Rented Housing

Person_one

Do you only work hard so you have better things than other people?

My friends do tell me that the flaw in my plans are that I have too much faith in people, I just hope that in the right circumstances they can surprise us.

There was a study once that found that if you pose the idea of being 'dropped' into a country randomly, with no idea what your status or position might be, nearly everybody favours a more equal society.

seven-day-weekend

Person_one wrote: »

Do you only work hard so you have better things than other people?

My friends do tell me that the flaw in my plans are that I have too much faith in people, I just hope that in the right circumstances they can surprise us.

There was a study once that found that if you pose the idea of being 'dropped' into a country randomly, with no idea what your status or position might be, nearly everybody favours a more equal society.

If I work hard and my neighbour chooses not to, then I expect to have 'more' than them, yes. Not necessarily material things, but more opportunity and choice too.

I'm afraid you are living in La La Land if you think human nature will be as magnanimous as you think, like that awfully mawkish dirge 'Imagine'.

There is a guy I know, never worked although able to, he is now in his fifties and thinks the world owes him a living. My husband and I always worked, apart from time I took off when my son was small. The guy lives in a grotty (as in small and shabby) bedsit, I live in a nice bungalow. I personally think that is fair.

Even in Imagineland there will still be people like him around. Do you think the rest of the community would feel happy about doing his share of work as well as their own, for no extra reward, because I certainly don't.

seven-day-weekend

Person_one wrote: »

Do you only work hard so you have better things than other people?

My friends do tell me that the flaw in my plans are that I have too much faith in people, I just hope that in the right circumstances they can surprise us.

There was a study once that found that if you pose the idea of being 'dropped' into a country randomly, with no idea what your status or position might be, nearly everybody favours a more equal society.

Well they would say that, wouldn't they?

'A Government that robs Peter to pay Paul, can always count on on the undying support of Paul' George Bernard Shaw

Jackieboy

Cakeguts wrote: »

Can I suggest that you research what happened in the past when rent controls were introduced?

Who is going to decide what the rents for any particular area are going to be? It is a nice idea but past experiences show that it doesn't work in the way that people think it will. What generally happens is that it reduces the number of properties available for rent. The ones that are lost are usually the nice ones.

Rent control in the past was quite draconian which is why I only suggested a degree of it but there's no point giving secure leases if LLs can put the rent up by 10% or more every year, effectively forcing tenants out.

We already have some degree of decision making based on local rents or else how could LHA rates be calculated? Fair rents could be based on the same principals, administered by the LA. In the past that was based on rateable values so possibly council tax bands would be relevant as well.

Although I agree that it might reduce the number of properties to rent, these properties are likely to be put on the market which would help to stabilise or even lower prices and so take some renters into a situation where they'd be able to buy, so another benefit.

Cakeguts

Jackieboy wrote: »

Rent control in the past was quite draconian which is why I only suggested a degree of it but there's no point giving secure leases if LLs can put the rent up by 10% or more every year, effectively forcing tenants out.

We already have some degree of decision making based on local rents or else how could LHA rates be calculated? Fair rents could be based on the same principals, administered by the LA. In the past that was based on rateable values so possibly council tax bands would be relevant as well.

Although I agree that it might reduce the number of properties to rent, these properties are likely to be put on the market which would help to stabilise or even lower prices and so take some renters into a situation where they'd be able to buy, so another benefit.

A question for you. Why should someone who is running a business be told what they can charge for what they are selling? What you are suggesting is the same as someone telling a supermarket what they are allowed to charge for their products or telling house sellers that they can't charge over a certain amount for a house in a particular area. The problem is that there is not enough social housing. Private rentals should not be housing people who cannot afford market rents. This is the job of social landlords. So you should be tackling social housing landlords about this problem not private landlords.

The houses that would get put back onto the market would be the nice ones not the ones that the renters you are talking about needing rent controls can afford. Or would you want to introduce selling price controls as well? There are a lot of private tenants renting at the moment who could afford to buy a house in the area that they live in but they don't want to because it is more convenient to rent if you might be moving around the country chasing better jobs and promotions.

Many people seem to assume that people rent because they cannot afford to buy. This is not the case there are many people renting because they want to rent and don't want the responsibility of owning a property.

Recent research has shown that there are now private renters who are retired. Where did they used to live?

You are basing your ideas on the small number of people who post about renting on here but what about the other renters who are completely happy with their rented property and their landlords?

The South East is not the whole of the country. In some areas of the country rents are affordable and there isn't a shortage of social housing so would your rent controls apply there as well or would they just apply in areas of shortage of social housing?

Jackieboy

Cakeguts wrote: »

A question for you. Why should someone who is running a business be told what they can charge for what they are selling? What you are suggesting is the same as someone telling a supermarket what they are allowed to charge for their products or telling house sellers that they can't charge over a certain amount for a house in a particular area. The problem is that there is not enough social housing. Private rentals should not be housing people who cannot afford market rents. This is the job of social landlords. So you should be tackling social housing landlords about this problem not private landlords.

The houses that would get put back onto the market would be the nice ones not the ones that the renters you are talking about needing rent controls can afford. Or would you want to introduce selling price controls as well? There are a lot of private tenants renting at the moment who could afford to buy a house in the area that they live in but they don't want to because it is more convenient to rent if you might be moving around the country chasing better jobs and promotions.

Many people seem to assume that people rent because they cannot afford to buy. This is not the case there are many people renting because they want to rent and don't want the responsibility of owning a property.

Recent research has shown that there are now private renters who are retired. Where did they used to live?

You are basing your ideas on the small number of people who post about renting on here but what about the other renters who are completely happy with their rented property and their landlords?

The South East is not the whole of the country. In some areas of the country rents are affordable and there isn't a shortage of social housing so would your rent controls apply there as well or would they just apply in areas of shortage of social housing?

I have no problem whatsoever with regulating prices for any essential services and I certainly don't think businesses are sacrosanct and above legislation. I also don't see why rent controls should just be for low end properties nor do I see why, as a concept, they should include only the south east. I don't see why anybody should be able to just choose to stick a large percentage on what they charge, wherever they are.

If long term leases and (as I said) a degree of rent control were to be introduced, far fewer people would even want to live in social housing and that would take some of the pressure off those who need it most. If top end property were dumped by unreasonable landlords, the effect on property prices would be likely to trickle down and benefit potential buyers at all levels.

(I have no idea what you mean by the sentence I've bolded.)

theartfullodger

England should follow Scotland's lead & bring in law changing the private tenancy to one with, amongst other changes, no (equivalent of..) s21, tenant able to give notice from 28 days of start of tenancy & fines for landlords giving notice claiming they are moving back in or selling but turn out to be lying neds .

Slainte!

FBaby

Do you only work hard so you have better things than other people?

Work hard to gain benefits of doing so. Working hard comes with compromises, so they need to be balance out with something else.

Another example, do you think that someone working 20 hours should get the same house, healthcare, transportation, schooling for kids and holidays than their next door neighbour who works 50 hour? A bit obvious that the former will have a much better life than the latter despite all the rest being equal.

Person_one

FBaby wrote: »

Work hard to gain benefits of doing so. Working hard comes with compromises, so they need to be balance out with something else.

Another example, do you think that someone working 20 hours should get the same house, healthcare, transportation, schooling for kids and holidays than their next door neighbour who works 50 hour? A bit obvious that the former will have a much better life than the latter despite all the rest being equal.

Healthcare, transportation and schooling, yes. Everybody has the same rights to those basic public services.

Holidays are a luxury, I think wages should be high enough that every family with one member who works full time should be able to afford one a year though.

Nobody should have to work 50 hours.

Cakeguts

Jackieboy wrote: »

I have no problem whatsoever with regulating prices for any essential services and I certainly don't think businesses are sacrosanct and above legislation. I also don't see why rent controls should just be for low end properties nor do I see why, as a concept, they should include only the south east. I don't see why anybody should be able to just choose to stick a large percentage on what they charge, wherever they are.

If long term leases and (as I said) a degree of rent control were to be introduced, far fewer people would even want to live in social housing and that would take some of the pressure off those who need it most. If top end property were dumped by unreasonable landlords, the effect on property prices would be likely to trickle down and benefit potential buyers at all levels.

(I have no idea what you mean by the sentence I've bolded.)

When I was young there was no really decent private rented housing because landlords with anything decent had got caught by the rent acts and so as soon as the houses became vacant they sold them. This meant that if you wanted somewhere nice to live you basically had to buy it. The choices were live at home with your parents, hope to get a council house or buy something. So people who are retired now and renting would have had those same choices which makes it even more interesting that they are choosing to rent in retirement.

I am not in favour of rent controls because I remember what happened last time. I would prefer to see an increase in supply of rented property rather than something that could lead to a decrease.

At the moment there is a problem in the construction industry. There are not enough young people going into construction work or engineering. There is a big skills shortage. This skills shortage means that only a small number of the new houses needed can be built. So you see what actually needs to be done is to encourage young people to get trade skills rather than degrees in Film Studies.