The Intermediary – August 2025 - Flipbook - Page 37
(34% of private renters in 2023/24)
and older people (9% are over 65).
Overall demand for rental property
shows no sign of flagging, and if more
landlords choose to sell, supply will
shrink further.
The RRB’s headline measures
– abolishing fixed-term Assured
Shorthold Tenancies (ASTs) and
Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions – are
intended to give tenants greater
security. However, they also reduce
landlords’ ability to manage their
assets flexibly.
In future, removing a tenant will
mean proving one of a limited set of
grounds – such as selling, moving in,
arrears or anti-social behaviour – and,
in most cases, going to court.
With County Court cases already
taking an average of almost a year to
process, it’s unsurprising that many
landlords are looking to leave the
market before these rules take effect.
Tenants take the brunt
As we have established, the Bill also
includes limits on rent increases
(once per year), curbs on advance rent
payments, a landlord database and
mandatory acceptance of tenants with
pets unless refusal is ‘reasonable’.
Each measure has its rationale, but,
cumulatively, they add cost, reduce
flexibility, and increase perceived risk
for landlords.
If landlords raise rents now in
anticipation of tighter rules, or sell
up entirely, the immediate losers
are tenants. Competition for homes
is already fierce in many areas, and
rising rents will squeeze household
budgets further.
None of this is to argue against
tenant protections in principle.
Bad landlords exist, and strong
enforcement is vital. But regulation
that ignores supply-and-demand
realities can have the opposite of its
intended effect.
If the Government truly wants to
improve conditions for renters, it
must also address the chronic housing
shortage. That means building far
more homes across tenures, increasing
social housing, and creating a policy
environment in which good landlords
want to stay in the market. Without
KATE DAVIES
is executive director
at the Intermediary Mortgage
Lenders Association
that, legislative ‘victories’ for tenants
could be hollow.
And as for Rushanara Ali, she may
have been guilty of poor political
judgment, but, in the cold light of
economics, her decision was entirely
rational. The looming RRB means
that thousands of other landlords are
making similar calculations, and they
don’t have to resign when they do. ●
August 2025 | The Intermediary
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