City council set to approve ‘points-based’ rent controls

A tenant-led commission set up by a city council to tackle rising rents has delivered a report with 16 recommendations – including the introduction of a points-based system of rent controls.

The commission was created in late 2020 in response to a ‘rent crisis’ and the recommendation for rent controls would be based on standards to help incentivise landlords to invest in their rental properties.

The commission was created by Glasgow City Council and in a report to be considered on Wednesday (27 September), the Neighbourhood, Housing and Public Realm City Policy Committee will consider the report.

The meeting looks set to rubberstamp the recommendations that will form the basis of the city’s new housing strategy for 2023 to 2028.

Housing commission was created to deal with the rent crisis

The tenant-led housing commission was created to deal with the rent crisis and offer recommendations to address the situation including any action to ‘limit rent increases in the private rented sector’.

On rents and affordability, the recommendation is:

‘Glasgow City Council to work in partnership with Scottish Government to introduce a robust and measured approach to a points-based system of rent controls, based on property standard and/or condition, to incentivise landlords to invest in their properties, as a means of justifying rent levels. Subsequently, improving the quality of PRS housing and standards of management.’

Other recommendations in the report include a review and reform of local planning policy and to utilise the landlord registration database to improve the communication and skills of landlords.

The report also calls on the council to increase staffing and resources to take a proactive approach to property inspections and enforcement action.

There’s also a recommendation for tenants to receive support and skills to confidently communicate and influence the housing services they receive and a request for the council to find out how many tenants are currently living in unsuitable accommodation.

Introducing a points-based rent control system

The notion of introducing a points-based rent control system comes just weeks after the Scottish government unveiled a rent freeze and a moratorium on tenant evictions across the country until March 2023.

Figures show that Glasgow’s private rental sector has risen since 2007 from 9.5% of the city’s housing stock to around 20% today.

That means there are around 59,000 homes in the PRS owned by 40,200 registered landlords.

A spokesman for the tenant rights’ organisation, Living Rent, told one newspaper that the recommendations are to be encouraged but they are ‘open-ended and vague’.

They added that the city’s private sector tenants have had to wait two years for the report while rents have continued to rise.

Living Rent says it is now up to Glasgow City Council to decide whether and how recommendations will be implemented and, they say, that any ‘vague commitment’ to its future intentions will not ‘be good enough’.