Students face chaos as government plans to reform the rental market threaten to cause widespread uncertainty as to whether housing will be available at start of each academic year.
That’s the view of one of the sector’s leading trade bodies, the National Residential Landlords Association.
Under the plans all student housing, with the exception of purpose-built blocks, will be subject to open-ended tenancies. This move means landlords and their agents are unable to guarantee that accommodation will be available for the start of each academic year, unless sitting tenants have handed in their notice to leave.
Students looking for housing will be unable to plan in advance where they want to live and with whom they want to live.
New data from the NRLA reveals that 84 per cent of landlords renting to students are concerned about the government’s plans.
One landlord told the NRLA: “I let solely to students. The end of fixed term Assured Shorthold Tenancies will bring chaos. We will have no guarantee that existing tenants will leave and therefore won’t be able to let properties in advance.”
According to official data, over a half (53 per cent) of students in the UK in rental properties do not live in halls of residence or other university provided accommodation
With the government having made clear that private purpose-built student accommodation will be exempt from plans to make every tenancy open ended, the NRLA has called for the same to be applied to all types of student housing at a roundtable meeting with the Minister.
Under the NRLA’s proposals student landlords would be able to repossess a property with two months’ notice where it is required for new students each year. To provide protections, the earliest such notice could be served to sitting tenants would be in the last two months of a tenancy agreement, or at the 10th month of a 12-month fixed term.
Ben Beadle, the NRLA chief executive, says: “The student housing market works unlike any other, operating from one academic year to the next. It is common sense that landlords should have certainty that accommodation can be made available for new students each year, as has already been reflected for the Purpose-Built Student Accommodation sector.
“Without changes the government risk causing chaos, confusion and anxiety for students unable to plan where they live for the start of each academic year.”
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Everything is focused on students. What about the rest of the private rental sector! Many landlords wouldn't enter into an open ended tenancy with anyone in a million years. That is what is set to cause chaos if the provisions of the White Paper are implemented.
Time for Gove to go, he’s not fit for the job.
It’s total Discrimination the Bill is favouring the Big Developers putting up Multi- Storey’s Blocks to replace us.
Their Blocks for Students are and are going to be exempt and will remain in effect Assured Shorthold Tenancies, we house most of the Students and are excluded, what ever happen to us all being equal under the Law. What a sham scrap The White Paper now and Keep Section 21.
Obviously though if it’s Scrapped for Students it has to be Scrapped for everyone else to, otherwise we will all be Housing Students and will be accepting no other type of Tenants.
Just Scrap the Stupid Bill, it’s done more damage in a year than all the good achieved in the last 40 years.
You are so right Michael about the damage done to the private rental sector since the announcement that Section 21 would be abolished. It has been disastrous for tenants as landlords have sought to protect their assets. Of course, the situation is only going to get much worse unless the Government is able to devise a tenancy model which is acceptable to landlords - and what was in the White Paper was, most certainly, not acceptable.
The lunatics running the asylum don’t care. It’s all about the tenants. If landlords don’t like it it’s tough I think is their view. Also hopefully this will all create a big mess for Labour which might be part of the plan.
Michael
You're absolutely right.
I'm now in the fifth year of not being allowed fixed term tenancies in Scotland and do now only rent to students.
However, whilst in theory they could stay on, so far they have all acted as if they had to leave after the year.
The biggest impact has been in Edinburgh and St Andrews where short term rentals can't be booked until students have left, meaning many formerly let to students for term time are now full-time short term rentals, furthering the shortage of rental properties for both students and families.
There has been no positive outcome to Scotland's 2017 and 2022 PRS legislation measures.
The student market is very different to the rest of the lettings market for the simple reason that students want to sign tenancies so far in advance of the move in date. A great many student households have already signed tenancies that will commence in September 2023. A great many more will sign up in January.
Every other tenant type operates on a completely different timescale. Between one and two months notice that they're leaving. New tenants often ready to move in within days of viewing a property. Some landlords use a series of fixed term tenancies while others let the initial fixed term roll onto a SPT. Either model has advantages and disadvantages which seem to be largely misunderstood by just about everyone - journalists, activists, MPs, landlords and tenants.
The NRLA represents a tiny proportion of residential landlords, it does appear to be a front for the government. Its a stunt the conservatives pull when they make major often detrimental changes to the sector on question. Beadle seems to have an interest in student rental property. Write to Sunak and tell him that he is likely to get 4 million voters abstain and create a sub prime crisis when the financial institution funded corporate letting properties go belly up. Ie when they get a few tenants from hell.
Jo. Sorry don’t agree ever on this one. All letting for most part are Assured Shorthold Tenancies which includes Section 21.
Students are no different and I have every type there ever was including Students.
As far as I am concerned there is no such thing as signing up a year or any other lengthy period in advance even if it
were legal.
How can I sign up a property to another party while legally occupied by others and even with existing S.21 it’s going to take months to get my property back. However even if I did this and signed to something I haven’t got how could I honour that Contract, could they sue
me no thanks if its not available it’s not on offer.
Michael
You simply get them to sign a letter saying they understand the minor risk of the current tenants refusing to leave but also understand that in over 20 years of renting multiple properties this has never happened to me as a landlord.
I've also found students quite willing to give written irrevocable notice in February and cooperate fully in viewing etc.
That's very true Michael, I wouldn't sign a tenancy agreement until after the old tenant had left and returned the keys, but I don't rent to students so don't have this problem.
I won't sign a tenancy agreement either until the flat is empty.
So in practice what would happen if you signed a tenancy agreement with tenant A and then tenant B failed to move out? What come back does Tenant A have?
You would be in breach of contract, and the tenant could sue you for their losses.
You could sue the guarantors of the tenants who refused to leave under the terms of the contract for any losses, including any settlement you have to make to tenants unable to move in on the agreed date.
Bonkers, I have already let to new students arriving September 2023. Freshers not only need to know they have a university place but also acceptable accommodation, leaving it to the last 2 months would cause stress for all parties
That is the point exactly. I will have a busy month in January as soon as the students come back from the Xmas break. It will be let by February at the latest.
In the future I will have to do as suggested earlier in this thread and get them to sign a letter stating they uinderstand that tenancy will not be confirmed until the existing tenants leave at the end of June and tell them why this has come about!
With the general devastation meted out by the SNP and their little Green helpers to Scottish tenants, over 900 groups were chasing a single flat in Glasgow in September this year and the University and College authorities were advising students to defer for a year if they hadn't secured flats.
This happened in a market where many landlords, including me, now avoid families and only let to students.
Of course, no lessons will be learned by the SNP or the many left wing parties infecting every layer of UK politics!
Coming to a jurisdiction near you soon!
Yes they are all very concerned about the Tenants and must complain about everything and now an Ombudsman for them,
It everything to attack and destroy us encouraged by Mr Rogue Gove.
Who do we complain to, or who redresses us, where is our Ombudsman. It doesn’t matter about landlords how much stress we are caused, we don’t have the Rights of a dog.
Ah Sure why should it matter about us we only gave years slaving to buy the property to provide the accommodation for others to walk in take over indefinitely, unless you are one of those recent honey manager landlords taking advantage of the System with their interest only 1% Mortgage’s.
I love the way some landlords now think they can make their own rules, just write something into to suit.
Ok a letter of intent not a Contract but subject to Contact.
A Contract should be between both Parties and binding on both not one like now.
This unfairness has been a problem since 1988, if the Contacts applied to both parties Section 21 wouldn’t have been required in the first place. The AST was firm for the period signed up for whether it be 6 months minimum or a year or more up to 7. The requirement was to give 2 months notice to quit which was normal to serve S,20 at start of Contract, that was case for 20 years then they started meddling with it & couldn’t be served until the last 2 months and have been messing around with it ever since & introduced Periodic. It was right in the beginning everything was signed up at start straight away everyone knew where they stood, instead of chasing them around like a fool 2 months to go and not making themselves available.
The Contract as said should apply to both Parties. The Tenants don’t need a Court to stay on, so why should a Landlord need one just because the other party decides the Contact don’t apply to them.
Then at the end they leave or sign for a further period subject to everyone being happy, not running open ended Contracts people coming and going and swapping around bringing in extras overcrowding and not even asking you, its fine as long as it’s damaging landlords.
Most of my students are postgraduates and I've been offering open-ended tenancies for a while. The result of this is that there's been a gradual shift so half my tenants are now working. It means there is no possibility for friendship groups renting the property together in the autumn. It's a pity as my property is one of the closest within walking distance of the University but it's not my loss.
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