Committee calls for raising standards and stronger enforcement across PRS

A government committee has urged the government to introduce incentives for landlords to raise standards in the private rented sector (PRS).

The Housing, Communities and Local Government (HCLG) Committee’s report on housing conditions in the PRS calls on the government to speed up compliance with the new Decent Homes Standard ahead of the 2035 deadline.

The report also claims more proactive regulation and enforcement of standards in the PRS by councils is “critical if the government is going to improve conditions for tenants”.

Encourage landlords to upgrade properties sooner

The HCLG have welcomed the government’s plans to raise standards in the PRS over the next decade.

However, the committee warns the 2035 deadline for the Decent Homes Standard needs to be brought forward as “landlords are likely to wait until shortly before the standard comes into effect in 2035 before upgrading their properties”.

The report says that, with more than one million PRS homes currently falling below the existing Decent Homes Standard, many renters could face a long wait before their homes are improved.

The committee recommends introducing incentives to encourage landlords to upgrade their properties sooner.

It also expresses disappointment that the government only plans to place a duty on local authorities to take enforcement action when Criterion A is breached, arguing that stronger enforcement and tougher deterrents would encourage more landlords to bring their properties up to the new standard.

The committee also urges the government to bring forward the rollout of Awaab’s Law in the private rented sector. Awaab’s Law requires landlords to fix serious hazards such as damp and mould within strict legal timeframes.

The committee recommends that it be rolled out in 2026, with the aim of having legal deadlines for landlords to resolve hazards fully in place across the private rented sector by the end of 2028/29.

Stronger and more proactive regulation

Florence Eshalomi MP, Chair of HCLG, explains councils must be provided with stronger and proactive regulation to enforce the new rules.

She said: “The government’s reforms to renters’ rights are welcome and can make an important contribution to improving housing conditions for tenants, helping people to live in safe and secure homes where they are treated fairly by their landlords.

“However, more needs to be done to ensure that the new tenants’ rights are enforceable and that landlords play by the rules. Stronger and more proactive regulation and enforcement of standards by local authorities is needed to improve conditions for tenants.

“The government needs to play its part by ensuring councils have the resources to do this job effectively and that the upcoming Private Rented Sector Database gives tenants the tools they need to check that their home is suitable and safe.

“Far too many private renters are living in homes that are sub-standard. Poor conditions in the rented sector are ultimately a symptom of the nation’s wider housing crisis, especially the lack of social and affordable housing.

“The government needs to come forward with the long-term housing strategy and set out a credible plan to address the drivers of poor housing conditions”.

Selective licensing duplicate information in PRS Database

Ben Beadle, chief executive of the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA), said they welcomed the committee’s report, including some of NRLA’s recommendations.

He said: “The Committee is right to argue that improving standards requires a mix of incentives to support landlords to meet the planned Decent Homes Standard sooner than 2035, whilst improving enforcement to root out rogue and criminal landlords that have no business operating within the sector.

“We are pleased that the Committee has taken heed of several of the NRLA’s recommendations on enforcement, including the need to better understand council capacity, improve transparency around local enforcement activity, and ensure the Private Rented Sector (PRS) Database helps responsible landlords to demonstrate compliance.”

However, the NRLA rejected the committee’s proposal to make it easier for councils to introduce selective licensing schemes, warning that it would only duplicate information in the PRS Database.

Mr Beadle added: “We fundamentally reject the idea that it should be easier for councils to introduce landlord licensing schemes. Licensing can be an effective tool when used sparingly and in a focused manner.

“Allowing local authorities carte blanche to apply it will serve only to duplicate the information councils will be able to obtain from a well-designed PRS Database.

“More broadly, we welcome the Committee’s calls for the courts to be properly resourced to cope with the impact of the Act, and its rejection of calls for rent controls. “As it rightly concludes, they would undermine the supply of affordable properties. We agree with the Committee that the focus must instead be on ensuring the rental appeals tribunal processes cases far quicker than they do at present.”