Renters Reform Bill - Update

The Government has now published the Renters (Reform) Bill. This is the biggest shake-up to the private rented sector in decades.

The outcome was as expected following the White Paper – A Fairer Private Rented Sector which was released in June 2022.

The key points are:

• Section 21, commonly referred to as ‘no fault eviction’, is to be abolished
• Strengthen Section 8 for landlords to serve notice when selling or moving back into the property, evicting tenants for anti-social behaviour and repeat rent arrears
• Fixed term tenancies will no longer exist, all tenancies will be periodic
• Introduce a new landlord Ombudsman to assist with disputes between landlords and tenants
• Creation of a property portal for landlords creating transparency
• Give tenants the right to request to keep a pet at the property. Amendments to the Tenant Fees Act to allow landlords to require pet insurance to cover any damages.
• Applying the Decent Homes Standard to the Private Rented Sector and strengthen local authorities’ enforcement powers

Now we wait to hear the date of the second reading whilst the industry digests the changes to the industry.

If you are a landlord in the private rented sector, we would urge you not to panic. It is likely to take 9-12 months to get through Parliament. There will be more clarity over the coming weeks and months with industry bodies and professionals digesting and dissecting the information.