Landlords are less worried by the Government’s looming Renters (Reform) Bill and more concerned about the financial squeeze they face including tenants who don’t pay their rent, a new poll reveals.

Letting agency giant the Leaders Romans Group, which runs ten different brands across the UK, says landlords are most worried the financial pressures from additional costs and taxes rather than the extra red tape and responsibilities within the Bill, with most saying they pose few problems for ‘good landlords’.

LRG talked to 630 buy-to-let investors recently and a majority called for measures to enforce greater tenant ‘financial responsibility’ with 70% approving of measures which included adding rent arrears to a tenant’s credit score in order to deter late payments.

Sheraz Dar (pictured), who runs a leading platform – CreditLadder – which helps tenants add their payments to their credit file, says: “Every good system requires equilibrium, which is why we also work with agents and landlords who are able to tell us about rent arrears - this information can also be added to credit files.

“As a business we want to encourage and reward good behaviour from all areas of the property rental ecosystem.”

Register

Also, 45% of the landlords quizzed by LRG said they supported a tenant register to help them identify those who had previously been in arrears or caused damage to a property.

“Having had one bad tenant, I think it would be good to have a register so future landlords could be aware of previous issues so they can make an informed decision on whether to take the tenant on,” one landlord said.

“I am currently applying through court for repossession due to a tenant failing to pay rent for the last four months.

The current system is too slow and not fit for purpose.

“A tenant register would hopefully ‘black list’ those who default on rent or cause nuisance, so they are unable to re-rent with a different landlord.”

Landlords also support a dedicated housing court for evictions and a more streamlined process, given the horrendous delays currently experienced at some County Courts at the moment.

Evictions

Many understand that proposals to get rid of Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions within the Bill are designed to stop rogue landlords evicting tenants unfairly, but say that abolishing this kind of eviction will have unintended consequences by removing a key tenancy management tool for good landlords.

"The journey of the Renters (Reform) Bill is a critical moment for the UK's property sector,” says Alison Thompson (pictured), National Lettings MD at LRG.

“As discussions around the Renters (Reform) Bill continue, LRG remains steadfast in its commitment to championing legislative changes that recognise the challenges landlords face, advocating for a rental market that is equitable, sustainable, and responsive to the needs of all stakeholders involved.”

Read the full LRG report (requires registration).

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