Following the decision to extend the tenant eviction ban until 31 May, the government is being urged to show the same support for landlords as it has for tenants.
There was widespread disappointment among buy-to-let landlords yesterday when the government announced that it was once again prolonging the existing ban on tenant evictions until at least the end of May.
The ban was scheduled to be lifted on 31 March and has already been extended several times during the current pandemic.
Aside from the bailiff evictions ban, landlords will still have to give tenants six months’ notice of their intention up until 31 May at the earliest.
A taper of the ban is expected to be implemented beyond the end of May.
Timothy Douglas, policy and campaigns manager, ARLA Propertymark, said: “The UK government has yet again extended the ban on evictions in England, without putting any additional and specific measures in place to support the sector.
“With the furlough scheme extended until September, it is likely that we will see further changes in the months ahead. To this end, we urge the UK government to consider a wider strategy and plan for how the sector can deal with rent arrears and the backlog of eviction cases, to avoid a mounting crisis.
“As the impact of Covid continues to bite with household debt and unemployment rates rising, we remain concerned about how tenants will avoid future rent arrears and landlords will remain incentivised to stay in the market.
“Rather than short-term measures that are not helping those renters that need it most, the UK government must focus on providing long-term support to help renters clear the debt and arrears they have built up during the pandemic.”
Ben Beadle, chief executive of the National Residential Landlords Association, welcomed the clarification that emergency measures in the rental market will be phased out in tandem with the overall roadmap out of lockdown restrictions.
But he feels that the additional extension to the repossessions ban will do nothing to help those landlords and tenants financially hit due to the pandemic.
Beadle commented: “Given the cross-sector consensus for the need to address the rent debt crisis, it suggests the government are unwilling to listen to the voices of those most affected.
“If the chancellor wants to avoid causing a homelessness crisis, he must develop an urgent financial package including interest free, government guaranteed loans to help tenants in arrears to pay off rent debts built since March 2020.
“This is vital for those who do not qualify for benefit support.
“Without this, more tenants face losing their homes, and many will carry damaged credit scores, making it more difficult to rent in the future and causing huge pressure on local authorities when they can least manage it.”
Franz Doerr, chief executive at flatfair, added: “The cries of renters and landlords alike have, once again, fallen on deaf ears in Whitehall.
“Since it was introduced last year, the ban on bailiff evictions has only served as a sticking plaster for the rental market. Huge sums of debt are piling up at the feet of landlords who are continuing to unfairly prop up the market.
“Instead of merely kicking the can down the road, the government should be scrambling to save struggling renters from plunging further into debt.
“Unlike Scotland and Wales, England has no Tenants Loan Scheme in place. Not only do these schemes ensure private tenants are able to continue paying their rent, they also protect the overall stability of the rental market.
“Many landlords in England are, understandably, becoming fed up with the lack of support coming their way.
“If the government continues to ignore landlords, it risks sparking an exodus from the buy-to-let market, which would only reduce the number of more affordable rental homes available.”
Comments (9)
Govt knows how long it will take LL to evict feckless rent defaulting tenants.
About 2 years!
By then I guess Govt is hoping it’s Tory Party funders; their BTR buddies will be able to replace all the small LL getting out.
Can’t see it myself.
If such an incredible plan was the case what plan B does the Govt have if BTR doesn’t rescue them from a tsunami of homeless evicted tenants soon to come?
Can’t see millions of social homes being magically built.
Somebody should ask Jenrick these questions or whoever the Housing Minister will be in the next few weeks as a Cabinet reshuffle is due soon.
I’d be fascinated to know how Govt believes it can cope with millions of homeless tenants as LL sell up.
Perhaps it won’t be millions but surely has to be in the hundreds of thousands!!??
I can’t for the life of me work out where all these homeless tenants are going to live as LL sell up.
Just seen a Green Party political broadcast talking about how every young person should be entitled to the dignity of a roof over their head. No mention about paying for it! That’s the PRS’s job!
You are absolutely right. There will be many thousands evicted over the next year, and LHAs won’t touch them if they’ve defaulted on rent for no reason, and no ‘decent’ LL will touch them, even with a guarantor. They’ll soon be reaping the rewards of fecklessness!
Have you seen the latest Court ruling that states a guarantor cannot be held to the deed beyond the initial FTTP!!!!!
So no RGI possibility and now no guarantor.
What’s a LL to do!?
I totally agree with the Green Party.
Indeed I would go further and suggest that EVERY citizen is entitled to decent accommodation.
I play my part.
The downside probably from the Green Party’s perspective is that I require to be paid the agreed full contractual rent.
I’m sure lots of other LL have the same reasonable expectations as me!!
It would appear that many of these anti-LL lobby groups expect LL to provision such accommodation for free.
A bizarre concept I struggle to understand would even be possible to achieve.
This of course the very same Green Party responsible for espousing S24 taxation which is resulting in LL removing many a roof from over a tenants head as S24 forces them to sell up!!
You know it makes sense!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!???????????
The Chancellor has 2 ‘deliberate blind-spots’; loans for tenants in England, and support for directors of small companies excluded from support. Many LLs are being hit with both these issues, but the Chancellor refuses to explain why he won’t do anything.
Of course, a feckless tenant would take a loan, not pay his rent arrears to the LL, still refuse to vacate, and when eventually evicted, disappear without paying off the loan.
I’m a director of a small property rental company and I haven’t been excluded from support. The CJRS is available to directors as well as ‘normal’ employees. Or do you mean directors who, for years, have avoided paying NI (paying themselves in dividends, not supporting the state) and now expect a handout?
So, what I think you are suggesting is I should dramatically increase my ‘salary’ and claim 80% back from the State, instead of 80% of very little.
From a director who has paid 38 years of full PAYE tax and NI. I trust you think that’s enough to entitle me to some government support… instead of persistently doling it out to my feckless self-employed tenant!
BTL is a very worthwhile enterprise. The problem is with evicting feckless rent defaulting tenants. Unfortunately this undermines the rental business model. Govt is making sure LL are massively financially damaged. They want to eradicate LL and so Govt will not be assisting LL anytime soon!! If LL like me cannot cope they will like me have to sell up. The rental business model is predicated on receiving rent NOT housing someone for free for years until eventually evicted which is effectively what is happening. Supermarkets wouldn’t last long if customers took groceries without paying for them. Why does Govt believe that LL should use their resources to pay for feckless tenants!? Eviction should occur with NO court action required after 2 months rent default which is 1 month and 1 day. If the tenant pays in full on the day after the 2nd month missed payment then NO eviction is allowed. That would concentrate tenant minds. Yes it would still mean running a potential 2 months of arrears all the time but few LL would wish to evict if the 2 months rent arrears were paid with cleared funds on eviction day. The PRS only makes sense if you can get rid of rent defaulting tenants quickly. This isn’t the case currently and is scheduled to become far more difficult if not impossible. Why would any LL wish to risk letting a property to someone who could rob them of years of rent by not paying!? It is simply pointless. This is why many LL are giving up on the AST rental sector. It no longer makes business sense
Renting a flat is hardly a skilled occupation.
Where is the govt going to house the 1000’s of people who will be kicked out after 2 months who have lost jobs?
I speak as LL who is getting out of it
Renting isn’t a skilled occupation. It isn’t an occupation at all. Letting (or being a landlord) properly is a skilled occupation and requires a lot of knowledge and skills unless you are using an agent (and in this case, I would argue you aren’t a landlord but are just an investor).
The government can house the 1000’s of people in the same place as they are going to house the 10,000’s of people who are going to be evicted at the end of the eviction ban.