A prominent Welsh politician says rent controls should be introduced across that country to “make landlordism less financially attractive.”
The Welsh nationalist party Plaid Cymru has put down a motion in a bid to get the Welsh Government to implement rent controls across that country.
The idea is already enshrined in a policy agreement between Welsh Labour and Plaid Cymru.
Now Carolyn Thomas, a member of the Welsh Parliament - known as the Sennedd - has written in The National newspaper: “I have long supported rent controls and I will back any move which seeks to address the poverty caused by unreasonable rent increases.”
She continues: “in my view, rent controls are essential. They help to protect tenants from poverty by capping housing costs, and they make landlordism less financially attractive - which helps to take some of the heat off the housing market.
“Rent controls also cuts the benefit bill in the huge amount of housing benefit and Universal Credit which is handed out to landlords each week.”
Thomas is critical of how a form of rent controls have been applied in Scotland by the Scottish National Party, so she suggests any Welsh attempt should learn from what happened north of the border.
She says there are four key lessons:
“Only a national system will work. That system may allow for regional variations in levels, but trying to establish whether some areas need controls more than others against an arbitrary standard serves only to thwart the intention of the controls;
"Bureaucratic hurdles must be minimised. Procedural hoops required to implement controls will only delay action and therefore increase costs to the taxpayer;
" Restricting the impact of controls to existing tenants simply incentivises landlords to increase turnover by refusing to renew tenancies or increasing evictions. Controls must be placed on the property, not on the contract with each tenant;
" Basing controls on the rate of inflation is a mistake – there is no meaningful link between inflation and either house prices or rent levels. Setting controls on this basis allows the largest rent hike when people can least afford it, during a time when the cost of living rises.”
And Thomas concludes in her article: “Rent controls should be designed to protect tenants first and foremost, and as a longer term aim, it should discourage landlordism.
“This will reduce the number of landlords looking to buy houses to let, increasing the number who are looking to sell.
“This will in turn deflate the housing market, allowing former tenants to buy their own homes, and the expansion of social house building will continue to ensure a home for those who do not wish to buy or who remain unable to.
“A system of rent controls should also not shy away from mandatory rent decreases where necessary. Rent controls are a sensible and necessary step for Wales to take in our fight to fix the housing system.”
The full article is much longer and you can see it here.
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Crack on Carolyn, but remember you need to explain to those who are living under a bridge why they cannot find anything to rent ! All LL’s can see which way the wind is blowing and we will make our decisions.
Our local news paper headline couple of days ago '' housing crisis in Norwich'' with a loony left labour / green council are we surprised ? they ain't seen nothing yet, just the tip of the ice burg, Norwich city centre is full of tents under fly overs and in shop door ways, they stick the knife in landlords backs and then ask for our help. how does that work ?
Bunch of lunatic lefties.
What with the Politburo in Cardiff in cahoots with these nutters, the future looks very bleak.
Their answer to Housing is to destroy those who supply it, how does that work.
Now I fully understand why 50s America feared communism. We didn’t make this landscape it is the result of the same politicians that now want to bring us down. We really need to take care who we give power to at the ballot box. All I see in all party’s at the moment is red.
Unfortunately, the people of Wales keep voting for them.
Over 20 years of the WAG and we have gone backwards.
If they carry on, I will be getting out of the PRS altogether, as it is one thing after another with these morons.
Making landlordism less attractive will certainly reduce the number of PRS properties but many will be converted to short term holiday lets, not sold off cheaply to first time buyers.
Building more social housing can be done without screwing up the PRS. Most of my tenants would never consider renting social housing and I would never consider renting to most tenants currently in social housing.
In my experience the two sectors are quite different and should co-exist without political interference.
Laughably ignorant.
If that happens, they will probably move to control holiday lets as well.
Is there no respite from this communist rhetoric?
I voted against devolution for the reason that all that possibly could happen would come true and my worst fears have been realised.
Max Boyne
Can you please clarify if you mean this politician or my comment?
Next let us attack the supermarkets and control the price of food. I have long supported food price controls and I will back any move which seeks to address the hunger caused by unreasonable food price increases.
But please let MP's salaries continue to be decided by MP's.
Oh my God I’m on the floor crying with laughter. Yet another leftist idiot keen to publicly demonstrate her complete lack of any knowledge or experience at all. She still thinks landlords being pushed out equates to falling prices and more tenants buying! Obviously hasn’t seen how well that worked out for rent and purchase prices in England (not to mention homelessness, which I’m sure she thinks is terrible and claims to be furiously against).
Unfortunately for those of us living in the Principality, we are being led by morons.
Our morons in Scotland are much bigger than your morons and have taken a head start in destroying the PRS in Scotland.
In fact they're about to embark on Phase 2!
It'll just make lower-end properties much more expensive to rent and ensure the middle classes rent elsewhere and commute - probably Bristol.
Problem is that rents in Bristol are very high and that's why people often rent here in Wales.
They want us to rent our properties out as 'not for profit'.
The lunatics are running the asylum down here.
John, agree Wales is worse with less rent and even more draconian regulation’s as well as 6 months possession notice required at least we are back to 2 months notice since last October.
Hi Michael, yes it is thoroughly depressing to be honest with you.
I rely on my rents for my income and the WAG seem determined to drive us out of the market in any way they can.
Socialist governments hate the property owning classes and will do everything in their power to curtail them.
I am thinking about diversifying, as the 'writing is on the wall' down here.
Having worked since I was 16, (66 now) I am not sure whether I have the drive and enthusiasm to change to something else, at my time of life.
I do have a grade 2 listed barn on my farm here in Monmouthshire and would consider doing something with that, if conditions worsen.
Maybe holiday lets, as we are situated in the Usk Valley which is very scenic and close to the M4 motorway.
The holiday let sounds like a good move John, maybe I'll book a week there when done.
John’s good side out and carry
on. I am working since 15 and now 75, upon 2 different tile roofs today attending to no less than 8 No, gaping hole in roofs thanks to Storm Eunice, luckily enough I had a few hundred matching tile in stock from a demolition job also a full line of hip ridges gone as well and damaged Flat below. (that will have to wait for another time maybe try dry ridge system) Mad rush and just beat the rain in time. The main thing is no one injured. I would Like to see those Regulators or Digital Academics try this ladder work in emergency, they would eat it first. Better stay in their ivory towers making rules with their buttons or rubbing their finger on a piece of glass and ripping everyone off.
No damage reported, yet, so I might have got away with it this time.
It was brutal this time so much damage everywhere also a lot of fences down but we kind of expect that.
I think we were quite lucky in Norfolk didn't get it as bad as London although my son is busy cutting trees down that have fallen on power cables, not that he minds call out money and over time.
I don’t extra or any at all when you are a LL its all considered unearned income. It is in fact hard earned but they mark it down as zero very good of them we are not classed as a business just Rogue’s.
That’s extremely dangerous work cutting up fallen trees I have known a couple of guys who lost their lives. Cable still alive and another case it wasn’t an electric cable at all but only a telephone cable, not knowing a live electric cable was touching up the line.
Yes Michael there are those of us that know what graft and dangerous work is, then there are the pen pushers in town hall, however I couldn't work in an office for all the tea in China , neither could you or my son
I support Politician salary Controls !
I'll second that !
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