UK Landlord Forum / Life

Housing Minister Matthew Pennycock wants to introduce strict rules restricting landlords' ability to evict tenants in the proposed rent reforms.

The new minister also wants to upgrade private rental home standards, starting with making homes warmer and requiring higher energy efficiency.

A media leak, probably by Labour insiders looking to test reaction to the measures, reveals:

1. A hardship test would allow courts to refuse a possession order if eviction would mean undue hardship for the tenant. Hardship factors would include stopping evictions of tenants with terminal illnesses or those who are likely to lose their jobs or become homeless as a result of the eviction.

2. Landlords must offer a property to the tenant before a sale on the open market. (most LLs would be doing this anyway)

3. The wait before a landlord can sell or move a relative into a rental home is extended from six months to two years.

4. Remove persistent arrears - owing two months rent on three occasions -  as grounds for eviction.


Given that Local Authorities don't have any spare properties and there are already thousands homeless, the proposed "hardship test" would make it impossible to evict anyone.

Has your For Sale board gone up yet?

I think most Landlords would agree that energy rating system needs to be changed before they bring in such legislation.

As it is, if you remove a Gas Boiler and replace it with solar system coupled all the other crazy air pump stuff that costs £15,000 then the energy efficiency is made WORSE because Gas Boilers are typically 94% efficient and last for donkeys year more.  Air pumps are huge and housed outside where lots of nice cuddly insects love to nest in, they also don't cope very well with British weather.

A friend of mine bought into this has pipes running all over the house, not under floorboards and they were not even lagged, he was too ashamed to have buyers remorse and admitted paying to have two electric heaters fitted because the new system simply could not cope with heating a rather modern house.

The undue hardship is hilarious, the Landlord might suffer undue hardship, penalties from mortgage company and eventually lose the property when it is repossessed and sold. 

As for "become homeless as a result of the eviction"  well the standard for intervention by a Council for a homeless duty starts with a Section 21 or Section 8 notice.  Everyone who is evicted will become homeless, if they are evicted for non payment of rent they won't get a reference, nor if they trash a property.  I can't imagine something more absurd, this is what happens when you employ people with the CV of Angela Rayner and put them in charge of something when no company other than a care home would employ her based on her CV (see wikipedia).  There is no attempt for further education, basically she has had two jobs, care home worker and union rep.

The phrase promoted beyond their capability springs to mind, BUT NO, I read the other day that she has Housing Experience, she exercised the right to buy her social housing property and sold it, thus taking a property out of the social housing stock and making a tidy profit at the same time.

I am not fussed by 3 because I think Landlording is a business and it is generally not a good idea to do business with family.

I think the persistent arrears could be modified, for example if the tenant brings the rent account up to date for a period of 3 months then this could remove one strike and if the tenant agrees to immediately have housing benefit paid to landlord rather than have the six weeks before Landlord can ask the DWP to redirect the payment, then that could remove a strike.  We have all been in severe hardship at times, but if a tenant can restore the account and keep it up to date for say 6 months without issue then previous strikes could all be nullified.

Wait until you see what the legislation looks like as it goes through parliament. There are various grounds where a comparative hardship element makes perfect sense, and some, like selling a property, where they're simply impossible.

A deputy leader who's been a care home worker and union rep sounds well qualified to me.

Quote from: jpkeates on August 09, 2024, 01:39:53 PMWait until you see what the legislation looks like as it goes through parliament. There are various grounds where a comparative hardship element makes perfect sense, and some, like selling a property, where they're simply impossible.

A deputy leader who's been a care home worker and union rep sounds well qualified to me.

Yep

THAT is why this site; this forum, stands out from most every other rental website. An opinion humbly offered by a total cynic, so no emoji.