Marylebone Solicitors Explain Labour’s Proposed Renters’ Rights Bill

 

Reform of the private property rental market in England and Wales looks set to continue under the Labour government after the party’s intention to introduce a new Renters’ Rights Bill was included in last month’s King’s Speech.

The speech by King Charles, made on 17 July 2024, outlines the Labour government’s priorities for the months ahead, following the party’s general election victory on 4 July 2024.

July’s King’s Speech included the Labour Party’s plans to introduce a Renters’ Rights Bill that aims to enhance rights and protections for renters in England and Wales.

The Bill is the Labour Party’s version of the previous government’s Renters’ (Reform) Bill, which failed to receive royal assent before parliament was dissolved.

In his speech, King Charles said the new legislation will “give greater rights and protections to people renting their homes, including ending no-fault evictions and reforming grounds for possession”.

The Renters’ Rights Bill is intended to make the private rental system fairer and improve standards. Currently, there are around 11 million tenants living in private rental properties in England and Wales, including 1.4 million households with dependent children and 444,000 households with over-65s.

The Bill is still in its draft form and there is no timeline for when it will be introduced.

Some of the key features of the Renters’ Rights Bill include:

Abolition of Section 21. Under Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988, landlords can ask tenants to move out of a property without giving a reason (known as ‘no-fault evictions’). Tenants have two months to vacate the property before a landlord can apply for a court order to evict them.

This can create instability and uncertainty for tenants. Unscrupulous landlords are also using section 21 evictions as an excuse to replace tenants and increase rents.

Under the new proposals, no-fault evictions will be scrapped, and landlords must provide clear and expanded possession grounds to reclaim properties.

Enhanced tenants’ rights and protections. Labour has pledged to give tenants more power to challenge rent rises and introduce new laws to end the practice of rental bidding wars by landlords and letting agents.

Right to have a pet. Landlords must consider tenant requests to keep pets and can request insurance for potential damage.

Decent Homes Standard. This will set out minimum standards for living conditions in the private rental sector.

Awaab’s Law. Labour’s proposals include setting clear legal expectations about the timeframes within which landlords in the private rented sector must make homes safe where they contain serious hazards.

This follows a similar law which came into force in July 2023 under the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023 to improve the safety and health of tenants in social housing. It was introduced following a campaign led by Awaab Ishak’s parents after Awaab died in December 2020 from a respiratory condition caused by mould in his Rochdale social housing flat.

Digital database. Plans include the creation of a digital private rented sector database to bring together key information for landlords, tenants, and councils. This centralised information source can be used by tenants when they are considering new tenancies and will enable landlords to quickly understand their obligations and demonstrate compliance. Councils will be able to use the database to target enforcement.

New ombudsman service. A new ombudsman service for the private rented sector will provide quicker and cheaper dispute resolution services for landlords and tenants.

Anti-discrimination measures. It will be illegal for landlords to discriminate against tenants in receipt of benefits or with children when deciding on who should rent their property.

More local councils’ powers. New investigatory powers will make it easier for councils to identify and fine rogue landlords.

Landlord and Tenant Solicitors London

If you are a landlord and need clarification about how the Renters’ Rights Bill is likely to affect you or are a tenant and want to know the impact of the changes, get in touch with Muscatt Black Graf.

Our specialist Landlord and Tenant solicitors can advise on any legal issues that arise throughout the entire lifecycle of a relationship between a landlord and tenant and provide you with a complete service to ensure you are fully aware of your position at every stage.

Muscatt Black Graf’s experienced Commercial Property solicitors can advise on all aspects of landlord and tenant law, including:

• Drafting and negotiating leases.
• Lease agreements.
• Lease assignments.
• Lease renewals.
• Break clauses.
• Heads of terms.
• Security of tenure.
• Licence to occupy.
• Licence to underlet.
• Licence to alter.
• Service charge.
• Rent deposits.
• Stamp duty.
• Tenancy at will.

Our experienced Marylebone-based lawyers are specialists in their field and excellent communicators, providing clear and concise advice in plain English and offering pragmatic solutions that fit your commercial interests.

For specialist legal advice on landlord and tenant issues, please contact Muscatt Black Graf’s solicitors by calling 0207 586 1141 or emailing contact@muscattblackgraf.com.

This blog was prepared on 5 August 2024. It is not intended to be advice and should not be relied upon as such.