Responding to confirmation that the Renters Reform Bill will return to the Commons next Wednesday, Ben Beadle of the National Residential Landlords Association, says proposed amendments strike the right balance to make progress.
He says: “Our focus has been on ensuring that when section 21 repossessions end, the replacement system works and is fair, to both tenants and responsible landlords.
“Tenants should rightly be empowered to hold rogue and criminal landlords to account to root out the minority who bring the sector into disrepute. However, it is vital that the majority of responsible landlords have confidence in the Bill to provide the homes for rent the country needs.
“The amendments proposed by the Government strike that balance.
“It is now important to provide certainty to the market, so it can transition smoothly to the new system. We therefore call on MPs to ensure swift passage of the Bill through Parliament with the Government’s planned changes. This should be underpinned by action to improve the justice system for renters and landlords alike.”
Amendments the Government has tabled to the Bill include:
- Accepting a proposal by the cross-party housing select committee that when fixed term tenancy agreements end, “tenants be unable to give two months’ notice to leave until they have been in a property for at least four months.” This will give landlords the legal certainty of at least six months’ rent at the start of a tenancy. Protections should be in place however to ensure tenants can leave earlier than this where properties are not of a decent standard, and to protect those suffering from domestic abuse.
- Reviewing the operation of the courts before ending section 21 for existing tenancies to ensure the justice system can cope with the increased workload. The all-party Levelling Up Select Committee noted that: “Before section 21 can be repealed, landlords must have confidence in their ability to regain possession under section 8, especially in the case of rent arrears and antisocial behaviour. The biggest obstacle to this is the capacity of the courts.” The Law Society has warned that: “without investment for housing legal aid and the courts, the bill will not achieve its aims and may lead to an increase in backlogs and landlords and tenants alike will be unable to enforce their legal rights.”
- Ensuring all types of student housing, including one and two bed properties, are covered by the planned ground for possession to protect the annual cycle of the student housing market. This is supported by the Labour-led Local Government Association which noted that it “would give confidence to student landlords, who rent properties not considered as HMOs, that they can offer properties each academic year.”
Want to comment on this story? Our focus is on providing a platform for you to share your insights and views and we welcome contributions.
If any post is considered to victimise, harass, degrade or intimidate an individual or group of individuals, then the post may be deleted and the individual immediately banned from posting in future.
Please help us by reporting comments you consider to be unduly offensive so we can review and take action if necessary. Thank you.
.jpg)
%20(002).png)
.png)
Join the conversation
Jump to latest comment and add your reply
Bungling Boy Beadle strikes again.😠 In football terms, he shoots, he scores, unfortunately it was his own goal. 😡
I wonder how many members he will have left at the end of 2024? 😱
Whenever Beadle speaks or writes all I can hear is "they think it's all over.....It is now!"
As I have said before Ben Beadle only cares about student landlords. I can see no future for the NRLA once Section 21 abolished as the rest of us will have effectively lost control of our properties.
That's true Margaret, but to get vacant possession with a student let will require a Section 8 notice to end their periodic tenancy. I think it possible that all Section 8 grounds could become discretionary under Labour.
Who decides when the courts are fit for purpose? Who picks up the tab when they still aren't? Ben may be happy with this amendment but most LLs aren't!
So here we have the problem - “ The amendments proposed by the Government strike that balance.“. Possibly 🧐 BUT, they will not be the government very very soon !!! We are toast when Labour get in 🥵, they have already promised to bring it in WITHOUT court reforms. Talking about what this government will do is utterly pointless.
The problem is there’s no one to Vote for we voted in this lot Labour couldn’t have gotten away with what they done.
Too late now too much National Debt for next Election winners to deal with, seen this many times before hand it over in a mess.
Note the emphasis mentions only Arrears & ASB.
What about ‘Ownership’ and the ‘right to sell’? Less and less mention of this!
Everything hinges on the rights of ‘ownership’ all other matters are secondary.
Labours ‘tenant hardship’ proposed amendment to the RRB will absolutely end ‘ownership’.
The abolition of property rights! Goes hand in glove with the abolition of freedom of speech.
The real reason Labour want to put S21 to the sword on day 1 is it will string out the court process to a standstill. This way the paraffin lamps of society will be stuck at landlords expense. They will claim they have fixed a problem as evictions go down but will be hiding a powder keg.
I can see it being a two year process to get a property back at least.
Two things will happen
1. Over leveraged landlords will go to the wall.
2. Some frustrated landlords facing point 1 may take things into their own hands and do something they shouldn't.
Exactly. It wont take long for Renters to realise that theh have leveraged landlords over a barrell and paying rent is optional as it will indeed take 2 years or more to get them out. In the meantime the Bank forecloses on the delinquent loan and is repo'd or the landlord probably has to sell his own home to prevent that happening: suffering catestrophic losses. I see a lot of landlord suicides round the corner.
Peter: Exactly, the 'stringing out' of the Court Process is already deliberate and will grind to a virtual halt once Labour are in. 'Sequestration' in all but name.
My remaining tenants will all be getting Sec 21's now, they are valid for 6 months and can be renewed or withdrawn subject to the political direction. I am hoping that existing S21's will be given some retrospective protection as a 'bargaining tool'in the coming storm.
Ben Ben Ben! You claim to advocate for Landlords but you are quite obviously controlled opposition. In your own words landlords are selling up in droves; in friggin' DROVES. So if this Bill strikes the right balance, Ben, why are Landlords getting out "whilst they still can" ? Because of scrapping Section21? Yes, Because of Periodic TAs from day 1? Yes. Because their Tenants will think they haveva "right" to keep 7 Great Danes in the property no matter what? Yes.
The only solution for many Landlords now, after ALL they have been burdened with, is to sell up & get the Hell out.
Yes Captain Darling thinks tenants have a right to keep a pack of Great Danes in someone elses' property. All these people claiming rights over our property.
Problem is where do you put the money ?
Banks are the last place I’d choose
As a landlord why don't you do something nice for a change. Like donate it to Shelter?
"the replacement system works and is fair, to both tenants and responsible landlords" Ben B. How can it be fair when there is a data base of bad Landlords and yet no data base of bad tenants. Even Mr Gove states that the majority of landlords are good.
What is the point of the NRLA? They have no voice and have become pointless. What have they achieved in the past 5 years to improve the lot of its members. Great at selling their mortgages and insurance etc but useless at lobbying. Time Beadle went.
Ben Beadle is no head of any Landlord Association he doesn’t speak for its members, resign please or the Board should vote him off he is not is our interest or represent our views.
They do keep spamming my inbox despite me unsubscribing … very annoying
All very laudable to (finally) create a court system that is fit for purpose, but what happens after Section 21 goes and the court system slides back into the current chaos?
George. War Bonds no shortage of Wars.
Please login to comment