Changes to Evicition and Notice Periods

Here’s our user-friendly, jargon-free guide for landlords with all the information you need at your fingertips on the new legislation regarding evictions and notice periods. Hopefully, you won’t need it, but…

Further to our recent blog about growth in the rental sector post-Covid, here at Clarity Property Management, we have further positive news for landlords. We like to report encouraging developments, so this will be of particular interest, we think.

How Was it For You?

How has the pandemic affected your property portfolio in the last 15 months or so?

If your tenants experienced difficulties in paying their rent you will have been significantly out of pocket; we think the myth of the “evil landlord” is outdated and offensive anyway, but you’re renting for a reason: much-needed income, or revenue to fund investment projects, or your retirement. Whatever your objectives, removing your rental payments whilst simultaneously preventing you from doing anything about it, would no doubt have been an unpleasant lose-lose scenario:

• Your tenants built up an uncomfortable level of debt to you, in all likelihood affecting your professional relationship with them.
• Your obligations to your tenants continued, with related expenses, yet your rental income ceased.

Housing Minister Chris Pincher, in a statement to the press advised that 45% of private landlords own just one property. So, not property moguls, then. Wow. That’s nearly half of landlords, possibly seriously affected by rent arrears.

In our view, the extension to the notice periods during the pandemic, as well as the halt in bailiff-enforced evictions was justified. Part of an overall programme of measures, it must have offered a lifeline to thousands of tenants throughout the UK.

However, for every action there’s a reaction.

We hear of a substantial backlog in arrears, as well as court cases similarly piling up.

And Now…The Good News

With effect from the 1st of June, two key things have happened.

Eviction Notice Periods

For more serious cases, eviction periods are shorter. These are:

• Anti-social behaviour (immediate to 4 weeks)
• Domestic abuse in the social sector (2 to 4 weeks)
• False statement (2 to 4 weeks)
• Over 4 months’ accumulated rent arrears (4 weeks)
• Breach of immigration rules, “Right to Rent” (2 weeks)
• Death of a tenant (2 months)

The notice period where there is 4 or more months of unpaid rent will be reduced to 2 months’ notice from 1st August 2021.

Along with the easing of restrictions on our business and personal lives, the government is taking a careful, phased approach with the objective to achieving “business as usual” from 1st October. However, let’s not get carried away: it seems only sensible to advise you that these changes are likely to reflect a rather wibbly wobbly “roadmap” as we emerge from the lockdown.

Things are somewhat fluid right now, so watch this space for any changes.

And yes – we’re on your side here. We agree that this near-traumatic state of affairs has been going on for far too long. But it is what it is and we’re going to have to grit our teeth for a while longer. Nevertheless, we’re pleased to note that Mr Pincher referred to “the need for landlords to access justice” in his announcement.

Bailiff-Enforced Evictions

An important exception: bailiffs have been asked not to conduct an eviction if anyone living in your property has Covid-19 symptoms or is self-isolating.

How Can Rental Agencies Help?

The short answer is a great deal.

This is the chance for rental sector businesses to step up to the mark and manage their clients’ expectations as closely and as carefully as they can. What do we mean by this?

Well, as a property owner, you’re going to appreciate expert advice. That is, the right guidance for you, as far as possible, to avoid making potentially costly mistakes.

Property Proficiency – The Clarity Distinction

Here at Clarity, we’re an authority in rented property legislation. We have to be, it’s a key part of who we are and how we work. Not least because we’re ARLA accredited – and this isn’t easy to get, or to maintain. It’s our promise to you of best-practice at all times.

As such, we aim to help you avoid taking legal action whenever possible. We’d like to think that we’re good at facilitating constructive communication between you and your tenants, finding the best solution for both parties and keeping detailed payment records to use in any disputes that may arise.

If re-possession is the only way forward – and sometimes it may be – then you can rely on us to help you manage it to a reasonable conclusion (although there are no guarantees). Clarification: it’s in our name – Clarity.

Our knowledge and experience could help to make a difficult scenario easier than it otherwise would have been.

And The Future?

There are rumours of change.

Change happens frequently in this sector, so that’s not surprising, however. The government will be conducting a review of renters’ rights later this year, and there are plans afoot to scrap Section 21 at some stage. At least, we think so. They’re going to publish a consultation document about this issue, which could prove interesting reading.

So, this is good news for our industry. Really good news, in fact. We’re getting there in stages. Get in touch for us if we can help.