Labour Vows To Cap Rent Rises For Private Tenants

Labour has vowed to "put bad landlords out of business" and bring in rent controls in England, if it wins power. Private rents would not be allowed to go up by more than inflation - and landlords would be fined for letting out sub-standard property. A Labour government would also bring in "open-ended" tenancies, to protect tenants from unfair evictions. The Tories have also set out plans to help tenants - including scrapping "no fault" evictions. Under Labour's "private renters' charter", landlords would face an annual "property MOT", with fines of up to £100,000 or forced repayment of rent if their properties are found to be sub-standard. Read more on the BBC website.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-2019-50540436

Landlords in A Pickle as Tenants' Charter Breaches Buy-To-Let Terms

Millions of people trapped in a cycle of short-term rental tenancies will be able to demand that landlords give them longer contracts, expected to be between two and five years, under a "tenants' charter" unveiled by communities secretary Eric Pickles. However, the move threatens to put large numbers of landlords in breach of buy-to-let mortgage terms, which generally stipulate that tenancy agreements be no more than one year. Pickles told the Conservative party conference: "Today's proposals will raise the quality and choice of rental accommodation, root out the cowboys and rogue operators in the sector, and give tenants the confidence to request longer fixed-term, family-friendly tenancies that meet their needs."  Read more on the Guardian website.