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Tag: evictions

Renter’s Rights Bill – What does it mean for you?

Posted on by prateek

The renter’s rights bill was published last week. It is important to note that the following is not yet law as it must be passed through parliament. Many Landlords are apprehensive about these proposed sweeping changes to the private rental sector. So, let’s explore the bill’s key points and what this means for tenants and landlords.

THE ABOLITION OF SECTION 21 NOTICES –

Section 21 evictions have been long used by landlords as a means of terminating a tenancy agreement without any reason.  This system will be replaced by a new measure that will only permit evictions under certain conditions, such as rent arrears or the landlord wishing to sell up. Whilst this may initially be seen as restrictive, it has been on the horizon for a while as this was also a measure proposed in the Renters Rights Act, the previous bill by the conservative party, and we have previously spoken about the limited impact this change may have.

Going back to the point, landlords in Bath and beyond will now need to follow stricter legal grounds for eviction and ensure that they are treating their tenants fairly and making sure they are not displacing their tenants.

RENTAL INCREASES AND BIDDING WARS –

Rent control mechanisms in the Bill aim to standardize rent increases across the board. It has been proposed that landlords will only be allowed to raise rents once a year and tenants will have the power to challenge this, if they deem the rent increase as excessive, at a tribunal. The aim here is to prevent unfair rental hikes from being used as an undercover eviction. Despite this, Landlords will still be free to increase the rents in line with market rates.

Another significant proposed change is the prohibition of bidding wars. In recent years since the rental market demand has far exceeded supply, there has been an increase in these rental bidding wars where tenants are bidding higher than the advertised rent to secure a property they may know has been garnering a lot of interest. Under the Renters Rights Bill, this practice will be outlawed. Lettings agents and Landlords will be forced to publish a clear asking price for rent and will not be allowed to accept offers over this rate.

DECENT HOMES STANDARD AND AWAAB’S LAW –

The introduction of the Decent Homes Standard into law aims to make sure that all properties in the private rental sector abide by a minimum safety and quality standard. Landlords in Bath and beyond will need to make sure their properties comply with these standards or they will risk facing penalties. This is an expansion of the existing standard that applies to social housing, ensuring those in the private rental sector are entitled to the same level of safety and decency in their homes.

Awaab’s Law, named after a traffic case of a child who died from exposure to mould in social housing, will also be extended to the private rental sector. This will place a legal requirement on landlords to address serious health hazards within a specified time frame. Whilst this may seem like a major regulatory burden, many landlords are already maintaining these standards so will find compliance with these new regulations relatively straightforward.

RENTING WITH PETS –

Another headline from the bill is the enhanced ability for tenants to keep pets. Landlords will no longer be allowed to refuse pet requests without reasonable grounds. However, to address concerns about the potential damage a pet may cause to the property, landlords can now require pet insurance to cover any damage.

STRENGTHENED LOCAL AUTHORITY POWERS –

Local councils will be granted additional powers to enforce the rules laid out in the Bill. This included the ability to levy fines of up to £7,000 for initial breaches of the above, and escalating to £40,000 for repeat offences. Whilst these new powers may be daunting, they are largely targeted at rouge landlords, and those who already comply with existing regulations are likely to be unaffected.

If you have any further questions, then do not hesitate to get in touch and if you would like to read further into this then click the link below ⬇️

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guide-to-the-renters-rights-bill/82ffc7fb-64b0-4af5-a72e-c24701a5f12a

The Queen’s Speech: what it means for landlords & tenants

Posted on by prateek

Those who tuned into the Queen’s Speech on the 11th of May can be forgiven for missing the very brief promise to ‘enhance the rights of those who rent’ – seemingly a very general pledge to review standards across the sector. A delve into the detailed briefing notes, however, reveals three details that will be of particular interest to landlords and tenants.

Abolish Section 21 Evictions

Long before the pandemic interrupted their plans, the government promised to abolish Section 21, or ‘no-fault’, evictions. This is the most straightforward and common way for a landlord to end a tenancy at their property, but its future is now back up for review. The government plans to publish a White Paper in the autumn which will detail plans to reform the evictions process.

Lifetime Deposits

Another long-running government scheme is the introduction of lifetime tenancy deposits, which would see dilapidation deposits move from property to property with the tenant. Under the current system, a tenant must pay a brand new deposit when moving to a new property, which can often cause cashflow issues for the tenant if they are still waiting for their deposit to be returned by their previous landlord.

It remains to be seen how the government’s scheme will offer simultaneous protection to two landlords where there is an overlap in tenancies. Again, more information has been promised in the autumn.

Redress Schemes for Private Landlords

One of the more unexpected announcements was the plan to require all private landlords to belong to a redress scheme, ‘to ensure that all tenants have a right to redress’.

Currently agents, rather than landlords, are required to belong to a redress scheme, such as the Property Redress Scheme, with which Reside are affiliated. If a tenant rents directly from a private landlord, with no agency involvement, their only current source of redress is through the courts. It is therefore likely that this new initiative is aimed at landlords who do not use a professional agency to manage their tenancy.

Reside is an award-winning independent letting agent in Bath. Please get in touch if you would like to discuss any aspect of letting or managing your property; we would love to hear from you.

Landlord Notice Periods Extended

Posted on by prateek

Evictions on hold

The government has announced a further extension to two pieces of temporary legislation, both brought in to provide tenants with greater security in their homes during the pandemic.

The ban on evictions, which had already been extended, will now run until the 31st of May. Until then, evictions can only be enacted under strict circumstances such as extreme rent arrears. Landlords can still file possession claims and should be encouraged not to delay their submissions as the court closures in 2020 have created a substantial backlog of hearings.

Increased Notice Periods For Landlords

Fortunately, at Reside we are not currently dealing with any evictions, so news of an extension to notice periods may be of more relevance to our landlords. Statutory notice periods to terminate a tenancy are 2 months from a landlord, and one month from a tenant, but in August 2020 the government introduced the Coronavirus Act 2020 (Residential Tenancies: Protection from Eviction), which increased notice periods for landlords to 6 months.

These temporary regulations were initially due to expire on the 31st March 2021, at which point notice periods would have reverted back to the statutory 2 months, but have now been extended until ‘at least’ the 31st May 2021. There is much speculation as to what the government’s long-term plan is for Section 21, and we are unlikely to know more about the future of this policy until mid-May.

Reside is an award-winning independent letting agent in Bath. Please get in touch if you would like to discuss any aspect of letting or managing your property; we would love to hear from you.

Evictions Ban Extended in England

Posted on by prateek

UPDATE: On the 14th February, just a week before the revised deadline mentioned in the blog below, Robert Jenrick MP announced a further extension to the evictions ban – until 31st March 2021. All other details in the below post remain accurate at time of writing.

The government has announced a further extension to the ban on bailiff-enforced evictions for private renters in England. The previous restrictions were due to end on Monday the 11th of January, following a month-long ban over the Christmas period. The new extension will be until the 21st of February 2021 and reviewed regularly, meaning that there could yet be another extension.

There are exemptions to the regulations, which include:

  • Illegal occupation
  • Anti-social behaviour
  • Where a property is unoccupied following the death of a tenant
  • Extreme rent arrears (equivalent to nine months’ rent, excluding any arrears accrued since the 23rd of March)

Claims for possession can still progress through the courts, however a large backlog of claims built up during the Covid-enforced court closure last year. This means that landlords making new possessions claims may face a lengthy wait for their claim to be heard. However, eviction notices will not be enacted by bailiffs until after the evictions ban has been lifted on the 21st of February at the earliest.

Confused?

Even without all of the temporary legislation that has been introduced over the last year, the private rental market is becoming more regulated than ever before. A previous blog revealed that landlords are now required to comply with 156 different laws over the course of a tenancy; it has never been more important for your tenancy to be managed by a knowledgeable, professional and regulated agency.

For guidance on all aspects of tenancy management, or if you are considering letting your property in Bath, contact us on 01225 445777 or info@localhost.