If PRS tenants are so happy, why are landlords being persecuted?

There’s an old saying that says if something isn’t broken, don’t try to fix it and this week, landlords had the perfect example of what is happening in the private rented sector.

Almost three quarters of tenants in England say they are happy renting. That’s 74% according to Pepper Money’s survey.

Only 11% say they are unhappy.

But in May, we see the roll out of the Renters’ Rights Act that is going to cause turmoil and fix what, exactly?

This story obviously wasn’t widely covered but it underlines the fears of decent landlords everywhere.

Why are we being punished by making our businesses harder and handing control of rented property to tenants?

Criminal landlords hurt us too

For years, the narrative around the private rented sector has been one of dysfunction, imbalance and crisis.

It has been the bad and criminal landlords who have dominated headlines, not the decent ones going the extra mile.

Activist groups frame the market as structurally exploitative, but here’s more research proving the opposite.

The media and politicians must stop saying this when another survey asking tenants directly what they think is published.

The happiness scores are consistent across regions, and no one should be surprised to read that 75% of renters would recommend their landlord to others.

To me, that’s not a system in collapse but a reflection of a system that is functioning, imperfectly perhaps, but functioning for everyone.

Good landlord-tenant relations

It was also nice to see that landlord proximity was noted as 77% of tenants whose landlord lives within 40 miles report being happy.

That drops to 71% when the landlord is more than 50 miles away.

I think that local presence matters so a landlord or an agent can be responsive when necessary.

There’s a good relationship for tenants to enjoy and yet we’ve seen landlord bashing increase over the last five years.

For many small landlords, the tax changes have penalised them into making a tough decision about selling up.

If the numbers don’t add up, why carry on?

Laws for landlords

Our compliance burdens have expanded and there are now more than 160 laws to comply with.

That’s without selective licensing and the Renters’ Rights Act making life even more difficult.

Supporters of the Act will argue that high satisfaction rates do not eliminate the need to protect the ‘vulnerable minority’.

That’s a fair point because no sector should tolerate malpractice.

But let’s be clear – there’s an issue with enforcement in not targeting those bad and criminal landlords.

Instead, the decent, law-abiding landlords are hit with outrageous fines and fees with the Act increasingly looking like a demolition job.

Consult landlords for help

Things won’t get better any time soon either as court capacity remains stretched and tribunals are backlogged.

That will get worse as tenants get a free go at stymying a rent rise while landlords have to pay and take time to prove their case.

But losing Section 21 without court reform risks paralysis in a system that will soon be overwhelmed.

If 74% of tenants are happy today, what happens if supply contracts further?

What happens when smaller landlords, already facing higher borrowing costs and tightening margins, decide the PRS no longer works for them?

Critics still don’t appreciate that private landlords choose to become a landlord and we can choose not to be.

Is PRS reform needed?

So, here we have proof that there’s no widespread breakdown in landlord-tenant relations.

The debate should never have been about whether PRS reform is needed, it should have been about proportion.

Because once confidence drains from the supply side, rebuilding it is going to be far harder than regulating it.

And satisfaction surveys will not look so comfortable if availability shrinks and rents climb as a result.

With just 11% of unhappy renters, the question is whether landlord bashing policies are responding just to them or ignoring the happiest tenants.

By Christmas, I think we will see the answer and politicians will be scrambling for a solution.

But I bet they won’t bother consulting us about how affordable, quality housing can be provided. Again.

Until next time,

The Landlord Crusader