You are viewing 1 of your 1 free articles
Fixed-term tenancies ‘should be scrapped’, says thinktank
Fixed-term tenancies for private renters should be scrapped and replaced by mandatory open-ended agreements in order to end so-called “no-fault” evictions, a thinktank has said.
The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR), which calls itself the UK’s leading progressive thinktank, said the law should also be changed to stop landlords evicting tenants within the first three years of a tenancy because they want to sell their home.
It made the calls in a report published today urging a major overhaul of the private rented sector.
A poll conducted by Sky Data on behalf of the IPPR found that 72% of people believe the government should be doing more to regulate the private rented sector, while 53% feel the current system is unfair on tenants.
Private landlords are currently allowed to issue a ‘Section 21’ eviction notice to tenants whose assured shorthold tenancy has ended without giving a reason.
These tenancies typically last for six months or a year – offering little housing security to the millions of private renters in the UK.
READ MORE
Darren Baxter, research fellow at the IPPR, said: “Despite the growth in private renting, the regulation which governs it is unfit for purpose.
“Families are exposed to expensive, often poor-quality accommodation and tenants face the threat of a no-fault eviction, with significant costs and practical impacts, including school moves for children.
“Increasing security for tenants through an open tenancy and preventing landlords from evicting to sell in the first three years of a tenancy will give much greater stability to families who rent privately, enabling them to make better homes.”
Among its other recommendations, the report called for a review of the taxation of private landlords, changes to welfare reforms to help struggling tenants and a national landlord register.
An estimated 4.7 million households in England rent from private landlords – up from 2 million in 1997 – and more than a third are families with children.
The IPPR said that around one in 10 tenancies end because of a no-fault eviction, with 62% of notices served so that landlords can sell the home or use it themselves.
