The Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA) has warned
that rents will rise in the New Year due to a number of rule changes affecting
landlords.
David Cox, ARLA managing director, says the various pieces of
legislation coming into play in 2016 will result in increased compliance costs
for landlords, and as a result push up rents for tenants.
“We urge the Government to re-think its proposals around
reducing mortgage interest relief, scrapping the wear and tear allowance and
hiking up stamp duty by 3% on buy-to-let properties. Whilst these remain, the
Government’s goal of increasing the percentage of people in home ownership is
getting further out of reach,” he said.
“The issue of supply and demand in the rental market will be
increasingly pushed to its limit with rising demand outstripping supply.”
However, ARLA said it is good news that regulation in the industry will be
tightening up in 2016.
The letting agent trade body said it hopes that the provisions
of the Housing and Planning Bill – when brought into force – will give
enforcing bodies and the courts more teeth in tackling rogue and criminal
landlords and agents. This will develop in 2016 to enforce harsher penalties
for landlords and unregulated agents that aren’t complying with basic
laws.
“The Right to Rent checks introduced in the Immigration Act 2014
will be rolled out nationally from 1 February 2016 following a successful pilot
scheme in the West Midlands,” said Cox, “However, we worry that the goodwill
established towards the scheme may be tested by the increase in volume,
disenfranchising landlords from the process.”
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