An Update from Westminster

An Update on the Renter's Reform Bill 

The White Paper on the Renters' Reform Bill, should have been published in October and has now been delayed until 2022,  The announcement made by the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities was a surprise given that the Bill had appeared on the government's agenda and in the Queen's Speech.  The government announced that the White Paper would provide an outline of it's plan to  its reform the private rented sector. The proposed changes are set to include:-

• abolishing Section 21

• the introduction of lifetime deposits

• a Tenants' Redress Scheme

• a Landlords' Register & Regulation of Landlords

A recent survey looked at the difficulties individuals face when renting, letting or enforcing property standards in the Private Rented Sector.The Government’s said that they are committed to exploring the merits of a national landlord register and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities are engaging with a range of stakeholders across the private rented sector.

The initial research exercise will complete in December 2021. The findings from this survey of private tenants and other sources of research will be used to inform next steps and further engagement.

What's Happened to ROPA?

Founded in October 2018 by the then Housing Minister, the working group tasked with the Regulation of Property Agents (ROPA) were tasked with advising the government on a model for regulating property agents in England’s private sector.

Chair of the working group, Lord Best, expressed his disappointment when the question was raised in the House of Lords about whether the government would carry on with implementing the measures proposed in the report. Lord Greenhalgh declined to say whether any action was likely ‘within six months’ but did mention he  forward to seeing the draft Code of Practice which is due to be delivered at any moment.
As agents across the prepare themselves for regulation, only time will tell when exactly this will happen.
Refresh your memory and read the proposals of the ROPA Working Group here.

Name Change for the Ministry of Housing

As Michael Gove took over at what was known as MHCLG, a name change swiftly followed. The Ministry of Housing always evoked thoughts of Harry Potter, was at least easy to remember and refer to.

Not quite as straight forward as the Department is now to be referred to as the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. Apparently this follows Boris Johnson’s decision to put levelling up at the heart of his re-election strategy. The Prime Minister announced that “levelling up every part of the UK – not just investing in our great towns and cities, as well as rural and coastal areas, but giving them far more control of how that investment is made”.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities supports communities across the UK to thrive, making them great places to live and work. DLUHC is a ministerial department, supported by 13 agencies and public bodies.