NLA survey puts housing down the list of tenants’ election concerns

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Housing issues:

A recent survey
carried out by the National Landlords’ Association (NLA), the body
that represents 41,000 landlord members, says that the results “give
the lie” to the clichéd view that all landlords are “dodgy”
and treat their tenants badly.

It seems that along
with much of the rest of the population, Brexit, not housing, is the
Number One issue of concern for Britain’s tenants in the
forthcoming general election. This is followed by climate change and
the environment, and education, with housing coming fourth on the
list as highlighted by the survey.

The results would appear to support previous evidence that private sector tenants are on the whole satisfied or very satisfied with the way their private landlord treats them. In fact private landlords have consistently scored higher on the satisfaction scale than do social housing landlords (councils and housing association) in numerous studies.

Jeremy Corbyn
launched the Labour Party’s general election campaign with a
scathing attack on “dodgy landlords”. But, the NLA’s survey of
tenants shows that housing is not the most prominent issue on the
average tenant’s mind, ranking only fourth, followed by
immigration, the NHS, police and crime, tax, transport and the
welfare system.

The findings show
that, contrary to the mantra constantly peddled by the popular press
and some politicains, most tenants actually enjoy a cordial
relationship with their landlords. When they were asked how confident
they were in their current landlord or agent’s professionalism,
nearly a quarter answered “very confident”, with 69 per cent
marking them 7 or above, on a scale of 1-10. Only 3 per cent said
they were “not confident” in their landlord or agent’s
professionalism, says the NLA.

This data was
corroborated by other findings over a number of years where
consistently over 85 per cent of tenants say they have a positive
view of their current landlord. In this survey some 68 per cent
admitted that they had “never had cause to complain”. A further
16 per cent noted that while they had registered a complaint, the
landlord or agent subsequently “resolved the situation to my
satisfaction”.

This, says the NLA,
perhaps reflects the fact that landlords have resisted the temptation
to raise rents over the past year: nearly three-quarters of tenants
reported that their rents had “stayed the same” while some even
revealed that their rent had actually fallen over the past 12 months.
Furthermore, 86 per cent of tenants had never been served with either
a Section 21 or Section 8 over the past five years.

Richard Lambert,
Chief Executive Officer of the NLA, commented:

“The private
rented sector is not the big political issue that some tenants’
groups claim it to be. The idea that tenants and landlords are
constantly engaged in some kind of bitter dispute is just another
example of fake news.

“When tenants go
to the ballot box to cast their vote next month, housing won’t be
top of their agenda. That’s because, as the survey we commissioned
reveals, the majority of tenants are perfectly happy with their
rental property and perfectly happy with their landlord.”

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What could a new government mean for landlords?

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With just four weeks to go until the British public head for
polling stations across the country, the UK’s main political parties are
gearing up for the general election on 12 December. The need for Boris Johnson
to turn his lead into a working parliamentary majority and break the Brexit
deadlock has been the main focus for the Conservative party. But while
resolving the Brexit issue has captured most of the headlines, as the election
draws closer speculation over key policies across a range of areas, including
housing, is increasing.

The current government has implemented a number of
legislative changes in the private rented sector which are having a major
impact on landlords. A potential party change could have an even bigger impact
on the buy to let market as a whole.

We don’t yet know exactly what each major party has planned
for the private rented sector, should they come into power, and dates for the
release of party manifestos have not yet been confirmed.

In What
could a change in government mean for landlords? Hamilton Fraser
Total Landlord Insurance CEO, Eddie Hooker, picks out the key proposals the
three main parties have made over recent times and in their 2017 manifestos.
From Conservative moves to better protect tenants to Labour’s bold proposals
for the buy to let sector, as well as the Liberal Democrats’ focus on the
private rented sector in their previous manifesto, Eddie speculates about what
a new government could mean for landlords. Eddie offers his insights on a range
of potential policies, from right to buy, rent control and rent to buy to
universal credit, tax and Section 21. Read the full article here.

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Rental prices strong but housing market subdued

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HOMELET’s Rental Index figures for October 2019 have been released.

The headlines from this month’s report are:

The average rent in the UK is now £953, up by 2.7% on the same time last year

When London is excluded

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New ONS stats show average London rents fall in real terms

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Rents:

New
statistics released yesterday by the Office
for National Statistics (ONS) show that rents across London rose less
that inflation at an
average of 0.9%
in the 12 months to October 2019.

The
Residential Landlords Association (RLA)
argues that this demonstrates the folly of the Mayor of London’s
calls for rent controls in the capital, which would have resulted
rent increases for tenants by linking
rents
to inflation.

These statistics, says the RLA, mean that the Mayor’s stated policy of introducing rent controls in the capital have been “dealt a critical blow” when it is demonstratively the case that rents don’t necessarily follow a steep upward curve.

Speaking recently to a committee of MPs the Housing Secretary, Robert Jenrick, warned that he was “not in favour of rent controls”, arguing that they have “proven to be very negative for both landlords and tenants in the past, and I do not want to see any move in that direction.”

Research carried out by the RLA, they claim, shows that around the world rent controls have been proved not to work, leading to a lower standard of housing and less choice for tenants.

David Smith, Policy Director for the RLA, says:

“Today’s
figures show how absurd proposals for rent controls are. Rents in
London are falling in real terms yet the Mayor is failing to
acknowledge this.

“If
he wants to make renting cheaper it would be better to work
constructively with good landlords to provide the new homes to rent
the capital desperately needs. Without this, supply will fall, rents
will go up, and tenants will have even less choice about where they
live.”

· The Office for National Statistics Index of Private Housing Rental Prices for October 2019 can be accessed here

· RICS’ most recent Residential Market Survey can be accessed here

The
graphs on page 6 show that the demand for private rented housing in
London is outstripping supply

· The Secretary of State was speaking to the Housing, Communities and Local Government Select Committee. The transcript can be accessed here

· The RLA’s own research on rent controls can be accessed here

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Shelter blame B&Bs on private landlords!

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Shelter press release: The government has released new figures on the amount being spent by local councils on temporary accommodation for homeless households in England in 2018/19. They show:

– Councils spent £1.1 billion on temporary accommodation for homeless households between April 2018 and March 2019.

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Possession timescales at 22.6 week average

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New figures showing that landlords face a growing amount of time in getting judgement on repossession cases from the courts are boosting calls for the urgent need for dedicated housing courts to be established.

Government statistics published today show that it now takes private landlords an average of 22.6 weeks from making a claim to the courts for a property to be repossessed to it actually happening

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Failing courts need urgent reform argue landlords

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New figures showing that landlords face a growing amount of time in getting judgement on repossession cases from the courts are boosting calls for the urgent need for dedicated housing courts to be established. Government statistics published today show that it now takes private landlords an average of 22.6 weeks from making a claim to […]

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New 5 year Ltd co remortgage BTL

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Aldermore Specialist Bank, has launched a new 5 year fixed remortgage product for individual and company landlords with single residential investment properties. The move is to help landlords looking for long-term stability when managing their portfolios.

The product is now available:

75% loan-to-value (LTV)

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Can I contract that any new tenant provides their own reference?

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Looking into the mine field of the consequences of the new tenant fees act. I have several HMO’s with 4 or 5 tenants all on a single joint contract (ie. a shared house scenario).

Generally about once a year

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Belvoir Q3 rental index reveals rise in the number of families renting

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The Belvoir Q3 2019 rental index reveals interesting new
rental trends, confirming a cultural shift towards more families renting, an
increase in lengths of tenancies and continued stock shortages that may be
further impacted by proposals to abolish Section 21.

“The Q3 rental index, which analyses advertised and actual
rents across the network, is prepared for Belvoir by property expert Kate
Faulkner, and reveals some interesting trends in the Buy to Let market,” says
Belvoir CEO Dorian Gonsalves.

“The Q3 2019 monthly rental average in England is £819 and
when compared to Q3 2018 this reveals a year on year increase of just over
4.75%. Feedback from a cross section of offices in Scotland revealed increases
in Dundee, Paisley and Falkirk, with a slight decrease over in Aberdeen. In
Wales our Wrexham, Cardiff and Swansea offices also reported increased rents,
although rents for flats in Swansea remained flat to falling, which could be
attributed to an increase in first-time buyers versus renters. Our Newtownards
office in Northern Ireland again reported increased rents, with demand remaining
the same and stock shortages of one to four bed properties.

“A survey of a cross section of Belvoir franchisees in Q3
2019 looked at the question of whether there has been an increase in families
renting properties in the last ten years. Three quarters of Belvoir offices
surveyed reported an increase in the number of families renting, although only
25% highlighted the struggle to achieve a deposit or cope with the cost of
buying as the main reason. The increase in families renting is a cultural
shift, with reasons including job moves, lack of social/council housing,
renting as a temporary solution to avoid losing a sale, or the inability to
find a property they wanted to buy, and importantly, many tenants said they
preferred the flexibility of renting a larger property in an area that they
would not be able to buy.

“The survey suggests that the idea that families are renting
purely due to affordability issues isn’t necessarily true, as many are finding
it a practical solution to their current issues. However, for those that are
renting in the private sector because of a lack of social housing, this
suggests that if the proposed abolishment of Section 21 goes ahead and there
are less properties to rent, it could seriously damage the very tenants the
Government is trying to help.”

1/2

“As this decade draws to a close, Belvoir’s figures show
that with the exception of London, the South East and the South West, rents
have remained fairly balanced over the last decade. In Q3 2019 the lowest rents
were seen in the North West at £614 and the North East at £520, with the
highest rents achieved in the South East at £1145 and London at £1540.

 “Analysis of property
trends by property type revealed an increase in rents for flats and houses,
with shortage of supply due to landlord selling, government policies and the
impact of the tenant fee ban given as the main reasons. The majority of Belvoir
agents are predicting increasing rents for flats and houses in Q4 2019, with
room rents remaining static or with small increases.

“When we looked at the average time tenants are renting for,
we noted a fundamental shift from renting for less then 18 months to tenants
now renting in the main from 18-24 months. Landlords and tenants can be
reassured that within Belvoir hardly anyone is renting for less than 12 months,
let alone the average fixed term AST. In addition, long term trends suggest
that affordability is improving with 20% of Belvoir offices having zero tenant
arrears, over 50% just three tenants in one week arrears and a fall in the
percentage of offices with four or more tenants in arrears. This also links in
with the fact that nearly two-thirds of Belvoir offices had zero evictions, and
if an eviction does place in a quarter it is likely to be just one. It is clear
that renting through Belvoir is one of the best ways for landlords and tenants
to avoid eviction issues – whether Section 21 legislation changes or not.

“We also looked at the number of landlords who have sold
properties in Q3 2019, and over half of Belvoir offices confirmed an increase
in landlords offloading four to five properties, but a reduction in landlords
selling six or more properties. Interestingly, the percentage of offices
reporting no landlords buying has doubled since 2016, and we can confirm that
the days of double-digit landlords purchases are almost over.

“In summary, tenants and landlords that continue to let are
doing so amicably and at affordable rents. The key issue moving forward is that
in most areas there are more tenants than there are properties to rent. If this
trend continues, it is likely to put upward pressure on rents.“

To review the Belvoir Q3 2019 rental index visit: www.belvoir.co.uk

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