Proposed changes to Renters Reform Bill not enough, expert says
The Government said that a changed Renters Reform Bill will be brought to the House of Commons, and it “must strike the balance between delivering security for tenants and fairness for landlords”.
But these amendments don’t amount to enough of a change as Neil Cobbold, Payprop’s managing director, says: “When you take a step back and look at the details, these new changes amount to very little in real terms – in fact, the bill is more or less intact.”
The proposed changes to the Renters Reform Bill include:
- When fixed-term tenancy agreements end, tenants should be unable to give two months’ notice to leave until they have been in a property for at least four months.
- Reviewing the operation of courts before abolishing Section 21 for existing tenants.
- Ensuring all types of student housing, including one- and two-bed properties, are covered by the planned ground for possession.
- Reviewing the need for local authority licensing schemes in light of the proposed property portal.
Cobbold added: “The Government has made some tweaks after speaking to the industry, but in practical terms, nothing substantial in the Renters Reform Bill has changed for the majority of tenants and landlords.”
“The abolition of Section 21 has been a policy of every major party since the last election, so it has become a question of whether this Government will abolish it or a future one. Until Section 21 is abolished, landlords will have to think in a slightly more structured way about how they actually evict somebody.”
Cobbold said that amending legislation to protect student lets was “something almost everybody is in favour of”, and if the Government didn’t take action, there would be a “major problem for the new intake of students at the beginning of the academic year”.
MPs return to work after their Spring break on Monday 15 April, and the bill will progress after that.
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Lydia Bell-Jones
With a background in banking, Lydia has been writing professionally for over five years. She is passionate about helping people improve their personal finances and has a particular interest in the connection between money and mental health.
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