Government confirms plans to regulate short-term lets

The government has announced plans for a mandatory register for short-term lets, which could come into force by March 2027.

Speaking in Parliament, Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy confirmed that the government is committed to introducing regulation for short-term holiday lets.

Under the proposed scheme, hosts will be required to register their property’s address and will be issued a unique reference number. This number must then be displayed on every platform where the property is advertised.

Hosts will also need to confirm that they are complying with existing legal requirements for short-term lets, including fire safety measures and gas and electrical safety certification.

Putting power back into people’s hands

Ms Nandy told MPs: “We are bringing forward measures to introduce a register of short-term lets.

“We believe that local leaders need to be able to understand what is happening in their local areas and to shape that in order to have the benefits of tourism.

“This regulation is about putting power back into people’s hands so that they can shape the right balance between the benefits that tourism brings and the needs of people locally for decent housing.

She confirmed to Parliament the register will be “up and running” by March next year.

Strike a balance

Propertymark has called for the government to strike a balance with short-term lets.

The industry body writes on its website: “We have been outspoken over how the proliferation of short-term lets risks reducing the size of the private rented sector, and we have consistently called for a fairer balance between short-term and residential lettings.

“Short-term lest can support tourism and give owners flexibility, but local authorities need effective tools to respond where high numbers reduce the availability of homes for local people.

“Our research has found that increasing the supply of private and social housing is the main solution to pressures linked to short-term lets. However, our members also support proportionate regulation that creates greater parity with the private rented sector, including effective local controls and appropriate standards”.

As previously reported by Property118, MPs have called for the government to go further to clamp down on short-term lets by changing data-management rules.

In London, short-term lets are limited to 90 nights per year without planning permission. However, MPs argue that enforcing this is effectively impossible under current systems due to the difficulty of obtaining accurate data.