Following Tuesday’s long-awaited White Paper – “Fixing our broken housing market” – an industry commentator says that landlords need more support from the government.
The government has promised to offer private renters extra protections and safeguards, including giving families more choice and security and family-friendly tenancies of three years or more in purpose-built private rental schemes.
There is also the introduction of banning orders ‘to remove the worst landlords or agents from operating’ in the private rented sector.
And while this is all good news for renters, what about protecting the landlords?
Patrick Littlemore, director of lettings at Marsh & Parsons said: “Legitimate landlords must also have protection against rogue tenants, retaining the right to lawfully evict and any restrictions on this could spell disaster.”
Mr. Littlemore believes that this will only be a “good move” if the tenant abides by the Housing Act and that the government should ensure that measures announced yesterday do not dent enthusiasm in the private rental sector among landlords.
He added: “The buy-to-let sector took a substantial hit with the increase of stamp duty in April last year and additional burdens could make this un-attractive, reducing investment and the supply of stock in the much needed private rental sector.
“Greater stock levels are required to meet the ever-growing demand we’re witnessing and discouraging investment would have huge ramifications for the many young professionals that rely on renting.
“Renting gets a bad name but in reality, many appreciate the flexibility, freedom and choice that comes with it.”
The Residential Landlords Association (RLA) also raised concerns over the White Paper proposing longer tenancies, saying that non-corporate landlords need more support, with a quarter of private landlords being prevented from offering tenancies longer than a year by their mortgage lender or insurer.