Renters’ Rights Bill: What to Expect

Changes in the law governing the relationship between landlords and tenants are in the pipeline, primarily aimed at protecting tenants. Some are expected to be in force by the summer, perhaps earlier, others further down the line.  David Moulton, who specialises in property litigation at Fraser Dawbarns, outlines key points for landlords to consider.

The starting point is that fixed term tenancies are coming to an end. All tenants will be on periodic tenancies but will then have to give two months’ notice if they plan to move out.

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Getting a tenant to vacate

If a landlord wishes a tenant to leave, this will become more complicated in future because the current option of serving a “no fault” Section 21 notice will no longer be available. There will still be other options, depending on the circumstances, in which the landlord will be able to serve a Section 8 Notice indicating a need or good reason for a possession order to be granted.

• If a landlord wishes to sell a property then this will become a justifiable reason to ask tenants to leave but the notice period will be four months.
• If a tenant fails to pay the rent, is exhibiting antisocial behaviour or is in breach of the tenancy terms in some other way, it will still be possible to evict them. This is likely to be a more drawn-out process than proceedings based upon a Section 21 Notice and gives the tenant the opportunity to raise complaints about the state of the property and use this as a defence to a claim for non-payment of rent.

Rent increases

Two months, rather than one, will become the standard notice period for increasing a tenant’s rent. This is already good practice but will become compulsory.  It supports the aim of outlawing unreasonably large rent increases in general, or as a means of trying to get tenants to depart.

Letting to new tenants

Changes are also planned to the process of attracting new tenants in the first place. There are several measures which aim to discourage discrimination and there will potentially be fines for non-compliance.

• Stricter action against stipulations such as no pets or children is expected. However, it will remain possible to reject applicants where a property is genuinely unsuitable for a particular type of tenant, for example a two bedroom property for a family of six, provided it represents a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.
• The rent at which a landlord advertises a property will have to be the amount that it is let for – this is to stop those who can afford to do so paying above market rate to secure a property.
• The option currently used by some of paying six months’ rent in advance to secure a property will no longer be available. This may cause genuine issues for those moving to the UK from overseas if they are unable to satisfy the usual financial requirements.

Decent Homes Standard

There are plans to extend to the private rental sector similar standards of repair which already apply to social housing. There are provisions around general state of repair and facilities such as heating.  The introduction of  ‘Awaab’s Law’ is also planned to create clear timeframes for landlords to deal with serious health-concerning hazards.

Local Councils will be given greater powers than ever before to take action to force landlords to carry out necessary repairs to ensure that these standards are met.

Other Proposed Changes

Landlords will need to be registered on a new private rented sector database, although no date has yet been set for this. Likewise, they will also need to sign up with the private rented-sector Ombudsman.

There is a whole raft of further detail which will be of interest and importance to some landlords but of relatively little significance to others.  Landlords should consider reviewing their current tenancy arrangements now and discussing their future plans with their property agents if they have one.

If you are having trouble securing possession of an existing property and wish to try to do this before the rules change, please contact us.

How To Contact Us:

To contact a member of our team, you can fill in our online enquiry form, email info@fraserdawbarns.com, or call your nearest office below. If you’d like to speak to a member of our team at one of our offices across Norfolk and Cambridgeshire, visit our offices page.

Wisbech: 01945 461456

March: 01354 602880

King’s Lynn: 01553 666600

Ely: 01353 383483
Downham Market: 01366 383171

This article aims to supply general information, but it is not intended to constitute advice. Every effort is made to ensure that the law referred to is correct at the date of publication and to avoid any statement which may mislead. However, no duty of care is assumed to any person and no liability is accepted for any omission or inaccuracy. Always seek advice specific to your own circumstances. Fraser Dawbarns LLP is always happy to provide such advice.