Although Labour has vowed to end no-fault evictions, ban bidding wars and impose deadlines for removing potentially deadly mould, it is pressing for more radical reforms to private renting amid fears that landlords will find new ways to evict tenants.
Campaigning against the “rip-off private rented sector”, Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner and shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves claimed that private renters could save £250 a year if a Labour government made landlords make energy efficient improvements to leaky rental properties.
Private landlords will no longer be able to auction rental properties to the highest bidder and there will be a cap on rent demands, though it is unclear how much. Labour reiterated its pledge to “immediately put an end to no-fault evictions” and said it would “crack down on unscrupulous landlords who exploit tenants with exorbitant rents and poor living conditions.”
But the party’s promises to England’s 4.5 million rented households still do not provide the security many want, and they fear it leaves a back door open for evictions. Demand continues to outstrip supply, with 15 households competing for every private rented property. According to Zoopla – That’s double the rate before the pandemic.
“To properly tackle this crisis we need to know more about how Labour intends to deliver on securing tenancy rights for private renters,” said Tom Darling, campaigns manager for the Tenant Reform Coalition. “In particular, how it will prevent no-fault back-dooring through new eviction grounds, and how it will tackle evictions caused by exorbitant rent increases.”
Mr Rayner said his party would “end 10 years of Conservative vested interest and put tenants first”, and that “unscrupulous landlords should [are] “It stifles growth.”
“We will put an end to rent bidding wars so landlords no longer pit desired tenants against each other to see who can offer the highest price,” Labour said. The party has previously proposed requiring landlords to advertise rental prices and banning them from encouraging tenants to make higher bids.
New Zealand in 2021 Announced Landlords may not encourage or encourage prospective tenants to pay a higher rent than the advertised rent, or hold auctions, however, prospective tenants may voluntarily offer to pay a higher rent than the listed rent, and landlords may accept this.
Polly Neate, chief executive of housing charity Shelter, welcomed Labour’s efforts to “make renting fairer” but called for limits on rent increases during tenancy and longer notice periods.
The London Landlords Union said: “None of Labour’s new measures will protect tenants facing inflation-driven rent increases and exorbitant asking prices.”
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“While the party is right to highlight the issue of rising rents, today’s announcement does not offer much hope to the millions of people who live with the constant fear of being evicted from their communities because of rents they cannot afford,” said Jay Bale, a spokesman for a campaign group that has called for rent control after rent inflation in London hit 13 percent last year. “Labour must put our right to a home above landlord profits and commit to real rent control.”
Labour has ruled out introducing rent caps, but said it would require all landlords to meet strict energy efficiency standards by 2030 and extend the Awaab Law to the private rented sector. The government is consulting on a deadline for social housing landlords to fix mould and damp following the death of two-year-old Awaab Ishaq, who lived in a Rochdale council estate, from a respiratory illness in 2020.
It is estimated that around 160,000 privately rented homes in England will suffer from severe damp and mould damage by 2023. From the British Housing Survey.
