over 45. 22% of men feel unsafe, compared with 21% of women.
The report by COHO, a shared living platform, states that the report now raises questions around ‘compatibility, transparency and safety’ within shared accommodation, which houses more than 2 million people. 60% of tenants wish they had known more about their housemates, while 53% of renters want some input into who is moving in to join them. 40% would be happy to pay more to ensure that they are living with compatible people.
COHO Chief Exec said
As shared living becomes a bigger part of the housing market, landlords and operators must move away from treating housemates as anonymous occupants and instead recognise compatibility as an important part of creating successful shared homes.
The report shows that the days of not knowing who we are sharing with in HMO accommodation are outdated and one of the ‘critical factors that is overlooked’.
Landlords turn to letting agents
A quarter of all landlords now use a letting agent for full management; this is up by 5% from last year according to Pegasus Insight. For those properties that are not fully managed 34% of landlords use an agent to source their tenants, and 6% of landlords use an agent for rent collection. 34% of landlords do not use an agent.
The reasons for using an agent is due to ongoing regulatory changes that are now complex and come with high fines and penalties for non-compliance.
Time commitment has seen an increase too, according to the report, with 51 hours per month on average for those who manage their own properties and 11 hours per month for those who use an agent. This obviously increases as the portfolio increases.
Landlords who prefer not to use a letting agent can sign up for Landlord Law, which provides information and support to help landlords self-manage.
Rogue letting agent sees her day in court
A rogue letting agent in East Anglia has received a 12-month prison sentence suspended for 18 months and 200 community hours of work for defrauding both tenants and landlords out of almost £50,000. Offences included failing to protect tenants’ deposits and not passing rental income onto landlords.
Victoria Steele’s offices were closed down in 2018, but victims are still waiting for compensation, with one saying
In the nine years that this case has been ongoing, some victims have died, some have moved and many have given up on seeing justice being handed down.
A confiscation hearing is due in February 2027.
Snippets
Mother & disabled child in property with damp & mould
Landlord given wrong deposit advice, warns solicitor
Asking rents hit record high as supply slips
Peers warn tenant access could hinder social housing electrical safety checks
Tackling antisocial behaviour: How landlords can successfully navigate Ground 14 under the Renters’ Rights era
They asked for 80 homes – she gave them 157! Council-housing miracle named Britain’s best new building
Newsround will be back again next week. In the meantime, check out our Daily Tips service.
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