A significant proportion of private landlords think that possession grounds proposed by the Renters Rights Bill could provide them with a helping hand, according to a new survey.

A number of landlords are concerned about the abolition of section 21  evictions, proposed in both the new Renters Rights Bill and the previous government’s Renters Reform Bill. But new possession grounds could help make up for this.

The research, conducted by buy-to-let lender Landbay, asked landlords whether the new Bill’s expanded Section 8 possession grounds would be helpful. These include mandatory grounds such as occupation by landlord or family, the sale of a residential property, when a superior lease ends, possession by a superior landlord, and possession to allow compliance with enforcement action.

Almost 40% of landlords in the survey said the possession grounds would be helpful while 28% said they wouldn’t be.

A landlord told Landbay: “Tenants should be dealt with fairly. Landlords should respond in good time to genuine issues but they should however be allowed to deal with problem tenants swiftly and firmly.”

But another thought that the Section 8 process would still be too protracted. They said: “I don’t believe in the abolition of section 21 as it will put a lot of financial pressure on landlords when a tenant does not pay rent and has to go down the lengthy process of section 8 to get a property back.”

The survey showed that nearly all of the landlords knew about the new Bill, with only nine per cent saying they were not aware of it.

Rob Stanton, sales and distribution director at Landbay, commented: “New possession grounds could offer a helping hand to landlords in the face of abolition of section 21s.

“Good landlords far outweigh the bad and, despite a somewhat bumpy market at the moment, demand continues to outstrip supply.

“As a buy-to-let lender, we are here to help should landlords need extra financing. We remain committed to doing our bit to help, innovating to meet the needs of landlords.”