Will it ever happen? Key property industry event postpones for a THIRD time due to Covid

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Covid has made a mess of many landlords’ and agents’ plans since March last year but the problems are most obvious if you’re organising conferences and exhibitions, all of which have been forced to cancel or go online.

And that’s true for the property sector’s largest gathering which has now been delayed for a third time and now won’t take place until the end of the year.

ARLA Propertymark’s conference and exhibition was rescheduled from its original date of 24^th March 2020 to 2^nd September, and then later moved to 27^th April 2021, but due to the ongoing pandemic, organisers are asking agents to save the new date of 7^th December.

Uncertainty

An ARLA spokeswoman says that the decision to postpone its popular networking event reflected continued uncertainty around the virus.

“Our hope is that by pushing the event back to much later in the year, we will all be in a position to safely come together for an informative and successful event,” she says.

“We can confirm that all existing conference registrations for delegates will be automatically transferred to the new conference date. We want to thank all of our exhibitors and sponsors for their patience and we look forward to collaborating with them to deliver a fantastic event.”

The event, which usually attracts more than 1,000 property professionals and 60 suppliers to the industry, will take place at ExCel in London’s Docklands, ironically the location of the London Nightingale Hospital, set up to accommodate Coronavirus victims.

Retail guru Mary Portas (pictured) and controversial head of the NHS test and trace programme, Dido Harding, are two of the speakers.

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Evictions ban must be extended past February 21st says Labour leader

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Labour leader Keir Starmer has called on the government to go further and extend the evictions ban past the current February 21^st deadline announced on Friday.

His call for action, which is unlikely to go down well among landlords who already have court-approved possession orders to evict tenants in serious arrears, was made during a keynote speech made this morning via social media.

Starmer says during the address, which has been delivered with an eye on the already delayed local elections due to now take place in May, that he wants the government to ‘put families first’.

He says Ministers should back local authorities to prevent council tax rises, stop any cuts in Universal Credit, “extend the ban on evictions and repossessions” and give “key workers the pay rise they deserve”.

Lockdown extension

In notes published alongside his speech, Starmer’s team says the evictions ban should be kept while the lockdown is in place, which is expected to endure in one form or another until April and even May this year.

Labour has also criticised the current evictions ban, claiming that it breaks previous promises by the government to ensure that those who have lost their income during the pandemic would not be evicted.

This is because, after being persuaded by the NRLA, Ministers agreed that ‘egregious arrears’ will now include those of more than six months duration rather the nine, which now includes tenants who stopped paying their rent after the pandemic began.

Watch the speech in full.

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Violent and criminal tenant who threatened landlord jailed for 20 months

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A tenant who had threatened and assaulted his landlord has been jailed for harassing a female colleague after she rejected his advances.

Edward Stewart, of Victoria Street in Belfast, threatened to throw acid in his colleague’s face when she turned down repeated requests to be his girlfriend.

He was handed a 20-month sentence after he admitted harassing the woman and causing her to fear violence.

Judge Stephen Fowler also imposed an extended period of 24 months on licence after it emerged the 36-year-old had been deemed a dangerous offender.

Landlord

The court heard Stewart had a, “relevant and extensive criminal record for targeting individuals with whom he has taken umbrage”. This included attacks and threats against his landlord after he was evicted, former employers, a probation officer and the police.

His most recent victim had started working in a call centre where Stewart was also employed. After she rebuffed him, he made threats against her, told her he was going to rape her, slit her throat and throw acid in her face.

Stewart appeared for sentencing at Belfast Crown Court (pictured) via video-link, which heard he had breached a ten-year restraining order issued to protect the former work colleague within an hour of it being imposed; after his initial court hearing, he invaded her personal space and shouted at her outside court.

Judge Fowler noted that Stewart’s criminal record consisted of similar offences, highlighting his lack of victim awareness, lack of remorse and mental health issues.

He told Stewart: “You are intelligent but you are calculating. Your behaviour caused significant psychological distress to the victim.”

Read more about tenants to turn violent against landlords.

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A tiny flame to a raging 800 Celsius inferno in less than three minutes!

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A recent incident in my own HMO with fan heaters plugged in but hidden behind bedding making the place an absolute death trap made me realise just how little tenants (and indeed most landlords) understand about fire safety.

Most tenants

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BREAKING: NRLA report into ‘unaccountable’ Rent Smart Wales reveals range of failings

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Landlords have slammed the registration and licensing authority that regulates the private rented sector in Wales, taking the organisation to task for a range of failings.

Rent Smart Wales was set up five years ago and requires all landlords with properties within Wales to register and apply for a licence to operate or face a range of penalties from a £150 fixed fine to a criminal prosecution.

But the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) has investigated the organisation as tens of thousands of Welsh landlords prepare to renew their licences this year.

Rent Smart Wales: The Accountability Gap pulls no punches, accusing the organisation of a lack of transparency or oversight and also blaming the Welsh government, which created it, for a lack of strategy.

The report, which will make for difficult reading at the organisation’s Cardiff HQ, also says it is too remote and that it has failed to engage with landlords, tenants or local authorities; is poor value for money and has failed to achieve many of its own objectives.

The NRLA also says Rent Smart Wales prefers chasing bureaucratic compliance to improving standards, and often duplicates the licensing work of local authorities.

Recommendations for improvement include an annual report into the performance of Rent Smart Wales, that decision making on political and operational grounds should be separated and that its role should be integrated into a wider PRS strategy for Wales.

The NRLA representative in Wales, Calum Davies, says: “We believe there has been insufficient scrutiny of RSW – an incredibly powerful body considering how much regulatory and prosecutorial power it wields – and felt a duty to fill that evidence gap.

“What is clear from that research was a lack of transparency as to how decision-making within the organisation is conducted and who is politically accountable for decisions that affect over hundreds of thousands across Wales.”

LandlordZONE has contacted Rent Smart Wales for comment.

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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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