The mayor of London has once again called on the government to hand him extra powers so he can cap rents in the capital, while similar moves have been made in Bristol and Wales more recently.
Sadiq Khan has long insisted that the controls are needed to “fundamentally rebalance London’s private rented sector” and make it “fit for purpose”.
But critics believe his vision could have a negative long-term impact on the quality of housing in the private rented sector, and very few letting agents disagree.
Timothy Douglas, head of policy and campaigns at Propertymark, said: “Rent controls are not the antidote for rising rent levels and will backfire, drive down standards and reduce the number of properties available to rent. Ultimately, this will mean even less choice and increased costs for tenants in the long term.
“Politicians are failing to recognise the increased legislative requirements that landlords face, along with the array of tax changes that have placed additional financial burdens on landlords. This is in addition to the challenges that many landlords and agents have faced due to the Covid-19 pandemic.”
Propertymark’s latest data collected from letting agents showed that agents registered on average 118 new prospective tenants in January, a 140% increase from December’s figure of 49, in contrast, their data also showed letting agents only took on an average of six new properties in January.
Douglas added: “If our elected representatives are serious about supporting renters, then more must be done to increase supply and build housing across all tenures as well as supporting those agents and landlords who provide much needed homes for their residents.”
Get rid of Khan and put Timothy Douglas in as Mayor.
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
I’d settle for Khan going away, far, far away.
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register
COUGH-Rent Act 1977-COUGH (Because that was such a monumental success wasn’t it)
The Government has about much sense for “fair rent” as it does for PPE buying (£8.7 BILLION down the drain). How about we see the Government meet its own commitments to social/affordable housing before they start sticking their nose in PRS?
You must be logged in to like or dislike this comments.
Click to login
Don't have an account? Click here to register