Wales follows England’s lead with own evictions ban extension

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The Welsh government has followed England’s lead and announced its own evictions ban extension which, like England’s, was due to run out on Monday.

But the Welsh government has gone further, revealing that its extension will last until 31^st March, housing minister Julie James (pictured, above) has confirmed.

This means until then bailiffs will not be able to execute court orders for both private and social housing tenants, except in cases of anti-social behaviour or domestic violence.

“This is an extremely difficult time for many people and renters should not be forced out of their homes, at a time when we are asking people to stay at home and when they will have less access to advice, support and alternative accommodation,” says James.

Pay the rent

But the minister has sided with landlords to a degree, underlining that the eviction ban extension should not be construed as “an excuse for people not to pay their rent if they are able to, and address any financial problems they are experiencing”, she said.

“Having an early conversation with landlords to work out a way forward is vital, as is getting the right debt advice.”

The extension of the notice period for evictions to six months in Wales will also remain in place until 31^st March 2021. Both regulations will be kept under review and the suspension of evictions will be subject to a confirmatory vote in the Senedd.

Ben Beadle, Chief Executive of the NRLA, says: “The pandemic has hit renters and landlords hard and we share the Welsh Government’s objective to ensure there is no rise in homelessness and that good tenants stay in their homes.

“Ensuring tenants have the financial support to stay in their homes is the best way to prevent repossession. However, in addition to antisocial behaviour, landlords must be able to take action against those with extreme arrears, especially those that predate Covid, and particularly where tenants are not availing themselves of the financial support available, or do not meet the criteria.”

Timothy Douglas, Policy & Campaigns Manager for Propertymark, says: “We remain concerned about rent arears and increasing household debt and landlords must not be left carrying an impossible financial burden,” says

“We will continue to work with the Welsh Government to ensure that the Tenant Saver Loan scheme is used wherever appropriate.”

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Shock poll reveals public support for student rent suspension during lockdown

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A poll of over 9,000 people by YouGov has revealed 54% believe students who are not able to return to their accommodation due to the Covid lockdown should not have to pay any rent until the crisis ends.

The UK’s 1.8 million graduates have been caught out by Wednesday’s decision by the government to introduce a new lockdown, as many were staying with their parents following the festive break.

The severity of the new lockdown means many will not be able to return to their university digs whether in halls or the private rented sector.

The poll results are from across the age spectrum, rather than being skewed by young people who are more likely to be sympathetic. Approximately 50% of those between 25 and 60 years old said students should not be charged at all, rising to 60% of those between 18 and 25 year old.

And even 46% of Conservative voters among those polled agreed students needed total relief from rent payments during the lockdown, which is likely to carry on until at least mid-March.

Those polled were asked: “Do you think students who are unable to return to their student accommodation due to lockdown should still have to pay rent as normal or not?

Among the rest of those polled 30% believe students should be given a discount but only 5% said students should have to pay their in full.

Thousands of landlords and university accommodation suppliers are caught up in this crisis. See the results of the YouGov poll.

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Robert Jenrick extends the ban on bailiff evictions until 21st February

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The Communities Secretary, Robert Jenrick,  has announced renters will continue to be supported during the new national restrictions, with an extension to the ban on bailiff evictions for all but the most egregious cases until at least 21 February with measures kept under review.

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BREAKING: Government extends evictions for another six weeks

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The government has announced a further extension of the eviction ban for at least six weeks until 21^st February, at which point it will be reviewed.

Although this is cataclysmic news for the thousands of landlords waiting to evict tenants via a bailiff, the government has heeded the NRLA’s calls or a widening of the circumstances when evictions can go ahead.

It is understood that landlords will be able to enforce possession orders if their tenants are more than six months in arrears irrespective of when the arrears accrued and therefore no longer have to pre-date Covid.

Other enforcement exceptions remains in place including domestic violence and anti-social behaviour.

At the moment landlords can initiate possession claims via the court system and be granted orders after the courts re-opened in September, but since early November bailiffs in England and Wales have only been able to execute possession orders if they

“The repossessions ban is a sticking plaster that will ultimately lead to more people losing their homes,” says Ben Beadle (pictured), Chief Executive of the NRLA.

“It means tenants’ debts will continue to mount to the point where they have no hope of paying them off leading eventually to them having to leave their home.

“Instead the government should recognise the crisis facing many tenants and take immediate action to enable them to pay their debts as is happening in Scotland and Wales. The objective should be to sustain tenancies in the long term and not just the short term.” 

Retrospective

LandlordZONE also understands that the new six-month limit on arrears will be retrospective, so landlords who have court orders pending will not be able to proceed if their rent arrears are older than six months.

The announcement has been widely expected since Boris Johnson announced the new national lockdown on Monday, after which a growing chorus of political and housing figures and organisations have been calling for the government to act.

On Wednesday, Johnson hinted at a likely evictions extension, saying that the current ‘Christmas truce’ due to expire on Monday was ‘under review’.

Paul Shamplina of Landlord Action says: “‘This is some positive news and I worry about the backlogs but we await the final details. 

“Landlord Action has so many desperate landlords at Landlord Action that have cases ongoing now for over 18 months and are stuck at the final stage of awaiting an eviction date, with very little prospect of recouping the arrears.  Well done to the NRLA for campaigning for this.”

Oli Sherlock (pictured), Head of Insurance at lettings platform Goodlord, says: “Many landlords are now nearing breaking point. Scores are facing financial difficulties as a result of unpaid rent and ongoing mortgage costs, with a few facing uncommunicative tenants who are refusing to vacate properties even when leases come to an end (although this is a minority of tenants).

“Unless more support is put in place for those struggling, we can expect to see a large number of landlords withdraw their lets from the housing market over the next year. This will put pressure on a vital source of housing at a time of critical need. Decision makers must start thinking about how tenants and landlords alike can recover from these challenges during and following the stay on evictions.”

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LATEST: Evictions announcement expected as chorus grows for extension in England

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The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has joined the growing chorus of organisations and public figures calling for an extension to the evictions ban due to expire on Monday.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Wednesday that the current ban on bailiff evictions, which has been in place since December 11^th, was ‘under review’.

A government announcement on this is widely expected today or Monday following the new national lockdown announced earlier this week by Johnson.

Urgent action

Khan has said the government must take urgent action to protect renters from eviction and homelessness as new statistics show the number of Londoners reporting concerns about their landlord or letting agent more than doubled during the pandemic.

One in five complainants are now reporting an unfair eviction, latest City Hall stats show.

While many landlords have supported tenants throughout the pandemic, the latest stats from the mayor’s ‘report a rogue landlord or agent’ online tool demonstrate the way some unscrupulous landlords have taken advantage of the pandemic, with more than 1,400 complaints between march and December last year.

Khan says private tenants should have the same protection as commercial tenants who before Christmas benefited from an extension of a ban on evictions until the end of March 2021.

Leading figures

His call is backed by the Deputy Chair of London Councils Darren Rodwell (pictured), Ben Reeve-Lewis of Safer Renting and Dan Wilson Craw of Generation Rent.

“A third national lockdown will pile even more pressure on vulnerable renters who might have lost their jobs or are facing health issues,” says Rodwell.

“Being unfairly evicted in the middle of a surging pandemic is just not right. Renters need more protection so they are in the best possible position to get back on their feet when the economy reopens.”

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Will England follow Scotland and extend eviction ban to 31st March?

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The Scottish Government has announced the temporary ban on eviction orders will be extended until the end of March. Regulations will be laid in the Scottish Parliament on 14 January to extend the current ban, which is in place at present until 22 January.

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