Milliband promises rent controls

cells

ukcarper wrote: »

There are plenty of things in announcement that are more likely to cause building shares to fall than his rent control plans.

If Edward can get the 200k + homes built, I would except a slower HPI but a positive one nonetheless. So the land banks of the builders will be worth less with an Edward victory than a Dave victory.....but not by much and that if they can even hit their targets

The last 5 years shows us that a pro building housing minister gets the boot fekin tories

antrobus

cells wrote: »

Its not a paper I have read,
.............

Yes, well perhaps you should.

It is actually very relevant to the subject of this thread, whilst your comments regarding housing stock are not.

http://www.lse.ac.uk/geographyAndEnvironment/research/london/pdf/Rent-Stabilisation-report-2014.pdf

Generali

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02q1721

Tessa Jowell seems to have no idea about how her own policy will work.

Mr Neil: Will it be compulsory for tenants to have a 3 year tenancy
Ms Jowell: Not at all. It's just difficult for tenants to get longer tenancies
Mr Neil: What will prevent LLs from only accepting tenants that only want a shorter lease?
Ms Jowell: Well...uh, uh but but

She also claims that Ireland has the same policy that Labour are proposing. Mr Neil skewered her on that one too as they don't. She's not the only Labourite to use that lie either.

There wasn't a coherent response to the point that private rents have gone up by less than inflation over the last five years, social rents have gone up by more than private ones!

antrobus

Generali wrote: »

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02q1721

Tessa Jowell seems to have no idea ....

I'd have stopped just there.:)

Of course, she's not actually standing as an MP this time round. I believe she has her sights sets on other things. There is a potential vacancy coming up in London next year.

buglawton

I cast my mind back to the early 80s when I moved across the UK to take up my 1st Job. There was absolutely no rental accommodation of any kind available in the town.

Finally after weeks renting just a bedroom from a family I got to share a house in a different town with some other ex students. The owner wanted to sell up so after that I was in a 70s built cardboard walls house sharing with a fairly diabolical owner/landlord. This really put the wind up me to buy my own house which I did at 3x salary. The mortgage was unaffordable unless I sublet, which I did to friends/work colleagues only and we didn't even bother with written contracts!

Looking at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assured_shorthold_tenancy I see that ASTs were introduced in 1988. I guess that the renting situation improved thereafter as supply really started to hit the market.

When I again moved across the UK for new employment on the late 90s there were plenty of affordable flats to rent, e.g. at 25% of gross salary. I think this proved the resounding success of the 1988 AST act.

Looks like with Labour it'll be back to the future then, as that act starts to be dismantled.

ukcarper

buglawton wrote: »

I cast my mind back to the early 80s when I moved across the UK to take up my 1st Job. There was absolutely no rental accommodation of any kind available in the town.

Finally after weeks renting just a bedroom from a family I got to share a house in a different town with some other ex students. The owner wanted to sell up so after that I was in a 70s built cardboard walls house sharing with a fairly diabolical owner/landlord. This really put the wind up me to buy my own house which I did at 3x salary. The mortgage was unaffordable unless I sublet, which I did to friends/work colleagues only and we didn't even bother with written contracts!

Looking at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assured_shorthold_tenancy I see that ASTs were introduced in 1988. I guess that the renting situation improved thereafter as supply really started to hit the market.

When I again moved across the UK for new employment on the late 90s there were plenty of affordable flats to rent, e.g. at 25% of gross salary. I think this proved the resounding success of the 1988 AST act.

Looks like with Labour it'll be back to the future then, as that act starts to be dismantled.

The situation in the 70s and 80s was totally diiference to what Labour are proposing and if they were proposing something like that I'd agree with you. Labours proposal is election airing and will make very little difference to the majority of landlords and tenants.

buglawton

I think the rent cap is the most alarming aspect for landlords. Currently if a LL has a void, he may offer a reduced rent just to get it let out. Once the market has improved a year or so later he may want to re-let at a better rent or offer current tenant to stay but at increased rent.
Under the new rule, any short term low rent gets locked in for up to 3 years.
One unintended consequence is that LLs may now wait and attempt to get premium rent level before choosing a tenant, knowing it will be locked in rent level.

Elsewhere people are saying that the proposed Labour change is attempt to copy the European/German model of offering security & rent controls to tenants. In German cities this system is currently failing badly as it seems to keep property off the rental market and makes tenants reluctant to move so as to free up for a new tenant.

PS this article gives a flavour of the issues even 'good' tenants are having finding a flat in Germany, and one cause is the extremely pro-tenant laws.
http://www.toytowngermany.com/lofi/index.php/t172629.html

ukcarper

buglawton wrote: »

I think the rent cap is the most alarming aspect for landlords. Currently if a LL has a void, he may offer a reduced rent just to get it let out. Once the market has improved a year or so later he may want to re-let at a better rent or offer current tenant to stay but at increased rent.
Under the new rule, any short term low rent gets locked in for up to 3 years.
One unintended consequence is that LLs may now wait and attempt to get premium rent level before choosing a tenant, knowing it will be locked in rent level.

Elsewhere people are saying that the proposed Labour change is attempt to copy the European/German model of offering security & rent controls to tenants. In German cities this system is currently failing badly as it seems to keep property off the rental market and makes tenants reluctant to move so as to free up for a new tenant.

PS this article gives a flavour of the issues even 'good' tenants are having finding a flat in Germany, and one cause is the extremely pro-tenant laws.
http://www.toytowngermany.com/lofi/index.php/t172629.html

That could be a problem but not significant, what other people are saying is irrelevant. As it stands Labours proposal will not effect the majority of Landlords and tenants.

antrobus

[QUOTE=buglawton;68288402...Looking_at_http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assured_shorthold_tenancy I see that ASTs were introduced in 1988. I guess that the renting situation improved thereafter as supply really started to hit the market. ...[/QUOTE]

Basically, yes.

The previous regime of regulated rents had created a situation where no one in their right mind was going to rent out a property to a tenant. Hence, as you found, the lack of properties available to rent.

This was believed to be a Bad Thing, if only because it made it hard for some people to move to a new location where there was a job to be had. Hence the HA 1988, and the whole AST thing that has (as we have seen) meant that are at least properties available to rent.

antrobus

ukcarper wrote: »

That could be a problem but not significant, what other people are saying is irrelevant. As it stands Labours proposal will not effect the majority of Landlords and tenants.

I would agree on the basis that the current Labour proposal is so shot full of loopholes that it will basically be ignored by almost everybody.

buglawton wrote: »

...Elsewhere people are saying that the proposed Labour change is attempt to copy the European/German model of offering security & rent controls to tenants. ...

The German model is quite different from most of the rest of Europe, but yes, there is a German model. Basically, you get houses built by offering BTL investors a tax efficient index linked yield on their investment. I don't believe that the Milibean quite has that in mind. At the very least, he is not going to say so, this side of an election.