A council has launched what it calls a Landlord and Tenant Support Package in place of a previous landlord accreditation system.
Telford and Wrekin council says it will also appoint a Landlord and Tenant Support Co-ordinator as well as creating a dedicated webpage for landlords carrying information about all aspects of tenancy support and property conditions and safety.
Landlords will also be given the opportunity to access training programmes instead of being issued with civil penalties for low level and first time housing offences.
The Landlord and Tenant Support package will be developed in consultation with partners which include the Wrekin Landlord Association and charitable and registered provider partners.
The council has - in its own words - conducted an ‘educate, encourage and enforce’ approach to the private rental sector.
This has included “robust legal action against landlords who deliberately fail to meet their legal responsibilities.”
Councillor Richard Overton, leader of the authority, says: “We acknowledge that many good landlords are providing valuable accommodation for our residents but we want to join up the range of advice and support available and ensure we are signposting people to the right services.
“The landlord and tenant support package will help to enhance the support that we provide and shows that we really are on your side – providing support to landlords and tenants to make Telford and Wrekin a better place to live.”
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As if any of us need the councils support , just leave us alone to what we do best and you useless articles stick to what you do best … which ain’t much in my experience
I would like to appeal for a "Help Line" for Landlords. The new Renting Wales Act 2016 is about to be launched on 15 July this year, and so far, after many days of research, and many telephone calls I have not found anyone that will answer my questions without this caveat included
"If you are unsure as to the meaning of term of contract, you should seek your own legal advice. The Welsh Government is unable to provide such advice". WE CANNOT AFFORD LEGAL ADVICE. I have been brought up never to sign anythng I do not understand, and believe me, there are chunks of this legislation that I do not understand. Help please.
Actually I was wrong , they’re very good at one thing
Sending out bills
So is all our Accreditation Courses that cost us hundreds now worthless ?. The Landlord, Tenant support package I note includes Charity providers looks like they are enlisting Anti-LL campaigners Shelter.
Beryl, Sorry unfortunately no help for you, you are irrelevant only a Landlord it’s a Tenants Support Group.
I do think some credit should be given to a council who are looking to support both landlord and tenant. They won't necessarily get it right first time but hopefully they will learn and develop the programme. It could then act as a model for others. We need to start somewhere.
Emily, dearest when did any Council support Landlords. We are hardly getting started many are getting out.
Over the many years I've been a landlord I've found both of the Council's I operate in to be very good with landlords.
Now the NRLA accreditation scheme is so awful we need a better alternative.
Shelter are a support group, maybe landlords should phone them for advice, ''I'm a landlord, my tenant isn't paying their rent, what should I do ?'' wonder what their reply would be ?
This has been rumbling on since 2017 when the council first proposed a licencing scheme.
It was strenuously opposed by the local landlords association. Enough of the local councillors listened and commented that the proactive approach by the landlords and also 100's of letters received opposing the scheme plus the fact that the council had not actively used the powers that they already had to root out the rogue landlords led to them opposing the scheme and replacing it with a "Landlord and Tenant Support Package" with a Support Co-ordinator . They also propose to replace the swingeing civil penalties with Training and Education programmes for "low level and first time housing offences by landlords. Treat us like responsible adults who prefer the carrot to the stick and the majority will respond!
This is a refreshing change from the antagonistic approach pursued by government and local councils in recent years. Hopefully it will rub off on many other councils that the majority of landlords are responsible adults whose main aim is to provide good quality housing for equally responsible adult tenants and will happily work with councils who are prepared to take a balanced non political view to improve the private rented sector for both landlords and tenants. They must also support landlords where a genuine problem has occurred with a misbehaving tenant.
There are far more rogue tenants than rogue landlords!
What ever they call it…. The end result will be a load of cash leaving our bank account into the council’s.
Paul my friend we have licensing Schemes since 2006. The Council wants to push aside Accreditation Schemes now that it is well established and rebrand / take it over and have the money paid to themselves (all about the money) with this so called Tenant Support Package.
Could they not have called it Tenant and Landlord Support Package, of course not silly me we are only the owners.
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