TheComment
Peter Bolton King Global Residential Director, RICS
Lettings reform must be centrally led
Says Peter Bolton King, Global Residential Director, RICS. A
lettings market that is not adequately regulated leads to weak consumer protection,
whilst those professional landlords and agents operating within the law lose out to the few rogue companies and individuals within the industry. The current lack of effective
regulation in the letting industry is a central concern for us at RICS. We recognise the need for minimum statutory professional and ethical standards for landlords and lettings agents, which must be subject to a redress system. A number of local authorities,
the Welsh Assembly Government and the Greater London Authority are looking to introduce some form of licensing or regulation of landlords, lettings agents or both. While they should be commended for tackling the issues in lettings, this piecemeal approach is confusing for consumers and agents alike.
These localised initiatives
could result in a complex and increasingly fragmented system of opposing regulation operating across invisible political boundaries. Many landlords and agents may eventually find one area impossible to operate in and favour another less bureaucratic area, distorting the market.
new system. However, without a redress system in place rogue landlords will continue to mislead consumers as before. This current piecemeal
approach does indicate a localised awareness of the need for change in the lettings industry, but this message is simply not being centrally
“Local licensing could result in a fragmented system.”
In addition, it is unclear from systems that have already been outlined, such as in Newham, how these new licences and regulations will be enforced. Most landlords and lettings agents do operate according to the law, with high ethical standards, and will continue to do so under the
Homes data
snapshot
English Housing Survey key findings l There were 21.89m households in England. Of these 66%, or 14.45m, are owner occupied. 17%, or 3.62m are in the private rental sector. l London had the lowest proportion of owner occupiers, (51%) but the highest proportion of private renters (25%). The percentage of social
20 l September 2012 l TheNegotiator
acknowledged, to the detriment of business and consumers. We believe that once a single regulatory framework is put in place – which includes simplified legislation, professional standards and a system of enforcement and redress - industry bodies will be able to
renters was highest in London and the North East (both 24%). l Owner occupiers buying with a mortgage made average weekly mortgage payments of £143, which accounts for 19% of weekly income. This compared with average weekly rent payments of £160 made by privately renting households (43% of
take control of the situation resulting in improved consumer protection and transparency in the industry. We are calling for the
government to reform the Estate Agents Act of 1979 to include lettings and managing agents, which would help to bring the industry under increased regulation. This will help to ensure Client Money Protection, Professional Indemnity insurance and clear redress mechanisms are in place across the industry. Enforcement of Section 22 of the act would also create a statutory level playing field for all sales, lettings and managing agents. We are ready to work with
government and other industry bodies to reduce this complexity and deliver a simplified regulatory framework. This will not only help to strengthen consumer protection but create a level playing field for the lettings industry.
gross weekly income). Social paid £79 a week rent (29% of gross weekly income). l 59% of private renters and 23% of social renters said they expected to buy a home in the UK, at some point. l There were two million recently moving households in 2010- 11, compared with 1.8 million in 2009-10. Of
these, 62% were private renters, 16% were social renters and 22% were owner occupiers. l Over 1.9 million households owned at least one additional properties overall. Just under a quarter of these properties, are rented to others. l There are 940,000 empty homes in England.
www.thenegotiator.co.uk
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53