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Anger as politicians accused of caving in to landlords

There has been an angry response by some politicians in Wales to the decision by the Labour administration to delay implementation of radical rental sector reforms.

Across social media and mainstream news outlets in Wales, groups have expressed their frustration at the delay, until December this year.

The Welsh nationalist political party Plaid Cymru - which has an informal pact with Wales’ ruling Labour Party - says the hold up gives time to "unscrupulous" private landlords to evict tenants. Plaid housing spokesman Mabon ap Gwynfor says: "For too many tenants, homelessness is too real a threat, and now we have a situation where eviction can happen very quickly through no fault of their own. Tenants need these protections now more than ever, and the Labour Welsh government has let them down."

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The chief executive of the Wales branch of campaigning charity Shelter - Ruth Power - says she is frustrated by the delays. "Our casework shows 'no-fault' evictions have doubled compared to this time last year … There is an urgent need to rebalance the rights of landlords and tenants so that people feel secure in their homes" she comments.

And Citizens Advice Cymru's head of policy Luke Young says the charity is "disappointed this long awaited housing reform has been delayed further … A delay must not mean a free pass for rogue landlords.”

The Welsh reforms were to come into effect in mid July and have been described as the biggest change to housing law in Wales for decades.

They include an increase in the notice landlords must give when issuing evictions and protection for tenants from evictions for a minimum of 12 months after signing a contract.

Under the new rules all landlords will be required to provide a written copy of the occupation contract to the tenant, setting out the rights and responsibilities of both parties; there will be a strengthened duty on landlords to ensure the property is fit for human habitation, including the installation of smoke alarms and regular electrical safety testing; and the introduction of a consistent approach to eviction where antisocial behaviour and domestic violence occurs.

However, because of the complexity the Welsh housing minister Julie James made the delay announcement just before the Jubilee long weekend.

She says: “I have over recent months received representations from landlords, and particularly social landlords, who have requested that implementation of the Act be delayed.  

“As such, and in the light of the unprecedented pressures they face, including Covid recovery and supporting those who are fleeing the war in Ukraine, I have decided to postpone implementation of the Act until 1st December 2022.  This will allow more time for landlords to complete the necessary preparations ahead of implementation.

“Wholesale reform of the type that the Renting Homes (Wales) Act is bringing about happens only very rarely - perhaps once in a generation.  I want to do all I can to ensure landlords have adequate time to make the necessary preparations to comply with the requirements of the Act.

“I appreciate that this delay, relatively short though it is, will be a source of frustration to some of our partners, especially those who are anxious to see the enhanced protections for tenants the Act will deliver. I share those frustrations, but I recognise that preparing new occupation contracts and ensuring that properties meet the fitness standards set out in the legislation are major undertakings, particularly for those landlords responsible for a large number of properties and tenants. 

“I also accept that landlords from both private and public sectors, as well as letting agents and other stakeholders, would benefit from additional time to familiarise themselves with the various pieces of subordinate legislation – the final tranche of which are due to be made in July – before commencement.”

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  • George Dawes

    That makes a pleasant change

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    No such thing as a no fault eviction.

    It's like a shop refusing good customers' cash - doesn't happen.

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    Bad comparison as unfortunately many shops are now refusing cash.

     
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    YES IT DOES, and yes their is, its happened to me 7 times in 20 years, its bonkers its not often I see any other product is withdrawn because someone decides they dont want your money, their are examples like pet insurance where companies have stopped selling pet insurance, same problem can leave pet owners unable to insure older pets etc as does a landlgod selling up a renters home can mean you cant find a new home and certainly not with 2 months notice

     
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    Dave - 7 times in 20 years - could it be you? I have issued 1 S21 in 20 years & then because I needed to sell the property.

     
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    I was thinking along the same lines Tricia

     
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    There is always a reason 9 x out of 10 non payment of rent, until 2028 then it will be EPC C, that will be government forced evictions

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    Delay or not, the BTL market in Wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 is not so attractive anymore, and only tenants will lose with all this, I certainly would not invest.

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    I'm willing to believe there used to be no fault evictions when letting agents were allowed to charge fees to both landlords and new tenants every time a property was re-let. Now that tenants can't be charged fees there is no incentive to evict them unless they are breaching their tenancy agreement.
    So how much of the current retoric is based on historical events that have already been legislated out?

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    no people selling up ie retiring or any number of reasons landgods evict, everyone I know inc me issued a sec 21 is not for non payment as you want to convince yourself certainly not in wales

     
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    Why have S21 evictions doubled since this time last year??? Hmmm, maybe because the abolition of S21 is looming.

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    Also with the property price boom you might be able to sell up and reinvest in equities earning a similar amount per month. This is our strategy as we are in our sixties and want to go hassle free as we head into our 70's

     
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    I am selling up and buying in Europe not because I want to but because off all the hate propaganda spewed out from the three big hate gangs I will make less money and of course have to pay agents fees as well but I am no longer prepared to tolerate the the lies and filth these monsters subject our families and children to
    My big regret is it means lovely tenants who have been with me for 20 to 40 years will be losing their homes because of these gangs and that makes me very sad

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    David, my friend do you think we evict for fun, why would we do that and cause ourselves a load of work and hassle then having to find new Tenants that might be no better, better the devil you know. When it becomes vacant invariably we will be in there re-Decorating charging beds etc putting costs on ourselves getting ready for new people, while creating a
    void and loosing rent, even if we were to increase the rent there is nothing to be gained there, having incurred extra costs and loss or income it would take more then a year to recoup the costs of the vacant period, while also paying full Council Tax, Utility charges + standings charges, if it’s a lease hold property we will still be paying Service etc,

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