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TODAY'S OTHER NEWS

Proposed changes mean the ‘current housing crisis would get worse’

The next prime minister, Boris Johnson or Jeremy Hunt, will almost certainly face a housing crisis if the government does not rethink its plans to impose yet further regulation on landlords.

The National landlords Association (NLA) warns that a housing crisis is “a racing certainty” if landlords are forced to exit the private rented sector as a result of the government’s plans to change the regulations - such as the proposal to abolish Section 21 of the Housing Act.

New research from the NLA reveals that 86% of landlords consider it “very likely” or “likely” that they would exit the private rented sector if the government presses ahead with controversial plans to make it harder to evict tenants.

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This comes in the wake of separate NLA research that found that landlords are pessimistic about the future, with the proportion rating the prospects of their own lettings business as “very good” or “good” falling from 65% to 37% over the past four years.

According to a survey of NLA members, almost half - 46% - of landlords have invested in property in order to substitute or supplement their pensions. Many did so after pension saving became a liability following the Labour government’s controversial £10bn-a-year pension fund “tax grab” and a series of high-profile scandals involving pension schemes such as those of Equitable Life and Robert Maxwell’s Mirror Group.

There are rising expectations that many landlords will have to sell up in order to fund their pension. Indeed, given that just over half - 51% - of the landlords who invested in property to fund their retirement have either retired or plan to do so in the near future, then there could be a negative impact on the availability of private rented housing.

Richard Lambert, CEO of the NLA, said: “Many landlords are telling us that the latest changes to the regulations affecting the private rented sector are the last straw.

“These are not the greedy or unscrupulous people that many would have you believe. They became landlords in order to fund their retirement, but they are being backed into a corner because the government’s plans to change the regulations- such as the proposal to abolish Section 21 of the Housing Act - is making it harder and harder for them to generate sufficient income.”

“If they are left with no option but to sell their property and exit the private rented sector in order to fund their retirement, then given how many landlords are retired or approaching retirement, the chances are that there will be a sudden and significant shrinkage in the size of the private rented sector. If that happened, it is a racing certainty that the current housing crisis would get worse.”

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Poll: Would you consider exiting the private rented sector if the government presses ahead with controversial plans to make it harder to evict tenants?

PLACE YOUR VOTE BELOW

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    Airbnb, here we come! Higher rents and no problem repossessions. No brainer unless the Governments get a grip!

  • Daniela Provvedi

    @Robert, I agree with you and wish I could AirBnb my properties. (I can't do it because I don't live near enough to manage them, unfortunately).
    But just wanted to ask... isn't there a limit in how many months a year a person is allowed to AirBnb their property before it becomes illegal?

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    • 15 July 2019 09:30 AM

    Oh!! Dear do you really believe LL will comply with such regulations as they exist.
    Most AirBnB is illegal.
    Do you seriously imagine that mortgage lenders; freeholders, insurers, councils allow such short-term letting of any sort!!!!?
    If you do you are incredibly naive.
    Of course LL are forced into such illegality...............needs must and all that.
    It is the inevitable result of the Govt assault on AST LL.
    Well there is more than one way to skin a cat legal or otherwise.
    This is what has happened in Edinburgh.
    A lot of short-term accommodation is now available mostly illegal but that doesn't seem to bother the tourists though it does of course the desperate tenants who can't source AST lettings and those that are available are rather expensive.
    Who'd of thought eh!?
    Attacking LL would result in them considering other ways of making money with their property assets!!!!!!

     
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    One good thing comes out of this article that is the phrase "No fault" has at last gone. Yippeeeeee!!!!!!!!!

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    I'm not giving in, I do have an advantage though, no loans or mortgages, and retired, so I have the time to do most repairs etc myself, however aren't I going to be very careful who I rent to, I if the gut feeling isn't right, then it's NO !

    PossessionFriendUK PossessionFriend

    Yep and the losers ( at Govt initiative ) will be the lower end of the market where the problem is already most acute.

    If Shelter and the MHCLG ( and Local Authorities ) think the 'No DSS' issue is a problem,
    just wait and see what happens if Sec 21 is abolished.

    ALL DSS will be camping out in either Shelters door ways, or on Local Authorities reception desks. !
    The very few Landlords that will entertain a Tenant on benefit that will be hardest to evict, will be more Rare that Rocking horse poo, and the cost of rents will reflect this.
    EVERYTHING MHCLG does Increases the misery for tenants.

     
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    • 15 July 2019 20:41 PM

    Indeed those LL who are unencumbered are in a very good position to manage their businesses.
    This is not a luxury that mortgaged LL have.
    It is very very risky being mortgaged LL.
    A rent defaulting tenant can bankrupt a mortgaged LL.
    Those LL without mortgages just suffer the inconvenience of being without income and having to deal with miscreant tenants.
    Personally I believe LL should strive to achieve total resilience by becoming unencumbered.
    Being a mortgaged LL has caused so much hate it would be better for a LL to have one unencumbered property rather than 4 mortgaged ones.
    Being a mortgaged LL seems to engender so much jealousy.
    This is what I will be doing.
    Every month I'm sweating on whether the rent will be paid so I can pay the mortgage.
    It is just far too stressful so I'm getting out of the BTL market.
    I aspire to bring mortgage free on a residential property where I will take in lodgers.
    Far less stressful!
    Simply can't cope with all the stresses of being a mortgaged sole trader LL.
    Enough is enough.

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    • 16 July 2019 00:58 AM

    @possessionfriend.

    If or probably when S21 is abolished will S8 be adjusted so that a S21 will still work!?
    If there is no increase in County Court facilities then S8 action will overwhelm the system.
    It takes long enough as it is using S21.
    Using S8 I just can't see working.
    It could easily take 2 years to evict under S8.
    By then most LL would have had the property repossessed by the lender bankrupting the LL.
    To avoid this a LL would be forced to only take on tenants who qualify for RGI.
    I would imagine RGI premiums would increase as it will be about 2 years before possession is achieved.
    I just can't see how the revised S8 process would work effectively unless similar to S21.
    Personally I don't see why the S8 process couldn't be adjusted for rent default only to allow immediate removal WITHOUT any court action being required after 1 month and 1 day.
    So it wouldn't be a non-fault removal.
    It would be because of 2 months rent default.
    I don't see why tenants who have defaulted on rent for two months should have any recourse to the courts to prevent them being removed by the LL the following day.
    Police should be used if tenants refuse to vacate.
    Of course the tenant could prevent eviction by paying the rent arrears down to one month.
    That would be fair enough.
    Of this means that a tenant could with much hassle operate the tenancy always 1 month in arrears.
    It is the case that most wrongun tenants will stop paying rent as soon as the LL wants to evict.
    Doing this would enable the LL to get rid of the tenant quicker.
    But I just don't believe Govt will add any enhancements to the current S8 process.
    As we all know S8 is not fit for purpose.
    This is very worrying.
    S8 will not provide the required possession processes.
    This could result in mass rental defaulting with those defaulting tenants confident that it could take years to evict them.
    We are certainly venturing into the unknown!

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