The chief executive of the National Residential Landlords Association has warned new Prime Minister Andy Burnham against imposing more red tape and costs on the beleaguered private rental sector.
But Ben Beadle also says that, having worked with Burnham when he was a regional mayor, “he has a personal, and seemingly genuine, interest in housing and property standards. He also demonstrates a pragmatism and, dare I say it, a flexibility in terms of his approach.”
Beadle has now written to Burnham to outline the association’s vision for the private rental sector.
More specifically, the association head says the area of strongest likely disagreement is rent controls.
Beadle writes on his association’s website: “Labour – for a number of years now – has agreed with us, rejecting rent controls on the basis of categoric domestic and international evidence that they simply don’t work.
“Back in 2016, as mayoral candidate, Andy Burnham pledged to ‘seek powers to regulate rent increases and property standards’ if elected.
“Fast-forward to February 2023, and he signed an open letter to government calling for an immediate freeze on private sector rents until the cost-of-living crisis was over.”
Beadle then says that in his first speech as Labour leader on Friday, he described the sell-off of council homes as leaving ‘the country chasing rents in the private rented sector through the benefits system’.
He went on to make reference to investing in ‘prevention’, though stopped short of making any firm policy pledges.
Beadle ponders: “There are a number of possibilities; that he could introduce a national rent freeze or system of controls, or, in line with his views on devolution – which he reiterated on Friday – give regional mayors greater freedom to make their own decisions.
“Neither of these are good news – for landlords or tenants – and we will continue to make the argument that rent controls, regardless of their nature, only ever result in reduced options for tenants and lower housing standards, something that goes against all that he stands for.”
He says the association also disagrees with Burnham over landlord licensing, but acknowledges that Burnham’s broadly pragmatic approach to setting up the Good Landlord Charter in Greater Manchester was sufficient for the NRLA to take a seat on its board.
Meanwhile Beadle has also commented on the return of Angela Rayner as Housing Secretary.
He states: “We welcome Angela Rayner back as Housing Secretary. Boosting housing supply will be one of the Government’s most pressing issues, and we stand ready to work constructively with ministers on this agenda.
“With the private rented sector facing significant further changes, it is vital that reforms are practical and fair for both tenants and responsible landlords.
“We urge the Housing Secretary to focus on improving enforcement to root out the minority of rogue and criminal landlords undermining the reputation of the responsible majority. In parallel, ministers must also repair the broken justice system to ensure the Renters Rights Act can be implemented effectively.
“Underpinning all of this is a need to rule out any form of rent control. As Angela Rayner herself and the cross-party Housing Select Committee have all warned, rent controls would undermine the supply of the homes to rent so many tenants urgently need.”
This article is taken from Landlord Today