In the late spring, the Government announced
that they were planning to end no-fault evictions for tenants living in private
rented accommodation.
I have had a number of Southampton landlords contact
me anxious that removing a tenant from their Southampton buy-to-let property in
the future had possibly become a lot more problematic. Yet, at the launch of
the consultation on the changes to the piece of legislation relating to
no-fault evictions (called the Section 21 amendments), the Government wanted to
assure British landlords that they would be protected by the bolstering of the
existing Section 8 legislation. The current Section 8 allows landlords grounds
for recovery of their properties for reoccupation of the landlord, non-payment
of rent and other legitimate factors.
25,247 Southampton landlords are affected by
this
potential change in the law
Yet, it is comforting for Southampton landlords
and tenants in the fact that most competent letting agents very rarely have to
evict a tenant. In the worst-case scenarios the tenant needs evicting (normally
because rent hasn’t been paid) or because the landlord is either selling their buy-to-let
investment or moving back into their property. Look at the consultation - it has
been indicated that those grounds will not be removed from section 8 powers during
the government’s consultation and the talk is they will be bolstered and improved.
To put the removal of Section 21 notices into some context…
Only 22,527
section 21 notices made it to Court last year, out the 4.5million private
rented households
Scotland banned no fault evictions (i.e. their
own version of a Section 21) two years ago, and the model suggested by
Westminster is similar to that of the new Scottish system. Landlords, tenants
and agents have had to adapt north of the border, and there hasn’t been the
mass exodus of landlords from the market since then.
Yet the call in the lettings and legal
profession is … if the Government is intent on making these changes, we need well-funded
courts which specialise in housing and tenancy matters (like there are for
family law and children). Especially when the landlord manages the property
themselves (without an agent), the issue of eviction comes about from a
breakdown in communication between landlord and tenant. The courts could use
their mediation skills to make it simpler and faster for tenants and landlords
to obtain quick and available justice instead of the existing drawn out
procedures under Section 8, which helps no one (not even tenants). This is
important as the demand for Southampton rental properties is growing and people
need a home to live in – fact.
for the next decade to meet the demand from Southampton
tenants
As an
agent in Southampton, I know most Southampton landlords consider buy-to-let in Southampton
as a long-term investment, with the average landlord looking to retain their buy-to-let
property for at least 10 years and beyond. Talking to other agents around the country,
over 90% of Section 21 notices are made by the tenant, not the landlord. Removing the Section 21 notice could affect tenants more than
landlords.
Replacing Section 21 with a
process that requires a landlord to firstly have a good reason, and secondly go
through due process, will likely remove the more unprincipled landlords from
the property market. That is great news as those unprincipled landlords will
either sell their properties to new buy-to-let Southampton landlords, or to tenants
who want to buy them. So, it could be a small win for people looking for a new Southampton
home, and a disappointment for unprincipled landlords simply looking for a cash
cow ‘have no care about the property or tenant’ investment vehicle.
If you are a Southampton
landlord and want to know more about this, whether you are a landlord of ours,
a Southampton landlord with another Southampton agent or a self-managing
landlord, feel free to drop me a line or pick up the phone (I don’t bite) to
chat about the implications of this and other legislative
changes that
are on the horizon.
If you would like to pick my brains on the Southampton Property Market – pop in for a coffee or drop me a line on social media or email.
If you are looking for an agent that is well established, professional and communicative, then contact us to find out how we can get the best out of your investment property.
Email me on brian.linehan@belvoir.co.uk or call on 023 8001 8222.
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