Renters (Reform) Bill: what does it mean for residential landlords?

The long awaited Renters (Reform) Bill has now been published by the government and it aims to change the landscape of rental housing in England

One of the principal parts of the Bill is to abolish section 21 ‘no fault evictions’. Currently, landlords can recover possession of their let property after the fixed term has ended without having to prove any ‘fault’ or beach by the tenant.

Under the new proposals the existing grounds for possession under S8 of the Housing Act 1988 have been extended so that there are provisions to enable landlords to recover possession if the landlord wishes to sell or a member of their family wishes to move into the property. The Bill also aims to strengthen the ability for a landlord to evict anti-social tenants.

Other key changes include:

• Ending fixed term tenancies with proposals to make tenancies periodic. Tenants will be able to end their tenancy by giving two months’ notice giving them greater flexibility to move out when their housing needs change.
• A new statutory mechanism for rent increases to provide protection to tenants. Landlords will only be permitted to increase rents once per year, subject to giving a minimum notice of two months.
• Tenants will have a right to request permission to have pets in the property with an obligation on landlords not to unreasonably refuse.
• A new ombudsman scheme which landlords must join.

The Bill will inevitably mean that more possession cases will end up at a court hearing as under the current regime a court may make a possession order without hearing the parties. The Bill promises to deliver a digital resource in an attempt to reduce existing court delays and alleviate the addition strain on the courts which in some parts of the country are already overwhelmed.

We shall be following the Bill through its various stages. It will be interesting to see what changes are made during its progress.

For more information on the above or any other litigation issue, contact Johanne Spittle on York 01904 716000, Wetherby 01937 583210 or Malton 01653 692247 or email Johanne.spittle@warekay.co.uk.