Renters Reform Bill moves to House of Lords
After months of waiting the Renters Reform Bill finally passed its third reading in the House of Commons yesterday, Coverage for the Bill has been widespread in the national press and trade press, some of which has been inaccurately reported.
Abolishing Section 21
This WILL happen. It is a manifesto commitment and the Housing Minister stressed that six months’ notice (a transitionary period) before ending section 21 tenancies to give the sector some time to implement these changes. There is a continued commitment to improving the county court system to adjust to the new possession processes.
Into the Detail of the Renters Reform Bill
Since the White Paper was published last Thursday, our Advice Line has been bombarded with questions about the Bill And rightly so given this is the most significant change in the Private Rented Sector since the Housing Act 1988 was introduced. We will be dealing with the detail of the Bill on June 29th in London during the training session we will be running, however, there are some important questions that need to be answered quite urgently. (Questions asked through our Advice Line).
1. Will the Section 21 Notice disappear next month?
No definitely not
2. What will replace the Section 21 Notice?
A re-vamped version of the Section 8 Notice with additional Grounds
3. How quickly will the legislation be implemented?
Before the Bill becomes an Act. There is no set time limit - the Bill it will be scrutinised by peers and MPs as it makes its way through parliament. This process is known as 'Parliamentary Ping-pong' and refers to the to and fro of amendments to Bills between the House of Commons and the House of Lords. It is during these multiple stages that amendments are made before the Bill finally becomes law.Given the complexity of the content of the Bill, this process may last 12 months or more.
Key Notices revert back to Pre-Pandemic Rules
A fifth change to key notices is introduced today.Both the Form 6a (Section 21) and the Form 3 (Section 8)0(0%) are prescribed forms therefore landlords must ensure they use the correct version before service. Remember to ensure that all the relevant documents which relate to the Deregulation Act 2019 and Tenancy Deposit Protection are in place to ensure that the Section 21 (Form 6A) when served, is valid, and that there are no breaches of the Tenant Fees Act 2019. With regards to the Section 8 (Form 3), the “Breathing Space” moratorium still applies. Any tenant who has been granted breathing space will have the relevant documents in place
1st October 2021 - Section 21 & Section 8 Notice periods to revert back to Pre-Pandemic Rules
The government has confirmed that notice periods for both Section 8 and Section 21 Notices in England will return to the pre-pandemic rules on October 1st, 2021.
Over the last 18 months since the government introduced emergency measures as part of the Coronavirus Act 2020 to protect renters, notice periods for both notices have changed 5 times causing a great deal of confusion for landlords and letting agents.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government announced: “While these measures were appropriate at the height of the pandemic, these restrictions could only ever be temporary. Returning notice periods to their pre-COVID lengths from 1 October will allow landlords to repossess their property where necessary. However, we intend to retain the power to implement these measures again in the case that the public health situation worsens and these measures are required again.”