Jun

Section 21 eviction ban? We’re off to short-term lets, say thousands of landlords

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Thousands of landlords have vowed to switch to short-term lets when Section 21 notices are abolished, a new survey has found.

Assist Inventories’ study of 10,000 landlords and letting agents revealed that 45% plan to move away from long-term tenancies while 41% said they might consider it.

Quizzed on the government’s plans to scrap no-fault evictions in the Fairer Renting White Paper, more than 70% of letting agents said the abolition of Section 21 would or might cause an exodus of landlords from the market, however 60% of landlords said it wouldn’t. Interestingly, it found that 68% of letting agents don’t agree with the strategy, while 55% of landlords are against it.

Following any change in the eviction law, 75% of landlords said they will become more selective when choosing tenants, while 90% of landlords and 70% of lettings agents want clear and comprehensive grounds outlined for possession.

Raj Dosanjh, founder of Rentround, says the changes could be hard on both landlords and tenants. He adds: “The abolition of Section 21 is clearly a worry for agents and landlords

“Due to the additional risk the abolition will bring to landlords, it’s obvious that many will move to shorter tenancies and more stringent tenant background checks. This will make it harder for tenants with blemishes on their record, or those looking to get long term residencies to rent in the future.”

Assist Inventories also asked about the Decent Homes Standard and discovered that 35% of landlords don’t have a clear understanding of it, while 70% of letting agents and 64% of landlords believe there is a lack of incentive for landlords to improve accommodation. Only 48% of landlords and 57% of agents believed a landlord register should be mandatory.

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