The majority of people want the lettings industry to be regulated, according to a survey for the BBC’s popular Victoria Derbyshire show.
76% of people believe the lettings industry should face tougher regulation, including controls over letting agent fees, lengths of tenancies, deposits and inventory checks.
Majority of People Want the Lettings Industry to be Regulated
In addition, 74% want rent controls in the private rental sector.
Yesterday’s Victoria Derbyshire programme discussed the lettings industry and the results of its study.
The survey, of 1,002 people, also found that 69% believe rent rises when a tenancy is renewed should be capped, while 63% want the standard minimum lettings term to be increased to 12 months.
The accompanying BBC news story looks at three case studies, including a family with three children who have moved ten times in the last 12 years, and a tenant who was given 28 days’ notice to leave his home of five years, but struggled to find the money needed for a deposit, rent in advance, and letting agent fees for his next rental home.
The Chairman of the Residential Landlords Association (RLA), Alan Ward, told the BBC that although the idea of rent controls may seem “attractive”, they would be a “disaster” in reality.
He adds: “All experience of them shows that they lead to landlords cutting investment or quitting the market, reducing both quality and choice for tenants. The way to moderate rents is to encourage investment and boost supply.
“There are already well over 400 regulations affecting the private rented sector, and the actions of successive governments is raising the cost of renting.”
He continues: “The problem is not about a lack of regulations, but proper enforcement of them, and we support local authorities in their efforts to root out criminal landlords.”
A spokesperson for the Department for Communities and Local Government also says: “This Government is committed to creating a bigger, better private rented sector, with up to £10 billion in Government-backed guarantees to build more quality homes for rent.
“We are doing this without the need for excessive state regulation that would push up prices and make it far harder for people to find somewhere to rent.”
The Government’s blacklist of rogue landlords, which will also be controlled by local authorities, will be in operation from autumn 2017: /blacklist-rogue-landlords-operation-autumn-2017/
The Valuation Office Agency released statistics on the private rental sector in England yesterday. It found that the median monthly rent over the past year was £650. London had the highest, at £1,473, while the North East is the lowest, at £480.