Another push for rental regulation..

Graham_Devon

In the hand wringer...

The charity would like the government to construct a private rental model based on those in Europe, where notice periods and tenancies are longer. Assured shorthold contracts in the UK allow landlords to have a break clause enabling them to end the tenancy at six months, but the landlord can choose not to. Shelter believes many landlords would prefer a long-term tenant, but most buy-to-let mortgage lenders require landlords to restrict the length of tenancies to a fixed term.

Campbell Robb, chief executive of Shelter, says: "With the doors to home ownership or social housing firmly closed for many, the number of families who are privately renting has increased by almost 80% in the last two years. But there's mounting evidence that private renting is failing to provide the stability that children desperately need."

He points out that landlords need give only two months' notice to evict, which can mean uprooting children from schools, friends, family and childcare. "Longer tenancies, with predictable rent increases, could help lift children from the merry-go-round of home after home, school after school," he says.

"The government must take urgent steps to make private renting work for families, giving them the stability to settle down, make long-term plans, and look forward to the future," Robb adds.

I agree with everything he says.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2012/jan/21/families-forced-to-rent

drc

I agree. The way I see it is the landlords/property rampers can't have it both ways (although lots on this forum will claim they can). If we are going to have a majority culture of renting then we need corresponding laws and rules that favour tenants and encourage renting.

At the moment we have lots of landlords, EAs and property rampers saying that the UK is moving towards a majority rental culture. If this is the case then the rental culture is going to have to be reformed so that it is much more beneficial to the long term renter akin to how it is in Europe, unlike how it is now with everything in favour of the landlord.

ruggedtoast

They badly need to do something about notice periods. The landlord being able to give two months notice is dreadfully insecure for most people.

Nevertheless tenants need a break clause if their situation changes.

CLAPTON

80% increase in families private renting in 2 years

seem very strnage; can that really be true?

Graham_Devon

I assume it means 80% increase in the amount of new families, rather than 80% increase in the amount of people renting.

RenovationMan

Graham_Devon wrote: »

In the hand wringer...

I agree with everything he says.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2012/jan/21/families-forced-to-rent

So do I. think that we wouldn't have had such a ruinous housing boom if we had more security within the rental sector. I'm a firm believer that there is not shame in renting for the rest of your life, the major stumbling block is security of tenure.

CLAPTON

Graham_Devon wrote: »

I assume it means 80% increase in the amount of new families, rather than 80% increase in the amount of people renting.

still don't understand that

CLAPTON

need to build more houses too (of course)

RenovationMan

CLAPTON wrote: »

still don't understand that

I guess as a rule, families have generally bought houses rather than rented but now with the economy as it is and house prices as they are, increasing numbers of families are renting. This would not be a problem if we had european or US renting laws with long-term security of tenure and less BTL 'fast buck' merchants.

A._Badger

If there is to be more regulation in favour of the tenant (and I'm not saying there necessarily shouldn't be) then it has to be reciprocated with more redress for owners who get stuck with bad ones.

chucknorris

I certainly would wish for longer tenancies as a lot of work is generated at a change of tenancy. Although I don't think my target market of young professional sharers would want this, we usually give them a 12 month contract and then let them run onto a periodical, if they wish to stay. The problem is at that early stage of their career they tend to move about a bit and usually do not want to be tied into a longer contract, although break clauses could of course be introduced at suitable intervals to address this issue.

I also don't mind about giving a longer notice period generally, but my fear would be that take a lot longer to eventually evict a 'professional tenant' who has stopped paying the rent.