NRLA warns of landlord database ‘rip off’ cost

England’s planned landlord database is set to cost the private rented sector at least £327 million a year, with tenants ultimately footing the bill, the NRLA warns.

The government will begin rolling out the database in December as part of its Renters’ Rights Act, but Landlords will be charged to submit much of the same information many already give their councils.

The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) says that at £65 a year for each property, the charge is almost seven times the figure ministers envisaged in the Bill’s impact assessment.

Database costs criticised

The organisation’s chief executive, Ben Beadle, said: “A well-designed database should make it easy for landlords to demonstrate compliance with their obligations; empower tenants; and be truly digital in every way.

“This looks likely to fail on every count.”

He added: “What we have on offer is a costly mess.

“It expects payment for landlords to provide much the same information as many already give their councils, with no additional benefit to them or their customers.”

Landlord paperwork burden

The database charge will sit alongside licensing fees in areas where councils operate schemes.

However, these can cost as much as £2,300 per property which is being charged by Arun District Council.

Mr Beadle said: “The mind boggles that landlords are to be forced to pay more to manually upload documents to a website than mechanics are permitted to charge to carry out an MOT check, which includes a comprehensive, hands-on examination of a car’s roadworthiness.

“Frankly, landlords and tenants are being ripped off in the name of consumer protection.”

Other database issues

The NRLA also warns that there are currently no government plans to digitise gas and electrical safety certificates in the same way as Energy Performance Certificates (EPC).

That means landlords will have to scan the documents manually and upload them to the database, adding to the administrative costs of compliance.

The NRLA says this will be particularly burdensome for larger landlords, including build-to-rent providers managing hundreds or thousands of properties.

Further costs ahead

Meanwhile, the sector is still awaiting details of the charge for joining the planned private rented sector Ombudsman scheme.

The NRLA says that fee is widely expected to be significantly higher than the database charge.

Landlords are also preparing for a tax increase on rent income from 2027, the association says.

Mr Beadle argued that the hundreds of millions earmarked for the database would be better spent helping landlords meet the government’s energy efficiency targets.