The Renters’ Rights Bill - Why preparing for change is key to Minimising Risk
I have been decidedly quiet on LinkedIn for the last 4 or 5 days to reflect and take stock of what is happening in the PRS, and to be honest, rest my eyes from all the reading I have been doing over the last 7 months – well more if we factor in the Bill from the previous government.
Research, reading, analysing, interpreting, formatting courses, drafting questions, drafting answers, writing blogs, attending legal seminars & courses, speaking at events, delivering webinars & courses are all part of the remit and require planning. The last time my colleagues and I encountered this volume of work was with the introduction of the Housing Act 2004. I had just embarked on my career in the PRS and sat back whilst my colleagues and barrister / mentor / friend / oracle did the heavy lifting.
House of Lords concludes 2nd Reading of the Renters’ Rights Bill
Yesterday 4th February 2025 saw the 2nd Reading of the Renters’ Rights Bill. We knew it would be a significant and crucial milestone in the journey of the Bill.
Baroness Taylor of Stevenage Opened the proceedings by stating :”The private rental system needs to change. It currently provides the least affordable, poorest quality and most insecure housing of all tenures. The insecurity it engenders creates uncertainty in the lives of tenants and allows good landlords to be undercut by the minority of rogues and chancers. In short, the 11 million private renters and the 2.3 million landlords across England are being failed. The Renters’ Rights Bill brings forward the most significant changes to the sector for nearly 40 years. The Bill will strengthen the security of tenure for tenants; ensure that they are paying a fair rent; guarantee a minimum standard that they can expect from a property; provide new robust avenues to redress; and more.”
What followed was just over 4 hours of debate from Peers who presented questions put to them from parties with a vested interest in the PRS. Each Peer declared their interests, a great number, unsurprisingly, are landlords.
The Importance of Tenant Referencing
As the landscape of the private rental sector changes with imminent changes to be introduced by the Renters’ Rights Bill, the way landlords and letting agents assess prospective tenants will be impacted . Ensuring a fair, efficient, and compliant tenant referencing process will be more important than ever.
How the Renters’ Rights Bill Will Change Tenant Referencing
The Renters’ Rights Bill introduces significant reforms aimed at improving tenant security and fairness in the rental market. These changes will directly impact how tenants are assessed, requiring referencing providers and letting agents to adapt their processes.
The Responsible Pet Owner
With the onset of the Renters Rights Bill becoming law at some point this year, one of the prominent area relates to Pets, reported by the press as a total ban on landlords being able to refuse a tenant with pets.
In fact, the Bill places a great deal of ‘responsibility’ on the pet owner.
I am the proud owner of two kittens Zeus Maximus and Apollo Aurelius. Taking on these little ones demonstrates exactly what a ‘responsible pet’ owner needs to deal with.
A Pet Profile provides an overview of the type of pet that will be living at the property and will give the landlord an idea of whether or not consent will be granted.
1. Has the pet owner registered with a vet?
2. Does the pet owner have insurance cover for any unforeseen medical circumstances?
3. Have the pets in question - generally cats and dogs, kittens and pups been. Micro-chipped?