A group of high-profile housing leaders, lawyers and economists have urged the Government to include private landlords within its plans to solve the housing crisis, instead of casting them as the villains of the piece.

The comments have been made within a report into the problems facing the UK’s housing market published by a Labour-supported thinktank called the Radix Big Tent Housing Commission.

This group, lead by economist Dame Kate Barker (main image), supports the role of private landlords and calls for them to be given the same status as volume house builders.

The report, which follows Barkers first investigation into housing supply in 2004, says it is “critical to recognise the valuable housing provided by good private landlords as represented by professional bodies with voluntary codes of conduct such as the National Residential Landlord Association (NRLA) and The Property Institute; in the same way that the British Property Federation and Association for Rental Living represent larger institutional Build to Rent providers”.

Problem

The Commission’s report is an attempt to persuade the Government, and in particular Labour ministers and activists, that private landlords are not ‘the problem’ but instead part of the solution.

Barker’s report backs the NRLA and other organisations’ calls for the justice system to be improved before the Renters’ Rights Bill becomes law, and for Labour to set out its plans other than promising that ‘digitisation’ will make evictions easier to complete online.

The Commission, which is staffed by a panel of 16 academics, lawyers and property experts, includes Lord Best, who is best known as the architect of the previous Government’s attempts to clean up the estate agency sector.

Chronic shortage

“Renters across the country are struggling due to a chronic shortage of homes to rent to meet demand. They need more choice,” says Ben Beadle, Chief Executive of the NRLA (pictured).

“As the Commission notes, both institutional and private landlords have a critical role to play in meeting the country’s housing needs.

“The Government should also accept the Commission’s call for a plan to improve the justice system alongside the Renters’ Rights Bill. Ministers have pledged to ensure the courts are ready for the changes in the Bill. Its time for clarity about what ‘ready’ means for the sake of tenants and responsible landlords.”