Tenants will not benefit from the government’s ban on letting agent fees - because the costs will be passed on in higher rents, according to the Association of Letting agents (ARLA Propertymark).
The government finally unveiled its formal consultation process on the proposal to ban letting agents levying fees on tenants in England on Friday.
Reflecting on the letting agent fee consultation, ARLA Propertymark said that letting agents would almost certainly need to increase rental charges to make up the shortfall.
David Cox, chief executive, ARLA Propertymark, described the government’s housing policy as shambolic and insisted that the consultation “contradicts its already stated aim to encourage longer term tenancies”.
“Independent analysis launched at ARLA Propertymark’s annual Conference last week revealed that if an outright ban was introduced, rents will increase by £103 per year which will only serve to financially punish long term tenants,” he said.
Cox added that the proposed policy is a “short-term crowd pleaser” and is disappointed that the Department for Communities and Local Government has not considered ARLA Propertymark’s proposals in the consultation.
“We urge the government to use this process to think again to ensure that consumers and the wider economy are not penalised by contradictory government policies,” he added.
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