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Agency backs landlords with sweeping attack on government

An agency has issued a statement standing shoulder-to-shoulder with landlords and rejecting the negative mood music surrounding the private rental sector.

Chris Wood and Ross McDonald have been working in the private rental sector for approaching 30 years and each ran a successful lettings agency until creating their own, Portfolio. 

It is described by the pair as “Scotland’s only estate agency for landlords.”

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In an outspoken statement on its website the agency responds to the recent attacks on the rental sector in general and landlords in particular by the Scottish Government. The agency’s statement will ring bells for landlords across the UK, not just north of the border.

Here is the statement in full:

The private rented housing sector in Scotland comprises of more than 325,000 homes, which, based on average Scottish household data, could be almost 700,000 people.

A healthy private rented sector helps create better lives. It’s good for our communities and for the people In them who depend on it for a roof over their heads, not to mention for the national economy (the sector is worth an estimated £46 billion) which pays for the public services we all enjoy.

The PRS is a force for good in Scotland. Yet there is growing frustration among landlords that it is underappreciated, undervalued and - increasingly - under attack. This is not healthy.

Private rented housing has become a victim of sweeping misconceptions which we fear are having an increasingly negative influence on Scottish Government policy. The outcome of this is quite simple - it will risk driving landlords out of the business, reducing the supply of much-needed affordable homes, and therefore pushing up the price.

Far too often landlords are wrongly perceived as rich, fat cat business people who care little about their tenants. The reality is that the overwhelming majority are anything but - they are normal people, committed to providing quality, affordable homes.

The truth is that there’s no typical landlord. The market is largely made up of people whose day jobs lie in other professions, from hairdressers to firefighters, call centre workers to teachers. These are people whose rental property is primarily there to help their families for the future.

As Scotland’s only estate agency for landlords, we understand this - and we want others to realise it too before much-needed homes are removed from the rented market.

We have surveyed almost 200 landlords to help debug some of those myths . We hope they will begin to open eyes as to the reality of life in the PRS.

Landlords have a positive part to play in Scotland’s future, offering good, affordable and safe homes, fulfilling a critical national need. They are keen to engage and educate about the positive difference they make. We are eager to help that in any way we can.

You can see the findings of the agency’s survey here.

Want to comment on this story? If so...if any post is considered to victimise, harass, degrade or intimidate an individual or group of individuals on any basis, then the post may be deleted and the individual immediately banned from posting in future.

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    This is a great piece, it’s good to hear the positive truth that the large majority of landlords care about the tenants and look after their properties.
    Your survey is well presented and I hope you publish this across the Uk.
    Having 3 properties I am often considered by many as raking it in and that I don’t work.
    Both thoughts are wrong and I am kind and generous to my tenants in many ways. I want them to feel safe and secure.
    May 2022 be a better year for all those professions constantly being knocked. Current governments seem surprisingly ignorant in many areas.

  • PossessionFriendUK PossessionFriend

    Pity the NRLA couldn't be that Positive !

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    Pity the NRLA don't do much at all to support their paying members at all. We were sold out by them years ago in favour of their money making training courses etc. Not so much a representative organisation anymore as a for profit money spinning organisation

     
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    Never been a member and never will be, seems to me that they really aren't much different to Shelter

     
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    I was a member but do not feel they really represent my views now, Saul sums it up well above. I would say though that their advice line has been useful to me in the past.
    Highly impressed by this article....but where is our voice.

     
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    Andrew, please don’t say that not many places to turn to for support even if we don’t always agree with them. There a wealth of information available for members on their website, a free insurance help for tax investigation, free Tenancy Agreements to down load. Specialist landlords Insurance provider through Hamilton Frazer (Total LL Insurance/ NLA), a phone help line to answer your questions where someone actually answers the phone rare those days. So I wouldn’t dismiss them unnecessarily. £75. pa fee you don’t get much anywhere for £1.50 pw those days, with only 90k members to stand up to Shelter with their millions what can they be expected to do, if the 2.5m landlords joined they would have far more clout but many LL are too tight to even pay this modest membership fee. I know how it works same when we were campaigning to bring in Section 2I all sat on their hands, but were double quick to use it when available. I hope this gives a more balanced view, 15 years a member M Foley.

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    Michael I get all that and more from eastern landlords assoc for £70 and they aren't in the government's and shelter's pocket.

     
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    Very good you are a member of a LL Association to support you which is great. I used be a member of 3 but not necessary one is enough, even if half the LL’s joined @ £70. X 1.5m it would put Shelter in the Shade.
    Happy Christmas.

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    Great post Ross, i have never been a great supporter of LAS and SAL as i feel they are too close to the Scottish Government and Shelter. Not really representing their clients. Its time we have a quality organisation who actually "challenged" the SG on many of their current and proposed plans for the PRS

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