Posted 31.01.17
Welsh Housing Quarterly: Article link
First Scotland, now England. The campaign to stop letting agents charging fees to tenants in Wales continues, says Liz Silversmith of Let Down in Wales.
There have been some curious developments in the Assembly recently on whether Wales should ban letting agency fees.
Throughout the passage of the Renting Homes Bill last year, Let Down consistently campaigned for letting agency fees to be banned. This was alongside other measures we felt would ensure renters' rights.
However, the Welsh Government repeatedly voted down attempts to do so. Plaid Cymru's former housing spokesperson, Jocelyn Davies, tried amendments to ban fees but the then Housing Minister stated she was worried this would merely increase rents. This is in spite of the fact that Shelter did not find any evidence for this when they were banned in Scotland.
-----
Posted 25.01.17
Chartered Institute of Housing: Article link
New minimum standards should be introduced for the private rented sector and landlords should receive tax incentives for signing up to accreditation schemes, the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) has said.
In its budget submission to Government, the CIH said more needs to be done to improve the quality of private homes across the board, including a new set of minimum standards for landlords which cover property conditions and housing management.
The CIH also called for tax incentives for private landlords who sign up to an accreditation scheme and new measures to allow local authorities to enforce standards.
Further, it calls for the regulation of letting agents to stamp out poor practice.
-----
Posted 12.01.17
Department for Communities: Article link
A new public consultation document - Private Rented Sector in Northern Ireland: Proposals for Change - is the second stage in the Departmen for Communities' review of the role and regulation of the private rented sector in Northern Ireland.
The aim of the review is to consider the current and potential future role of the sector and assess the effectiveness of current regulation, identifying where improvements can be made to help make the private rented sector a more attractive housing option.
This document sets out proposals on supply, affordability, security of tenure, tenancy management, property standards and dispute resolution.
-----
Posted 08.01.17
Citizens Advice: Article link
Two in 5 (39%) people living with their children in privately rented homes have a tenancy of 6 months or less, new figures from Citizens Advice reveal.
Analysis by the national charity finds 1 in 3 (34%) private renters would like their tenancy to be longer, rising to 2 in 5 (39%) amongst those with children. This amounts to almost 1.5 million households in England who need more security that they'll be able to keep living in their own home.
In recent years there's been a dramatic increase in the number of people bringing up children in privately rented accommodation. But the private rented sector has many pitfalls - last year nearly 75,000 people in England turned to Citizens Advice for help with a problem relating to a privately rented home.