The changes proposed in Labour’s Renters’ Rights Bill will affect many parts of the landlord lifecycle – the way that rental properties in England are marketed, let and managed. From preparing yourself and your property to let and securing a tenant, right through to managing and ending a tenancy, a lot of rules are going to change.
Here, we’ve summarised the 12 key changes in the Bill and how the rules will change within the different stages of the lifecycle of being a landlord.
Currently, England is the only country in the UK that doesn’t require landlords to be licensed or registered, but this will change when the Renters’ Reform Bill passes.
A new national digital Private Rented Sector Database will be created, which will:
Landlords will be legally required to register themselves and their properties.
Find out more in our blog, ‘What’s the new Private Rented Sector Database and how does it work?’
While letting agents have to belong to either the Property Redress Scheme or the Property Ombudsman, there is currently no such requirement for landlords.
The Bill introduces a new Private Rented Sector Landlord Ombudsman, which all private landlords in England with assured or regulated tenancies will be required by law to join - including those who use a managing agent.
The new ombudsman will:
This should help reduce the number of disputes that end up in time-consuming and costly court hearings.
Find out more in our blog, ‘How will the new Private Rented Sector Ombudsman work?’.
Landlords already have a legal obligation to keep their rental property safe and free from health hazards, in line with the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018. As such, responsible landlords and agents carry out risk assessments and make sure they mitigate the hazards outlined in the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS).
The Bill proposes strengthening and clarifying these obligations by introducing a Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector, which will require landlords to make sure their rented properties meet specific minimum health and safety standards.
Find out more in our blog, ‘What’s the Decent Homes Standard?’.
Getting everything in place ready to let a property can seem like a huge task and a legal minefield, so we’ve put together an ‘Ultimate guide to preparing your property to let’ covering all the essential points.
While some landlords and agents refuse to accept applications from tenants who have children or are in receipt of benefits, this is already classed as ‘indirect discrimination’, so should be avoided.
However, the Bill will make these specific ‘blanket bans’ illegal, so applications from these types of tenants will have to be considered.
Find out more in our blog, ‘Are ‘no DSS’ tenant blanket bans being outlawed?’.
As the supply of rental accommodation has failed to keep up with demand across much of the country in recent years, it has become common for tenants to get into bidding wars. The result is that the successful tenant is often simply the one who can afford to pay the most, and the final agreed rent is sometimes far above the original advertised price.
The Bill aims to protect tenants and place some control on rents by outlawing bidding wars. Landlords and letting agents will be legally required to publish an asking rent for their property and banned from asking for, encouraging, or accepting any bids above this price.
Find out more in our blog, ‘What’s happening with rent rises and bidding wars?’
While landlords can currently have a ‘no pets’ clause in the tenancy agreement, the Bill will forbid such blanket bans.
The Bill gives tenants the right to request permission to keep a pet, which landlords cannot refuse without a good reason. Decisions will be on a case-by-case basis, with valid reasons for refusal including the landlord’s headlease prohibiting pets or the property being too small for the size or type of pet.
Landlords will be able to require pet insurance to cover potential damage to the property and its contents.
Find out more in our blog, ‘Will landlords have to accept pets soon?’.
Whether you’re letting out one or two properties or managing a buy to let portfolio, you’ll need to plan how to market and advertise your rental property to find and keep the best tenants. We’ve identified seven steps to your rental property marketing so that you attract and retain your ideal tenants.
Fixed-term assured tenancies will be removed
Assured shorthold tenancy agreements (ASTs) will disappear and every tenancy will become periodic.
Find out more in our blog, ‘How are rental tenancies changing?’.
At the moment, when problems relating to the condition of a rented property are reported to the landlord, they are simply required to fix them within a ‘reasonable’ timeframe.
Awaab’s Law, named after a young boy who died in a social-rented home as a result of health problems brought on by damp and mould, is currently applied to the social rented sector. The Bill will extend it to private lets, and it will impose strict new timelines for landlords to investigate and fix reported serious health hazards.
Find out more in our blog, ‘What is Awaab’s Law?’.
The way landlords can legally increase rents will change. Currently, rent rises can be written into rental agreements and rents can be increased if tenants agree. Rents can also be legally raised by issuing a Section 13 notice not more than once in a 12-month period, and the increase must be “fair and realistic”.
The Bill proposes that increases can no longer be written into contracts and landlords will only be able to legally increase rents once a year, using a Section 13 notice. Increases must align with current market rates.
Tenants’ rights to challenge rent increases are also being strengthened. Currently, they can take the matter to the First-Tier Tribunal, but they could end up paying a higher rent if the Tribunal decides that’s a fair market amount. Under the Bill, the Tribunal would not be allowed to raise the rent beyond the amount the landlord was proposing, meaning there would be no financial risk for tenants in making a challenge.
Labour has also confirmed that it does not plan to introduce rent caps, as has happened in Scotland.
Find out more in our blog, ‘What’s happening with rent rises and bidding wars?’
Local councils can currently issue civil penalties of up to £30,000 to landlords who breach certain lettings regulations.
Under the Bill:
Rent repayment orders will also be extended to superior landlords, and the maximum penalty will be doubled, from one to two years’ rent.
Find out more in our blog, ‘What are the new powers being given to local councils?’.
With over 400 separate rules and regulations, and potentially huge penalties for breaking the law, you have to be able to manage your rental professionally if you want to make and hold on to good returns. Read our ‘Ultimate landlord’s guide to rental property management’ for detailed guidance and advice.
As it stands, landlords can evict a tenant after six months and once any initial fixed period has expired, by issuing a Section 21 notice giving the tenant two months’ notice. No reason for the eviction has to be given.
The Bill proposes scrapping Section 21 as soon as possible, meaning every eviction will require a Section 8 notice stating one or more specific valid grounds. If the tenant refuses to leave the property, a court hearing will be required to regain possession.
Find out more in our blog, ‘What’s happening to evictions and Section 21?’.
While the expanded grounds will make sure that landlords can regain possession of their properties when it is reasonable to do so, many minimum notice periods have been increased. This is to give tenants more time to find a new home and reduce the risk of them becoming homeless.
Two of the most significant proposed changes:
Landlords will still be able to bring proceedings to evict a tenant at any point if they have breached their tenancy – for instance, if they have committed antisocial behaviour or are damaging the property.
See the bottom of this section of the government guidance for more detail on the proposed new grounds and notice periods.
Find out more in our blog, ‘What’s happening to evictions and Section 21?’.
Our ‘Ultimate end of tenancy checklist for landlords’ covers the steps you need to take to make sure you are complying with the law when bringing a tenancy to an end, and maximising your chances of having the smoothest possible transition from one tenancy to the next.
You can access more detailed information on the Renters’ Right Bill and stay up to date with the latest changes via our Renters’ Rights Bill hub and linked articles on all the provisions in the Bill. You can also read our article, ‘Renters Rights Bill: Should landlords be concerned?’ which identifies some of the key issues for landlords and how you can navigate the changes.
We have also created a series of guides on the tenancy lifecycle, the ‘Ultimate guide to the landlord lifecycle: How to be a landlord’, which takes you through the different stages being a landlord and signposts you to all our ultimate guides. You will find comprehensive information on topics from creating an investment strategy and preparing your property to let, to tenant referencing, inventory management tenancy deposit protection and managing the property during the tenancy.
